דברים, פרק כ״ז, פסוק י״ד

During the foundational covenant ceremony between Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal, the spiritual leadership stands before the entire nation to declare the moral and spiritual boundaries of the Israelites. The Levites are chosen to lead this declaration. Since the tribe of Levi is explicitly counted among the tribes standing on Mount Gerizim, the primary approach among commentators is that the individuals speaking in the valley were the tribal elders, scholars, and priests fit for Temple service who surrounded the Ark of the Covenant, while the rest of the tribe remained on the mountain [העמק דבר, רש ר הירש, שפתי כהן]. Another perspective suggests that the declarers themselves stood on the mountains alongside the people [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The specific selection of the Levites to deliver these words stems from the fact that the declaration opens with the prohibition of idolatry. Because the tribe of Levi never stumbled in this sin, they are uniquely suited to stand and admonish the nation [שפתי כהן].

The act of speaking during this ceremony carries multiple layers of meaning. On a basic level, it represents the initiation of a public declaration, to which the people would subsequently respond with an affirmation [אור החיים]. Alternatively, the concept of answering implies a response to another voice. In this view, the Levites either affirmed after the people had already offered a blessing, or they repeated the words after God's voice spoke to them [העמק דבר]. A deeper approach connects the act of speaking to deep thought and revelation. Rather than merely making a sound, this was a profound discourse that revealed elevated intellectual and spiritual insights [הכתב והקבלה]. As the Levites delivered these words to the Israelites, they physically turned their faces toward Mount Gerizim when reciting the blessings, and toward Mount Ebal when reciting the curses [רש ר הירש, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

Although the record of the event goes on to list only a series of curses, commentators agree that each curse was preceded by a parallel blessing phrased in a positive manner. The blessings are not explicitly recorded because the reward for fulfilling God's commandments is infinite and cannot be contained or limited by words. However, the nature of the blessings can be clearly understood by looking at the curses [שפתי כהן]. The sins detailed in the curses were carefully selected because they are typically committed in secret, hidden from the eyes of society and the law. Because human courts cannot easily punish them, a public, divine warning is required. These transgressions—such as idolatry, disrespecting parents, perverting justice, forbidden relationships, and murder—represent the roots of evil that historically led to national disasters for the Israelites, and they correspond to the future flaws of the twelve tribes present at the ceremony [אברבנאל]. Conversely, some maintain that the blessings and curses mentioned here simply refer to the broader, general blessings and curses detailed later in the text [אבן עזרא].

The declaration was delivered in an elevated voice. Naturally, this ensured that the words would be clearly heard and understood by the massive crowd [בכור שור], with the sound miraculously reaching every single ear [שפתי כהן]. However, many note that the specific description of the voice as "elevated" rather than "loud" or "strong" indicates that this was not a powerful shout. Instead, it was a moderate, natural voice, much like a person conversing with a friend, which is considered the most refined quality of speech. In order for such a natural voice to be heard over great distances, God joined His own voice with that of the Levites, thereby demonstrating His agreement with their words [העמק דבר, תורה תמימה]. Another perspective explains that an elevated voice refers not to the volume of the sound, but to the sublime quality of the speech itself. This indicates that the entire ceremony was conducted exclusively in the Holy Tongue, a language possessing a unique virtue that contains profound secrets of wisdom and the soul [הכתב והקבלה, תורה תמימה].