One of the basic approaches of haftarah interpretation is to try to find some connection between the parashah and the haftarah. We take as axiomatic the notion that the choice of a particular haftarah reflects, in some way, some theme in Parashat Ha-Shavua. It seems reasonable, then, to try to uncover that link between our parashah, Ki Tavo, and its haftarah.
On the surface, this method may “expire” during the last fifth of the Jewish year. Consider the words of R. Avraham ben David of Lunel in his twelfth century work Sefer Ha-Manhig: “From Parashat Bereishit until the 17th of Tammuz we read haftarot which reflect the theme of the parashiyot; thereafter, the haftarot are tied to the season” (Laws of Fast Days, 16).
In other words, starting with the Shabbat following the seventeenth of Tammuz until the Shabbat preceding Tishah Be-Av we read three Haftarot of Punishment, followed by seven Haftarot of Consolation, which extend until Rosh Ha-Shanah. These haftarot, explains the Sefer Ha-Manhig, are chosen to reflect the pre-Tishah Be-Av and post-Tishah Be-Av seasons of the year, and one should not expect to find any connection at all between the parashah and these haftarot.
Nonetheless, I believe a case can be made – at least in regards to the seven Haftarot of Consolation – that those who selected the haftarot did try to align these haftarot with certain themes in the parashiyot of Devarim, even if their primary consideration in choosing them was to convey seasonal themes of consolation.
The haftarah selected for Parashat Ki Tavo – Yeshayahu chapter 60 – demonstrates this point. A quick read of the chapter displays immediately that it is an appropriate “pick” as a Haftarah of Consolation. The prophet describes the future redemption of the Jewish people, a time during which they are asked to “arise and shine, for the time of your light has come.” The nations of the world will come streaming to Jerusalem, presenting gifts for the Temple. They will assist in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem; indeed, the nations will be subservient to the Jewish people. The children of the nations who oppressed the Jewish people will grovel at the Jews’ feet. The Jews will experience great population growth and will remain in the Land of Israel forever.
Does this haftarah reflect any themes of Parashat Ki Tavo?
The salient aspect of Parashat Ki Tavo, of course, is the Tokhachah, wherein the Jewish people are warned that if they fail to observe the Torah, they will be subjugated by a foreign nation, exposed to terrible afflictions, and ultimately exiled from the Land of Israel.
In many ways, the haftarah parallels the parashah, but in an inverted sense. The haftarah is carefully chosen to be an antidote to the harsh message of the parashah; it describes how the ultimate redemption will reverse the terrible calamites which the parashah promises. Thus, it simultaneously serves as a seasonal Haftarah of Consolation, while at the same time mirrors the basic theme of the parashah.
A closer analysis of both texts reveals several ‘curses’ in the parashah which are explicitly ‘transformed’ into blessings in the haftarah:
The parashah describes how “the stranger among you will rise upon you higher and higher, while you descend lower and lower” (Devarim 28:43), and graphically depicts the enemy as “a brazen nation, who will show no favor to old or young” (28:50). In contrast, the Tokhachah in Parashat Bechukotai makes little direct reference to the conquering nation, instead depicting God Himself as the one who will render the land desolate.
The haftarah emphasizes at length how “foreigners shall build your walls and their kings will serve you…The nation and kingdom which will not serve you will be destroyed…The children of those who tortured you will come bent over submissively to you” (Yeshayahu 60:10, 12, 14). This focus is a deliberate contrast to the parashah.
The parashah speaks of the evil nature of the Jewish people; the haftarah describes how “your people are all righteous” (60:28). The Tokhachah in the parashah concludes with the chilling prediction that “God will bring you back to Egypt in boats, on the way of which I said ‘You shall never see it again’” (Devarim 28:68). In contrast, the haftarah emphasizes that the Jews “will inherit the land forever” (60:28). The Torah’s threat that “Since (tachat) you did not serve Hashem your God with happiness…instead you will serve your enemies” (Devarim 28:47–48) seems to be deliberately mirrored by the haftarah’s statement that “instead (tachat) of being abandoned and hated…I will make you the pride of the world” (60:15).
An analysis of the haftarah reveals one theme in particular which is repeated numerous times in both the beginning and end of the chapter – the theme of light:
The choice of a chapter in Yeshayahu, which repeatedly opens and closes with the theme of light, would seem to be a deliberate attempt, once again, to address the Tokhachah theme of the parashah.
R. Yehuda Loew of Prague (Maharal, sixteenth century) writes in several places (see, for example, Derush al Ha-Torah, p. 171 in the Pardes edition) that Biblical and rabbinic sources consistently use “night” and “darkness” as metaphoric terms for exile. Maharal locates the source for this comparison in a verse in Yeshayahu (21:12), and explains Talmudic passages based on this metaphoric understanding.
If we are correct in our thesis that the haftarah was deliberately chosen to serve as an antidote to the Tokhachah in the parashah, it seems reasonable that a chapter which opens and closes with the theme of light was carefully picked to counteract the “darkness” of exile which pervades the parashah. Thus, Maharal’s thesis that “darkness” is a metaphor for exile is already implicit in the selection of this haftarah several centuries before.
Haftarat Ki Tavo, then, is an exercise in transforming darkness into light. May its message of hope inspire us to discover even in the darkest of times the potential of illumination.
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