Sforno on Deuteronomy 11/ספורנו על דברים י״א

1כי לא את בניכם, therefore, you who have become witnesses to G’d’s miracles for the generations by reason of the fact that you enter this land and conquer it.

2וזרועו הנטויה, which is ever ready to smite those who will revert to their sinful ways.

1ויאבדם ה' עד היום הזה, for then the choicest captains of the Egyptian cavalry were drowned with their armies in such a decisive manner that even now, forty years later, they have not recovered from this defeat. Until this day these military leaders of Egypt have not been replaced.

1'כי עיניכם הרואות את כל מעשה ה, which He performed against those who rebelled against Him, to Pharaoh in Egypt, to Pharaoh at the Sea, to those who rebelled against Him in the desert, Datan and Aviram,. It is therefore up to you who have experienced all this with your own eyes to warn your children who have not been eyewitnesses to these events. Therefore,

1ושמרתם את כל המצות אשר אנכי מצוך היום, the commandment to erect the stones in the Jordan as well as the stones you will take with you from the Jordan on which you will inscribe the Torah for the benefit of future generations so that the memory that these events really happened will be preserved.

1ולמען תאריכו ימים על האדמה, for if your children will not observe G’d’s commandments they will be exiled from this land before the warnings in the paragraph commencing with ונושנתם בארץ, “you will become well established in the land,” can ever become a reality (Deut.4,25).

1כי הארץ אשר אתה בא שמה לרשתה לא כארץ מצרים היא, which does not require rainfall.

1למטר השמים תשתה מים. For there are not enough rivers to irrigate the farmland so that the earth requires rainfall to irrigate the crops.

1דורש אותה, to carefully scrutinize the deeds of its inhabitants to determine if they are deserving the rain or not. Therefore, you should remain aware of the fact that

1אם שמוע תשמעו...ונתתי מטר ארצכם בעתו, so that you will find your livelihood painlessly, and the land will cooperate with you. If not, G’d will not provide any rain and you will not have food to eat (16-17)

1and as a result of such a development ואבדם מהרה, from hunger, which is a more painful death than dying by the sword.. Therefore, remain on guard!

1ושמתם את דברי אלה על לבבכם, to understand them through intensive study;

2ועל נפשכם, so that you will observe them willingly.

1ולמדתם אותם את בניכם, train your children in the regular performance of the commandments

2לדבר בם בשבתך, so that you will make them a regular part of your conversation with your children.

1כי אם שמור תשמרון לאהבה, the thrust of your preoccupation with Torah is to be that you show the acts of loving kindness G’d has performed, which in turn will ensure that you love Him.

2ללכת בכל דרכיו, to emulate the way in which He governs His universe, i.e. application of justice and righteousness.

3ולדבקה בו, all your actions should strive to carry out His will, as Proverbs 3,6 בכל דרכיך דעהו!

1והוריש, He will give you a chance to earn your livelihood easily so as to have time to serve Him.

1לא יתיצב איש, not even outside the land of Israel.

1ראה, pay good attention so that you will not be like the nations of the world who are always trying to find middle ground. Remember that אנכי נותן לפניכם היום ברכה וקללה, I present you this day with the choice of two extremes, opposites. The ברכה is an extreme in that it provides you with more than you need, whereas the קללה is another extreme making sure that you have less than your basic needs. You have the choice of both before you; all you have to do is make a choice.

1ונתת את הברכה, bless the people who observe G’d’s commandments,

2ואת הקללה, and curse those who violate them deliberately.

1הלא המה בעבר הירדן, at the entrance to the land as soon as you cross the Jordan. This procedure is meant to demonstrate that your settling in this land will not be in an unsatisfactory, inadequate manner, but that it will be either completely successful or the reverse.