Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Sforno · Torah

Sforno on Deuteronomy 4:32/ספורנו על דברים ד׳:ל״ב

אכִּי שְׁאַל נָא. וְהָרְאָיָה עַל זֶה שֶׁאָמַרְתִּי שֶׁלֹּא יִשְׁכַּח בְּרִית אָבוֹת, הִיא כִּי אָמְנָם מַה שֶּׁעָשָה עִם כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּמַתַּן תּוֹרָה שֶׁתִּהְיוּ כֻלְּכֶם זוֹכִים לְאוֹתָה הַמַּדְרֵגָה מִן הַנְּבוּאָה, לֹא הָיָה זוּלָתִי לָקַחַת אֶת כֻּלְּכֶם לוֹ לְעָם בִּשְׁבִיל בְּרִית אָבוֹת, שֶׁלֹּא כָל אֶחָד מִכֶּם הָיָה רָאוּי לָהּ. שֶׁאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁקָּרָא בְּאֵיזֶה זְמַן לְאֵיזֶה יָחִיד שֶׁיִּתְנַבֵּא, הִנֵּה לֹא קָרָה זֶה לְשׁוּם עָם.
1כי שאל נא, the proof of what I said that G’d will not forget the covenant made with your forefathers is that at Mount Sinai during the revelation all of you had been elevated to the level of prophecy. When I took you to be My people this did not mean that each and everyone of you by their own merits had deserved to be elevated to that spiritual status. I did this on account of the patriarchs. The difference between you and the gentile nations is that although the exceptional gentile may have experienced prophetic insights, there never has been a nation who have experienced something similar as a whole nation as you did at Mount Sinai.