What is the significance of the fact that Moshe spoke to Yisrael in the fortieth year?
Seforno: He was speaking to the new generation who were about to enter Eretz Cana'an, after the old generation, that left Egypt, had all died.
Oznayim la'Torah: They had stood on the border of Eretz Cana'an for thirty-nine days after leavng Chorev and the time had arrived for Moshe to explain the Torah to Yisrael before crossing the Yarden and setting-up the large stones and inscribing the Torah on them in seventy languages. 1 Only due to the sin of the spies, this was not taking place forty years later, 2 with he difference that it was Yehochua, and not Moshe, whi inscribed on the stones.
See Oznayim la'Torah.
'A year for each day, a year for each day!' - Sh'lach-L'cha, Bamidbar, 15:34.
Bearing in mind the Pasuk in Masei Bamidbar, 33:38, which describes Av as being in the fortieth year, how can the current Pasuk state that Sh'vat was still in the fortieth year?
Rosh Hashanah: Because the year that Yisrael left Egypt they counted the months from Nisan and not from Tishri.
What is "ke'Chol asher Tzivah Hashem oso ... " referring to?
Ramban: It is referring to the new Mitzvos that Moshe will introduce in Seifer Devarim, 1 to reassure us that Moshe did not make them up, but that they were all taught to him by Hashem. 2
Seforno: It teaches us that Moshe reviewed the entire Torah, all that he had been taught until now.
Why did Moshe wait to rebuke Yisrael until shortly before he died?
Rashi: He took his cue from Ya'akov, who rebuked his sons only shortly before he died. 'Reuven, my son' he said to his B'chor, 'I did not rebuke you all these years 1 so that you should not leave me and join Eisav my brother'. In fact, the Sifri cites four reasons for only rebuking close to one's death: In order ... 1. ... to avoid having to rebuke many times; 2. ... the one who has been rebuked should not be embarrassed upon meeting his rebuker; 2 3. ... he should not bear him a grudge and 4. ... he should not leave him and go elsewhere.
Why here does the Torah add " ... ka'asher Tzivh Hashm oso", when in Pasuk 1, it only said " ... Diber Moshe"?
Oznayim la'Torah: After having been punished for declaring "Shim'u Na ha'Morim", Moshe, now afraid to rebuke Yisrael openly, began to rebuke them by way of hint, at which point Hashem told him that, now, before they enterred Eretz Cana'an, was the time to rebuke them openly 1 - to warn them to keep the Torah once they entered the land. 2
In Pasuk 1, the Torah said "el Kol Yisrael." Why does it say here "el B'nei Yisrael", and afterwards (in Pasuk 5) S'tam "Ho'il Moshe Be'er es ha'Torah"?
Moshav Zekenim (citing R. Yehudah ha'Chasid): First, Moshe said the Aseres ha'Dibros to everyone. Then he told the stringent [Mitzvos] to part of Yisrael and the Chachamim. Afterwards, he said S'tam the explanations and the [seventy-two] names [of Hashem] that emerge from the Pesukim in Beshalach Sh'mos, 14:19-21. 1
See Rashi Sotah 45a DH 'Ani'..
QUESTIONS ON RASHI
Rashi writes that one should rebuke close to one's death, in case one needs to rebuke many times. But it is a Mitzvah to rebuke even a hundred times?
Riva #1 and Moshav Zekenim: That is when the person is about to sin, but when rebuking for past sins, one rebukes only close to one's death.
Riva #2: The concern is in case Reuven rebukes Shimon for an sin, and afterwards Shimon will see Reuven transgressing it. He will say 'Fix yourself before you fix others!', and will despise the rebuke he received. Therefore, one waits until close to one's death before rebuking. 1
Riva: 'Mochicho ve'Chozer u'Mochicho' however, does not imply this.
