Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Sforno · Torah

Sforno on Deuteronomy 29:9/ספורנו על דברים כ״ט:ט׳

אאַתֶּם נִצָּבִים לִפְנֵי ה׳ אֱלֹהֵיכֶם. וּמִי שֶׁיַּטְעֶה אוֹתִי לֹא יוּכַל לְהַטְעוֹת אוֹתוֹ, וְעַל דַּעְתּוֹ תְּקַבְּלוּ עֲלֵיכֶם.
1אתם נצבים...לפני ה' אלוקיכם , so that anyone who is capable of misleading me cannot mislead Him. You will accept this covenant in His presence, on His authority, not merely on mine.
ברָאשֵׁיכֶם שִׁבְטֵיכֶם זִקְנֵיכֶם וְשֹׁטְרֵיכֶם. רָאשֵׁיכֶם שֶׁהֵם שִׁבְטֵיכֶם, שִׁבְטֵי הַמּוֹשְׁלִים, וְהֵם הַנְּשִׂיאִים וְהַשָּׂרִים אֲשֶׁר בְּיָדָם שֵׁבֶט הַמּוֹשֵׁל.
2ראשיכם שבטיכם זקניכם ושוטריכם, the people Moses describes as ראשיכם, are those who are heads of their tribes, elsewhere referred to as נשיאים, “princes. The term ראשalways includes the people who wield authority. זקניכם, your judges. ושוטריכם, the law enforcers empowered by the judges to enforce their judgments. Each one of these categories of people have the duty to teach the people (within the parameters of their special competence) how much better it is for them to accept Torah law than to defy it or neglect it.
גוְזִקְנֵיכֶם. הֵם הַשּׁוֹפְטִים.
דוְשֹׁטְרֵיכֶם. אֲשֶׁר לָהֶם כֹּחַ לְהַכְרִיחַ בַּעֲלֵי הַדִּין. וְעַל כָּל אֵלּוּ הָרָאשִׁים מוּטָל לְהוֹרוֹת לֶהָמוֹן מַה טּוֹב לָהֶם שֶׁיְּקַבְּלוּ עֲלֵיהֶם אוֹ יְמָאֲנוּ.