Parasha Vaetchanan
Moses pleads to enter the Land, the Ten Commandments are repeated, and the Shema is proclaimed.
Overview
Parasha Vaetchanan contains two of the most important passages in all of Scripture: the repetition of the Ten Commandments and the Shema — the declaration of God's absolute unity that is the centerpiece of Jewish prayer and the foundation of monotheism.
The Story
Moses pleads with God to let him enter the Land; God refuses but allows him to see it from afar. Moses urges Israel to keep the Torah, warning them not to add to or subtract from it. He designates three cities of refuge east of the Jordan. He repeats the Ten Commandments with subtle variations that have generated centuries of commentary. Then comes the Shema: "Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One." Moses commands Israel to love God with all their heart, soul, and might, to teach these words to their children, and to bind them as signs on their hands and between their eyes.
Significance for Noahides
The Shema is the ultimate declaration of monotheism — the foundation of the Noahide prohibition of idolatry. "The Lord is One" means not merely that there is one God, but that God is the only ultimate reality — all existence flows from and returns to the One. For Noahides, the Shema is not a Jewish prayer but a universal truth, the bedrock of all righteous living.
"Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One." — Deuteronomy 6:4