...Va’etchanan continues Moshe’s parting words to Bnei Yisrael, and one can see within his words his deep love for the people he has led. The second aliyah, which is Devarim 4:5-40, begins with a statement of the greatness of Klal Yisrael – a statement that is meant to be an eternal warning and inspiration: “See, I have imparted to you laws and rules, as my God Hashem has commanded me, for you to abide by in the land that you are about to enter and occupy. Observe them faithfully, for that will be proof of your wisdom and discernment to other peoples, who on hearing of all these laws will say, ‘Surely, that great nation is a wise and discerning people’” (Devarim 4:5-6)

The chukim and mishpatim of Bnei Yisrael were Divinely unique in their path to set the nation on track both civilly, morally, and spiritually. The laws were designed to address bein adam l’chavero, bein adam l’atzmo, and bein adam l’Makom. And the laws were given to help Bnei Yisrael become a unique example that people would wish to emulate. 

Moshe needed the people to know that it is a path of greatness and that it is a path that requires great effort: “But take utmost care and watch yourselves scrupulously, so that you do not forget the things that you saw with your own eyes and so that they do not fade from your mind as long as you live. And make them known to your children and to your children’s children” (4:9). 

These verses may seem like a continuation of previous admonishments in the Torah, but they are unique because these are not Hashem’s words, these are Moshe’s. The verses within this section of the parsha weave between “I”s and “You”s. When Moshe is telling the people what they should and should not do, it is not a rebuke but a testament of his love for them, his love that came at a tremendous personal cost. 

“Now Hashem was angry with me on your account and swore that I should not cross the Jordan and enter the good land that your God Hashem is assigning you as a heritage” (4:21). Moshe hurts, emotionally, because he cannot enter the land with the people. But this is not Moshe complaining. This is Moshe trying to make certain that the people before him and the generations to come receive the most important message. Hashem keeps His word, always. Indeed, numerous commentaries discuss why, at the opening of the parsha and here, Moshe claims his punishment is “on your account.”

As summarized on Aish.com: “The Ohr HaChaim takes this same approach to its inescapable conclusion: Had Moshe entered the Land, the Temple would have been built – and could never have been destroyed; such was the spiritual power of Moshe. Had the Jews sinned despite this spiritual center, God would have destroyed the people, while the building [the temple] would have remained standing, intact and unscathed. God did not allow Moshe to enter the Land so that He could take out his "anger" on the building, on the stone and mortar of the Beit haMikdash, rather than on the people who had transgressed. The people would be exiled, not annihilated. Thus, Moshe rightly explains, his own punishment was ‘for your sakes.’”

Moshe’s punishment is “on your account” looking forward, not backward. And looking forward, Moshe knows: “When you have children and grandchildren, and are long-established in the land, and you become corrupt and make a sculpted image, the likeness of anything, and do evil in the eyes of God, your God, provoking Him to anger. I call heaven and earth this day to witness against you that you shall soon perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess; you shall not long endure in it but shall be utterly wiped out from it” (4:25-26).

Note the use of the personal pronoun “I.” This is Moshe speaking. This is not Moshe conveying Hashem’s words, but Moshe passionately telling the people that he knows that they ...