As we approach the Yamim Nora'im, these are among the Torah's most hopeful verses. But the commentators disagree about a deceptively simple question: what exactly is this commandment that is "not too difficult" and "very near"?
Rashi understands the phrase broadly: it refers to the Torah itself. God is assuring the Jewish people that the Torah is not beyond human reach. We do not need someone to ascend to heaven or cross the sea to bring it to us. The Torah has already been given to us to study, interpret and live by.
As Nechama Leibowitz puts it, "The Torah is not the property of a privileged caste of priests and scholars. It is not in heaven but in our midst." Torah belongs to every Jew. It is demanding but accessible.
Ramban, however, notices the context. The preceding verses speak repeatedly about returning to God: "You shall return to the Lord your God." He therefore argues that hamitzvah hazot, this commandment. refers specifically to teshuvah. God is reassuring us that however distant we may feel, the journey back is never beyond us.
Rashi and Ramban seem to address two different spiritual anxieties. Rashi is speaking to the person who wonders whether living a life of Torah is really possible. His answer is that the Torah is close enough for ordinary people to learn, practise and embrace.
Ramban is speaking to someone who has already fallen short in some way. The question is no longer, "Can I live Torah?" but, "Can I still come back?" His answer is equally emphatic. The closest mitzvah of all is teshuvah: however far we may have drifted, the path back has never been closed.
That is why these verses are so powerful before Yom Kippur. Moses teaches that we begin exactly where we are. Torah is already close to us – in our mouths, in our hearts and, ultimately, in our actions. And when we have drifted from it, personally, communally or nationally, teshuvah is itself "very near", enabling us to draw close once again. God simply asks us to begin, because, however, hard it may seem, the first step has always been "very near to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to do it”.
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