"GOD AND ISRAEL ARE INSEPARABLE"

15 Elul 5780
Erev Shabbat Kodesh
Parashat Ki Tavo

This day, HASHEM, your God, commands you to perform these decrees and the statutes, and you shall observe and perform them with all your heart and with all your soul.  You have distinguished HASHEM today to be a God for you, and to walk in His ways, and to observe His decrees, His commandments, and His statutes, and to hearken to His voice.  And HASHEM has distinguished you today to be for Him a treasured people, as He spoke to you, and to observe all His commandments, and to make you supreme over all the nations that He  made, for praise, for renown, and for splendor, so that you will be a holy people to HASHEM, your God, as He spoke.  (Devarim 26:16-19)

From the Stone Edition of the Chumash Commentary:

Having now concluded the commandments and the explanations that God had instructed him to teach as his life drew to an end, Moses exhorted his people to observe them with all their heart and soul (Ramban), and always to think of the Torah as fresh and exciting, as if it had been given today (Rashi).

Because Israel accepted the Torah and committed itself to observe its commandments no matter what, the nation and God have mutually exalted one another.  Israel distinguished HASHEM as its only God, and He distinguished Israel as His only people (Rashi). 

...These two verses [17-18] constitute mutual pledges of allegiance between God and Israel.

In other words, no matter what is happening to us in this world, God and Israel are in it together and He is on our side!

~ SHABBAT SHALOM ~