דברים, פרק כ״ז, פסוק ב׳

Entering the Promised Land requires an immediate renewal of the covenant between the people and God. This act serves as both a spiritual and practical condition for settling the new territory. Setting up stones provides physical evidence of the nation's commitment to the Torah right at their first steps in their new homeland. By accepting the yoke of His kingship immediately, the Israelites ensure that the land will not reject them [רקנאטי]. In fact, the preparation of these stones is what makes crossing the river possible in the first place, because the waters of the Jordan split out of respect for the Torah and the Ark of the Covenant, rather than just for the people themselves [רש״ר הירש]. The magnitude of this event is so great that erecting these stones is considered equal in importance to building the Tabernacle in the desert [קיצור בעל הטורים].

There are different perspectives regarding the specific identity and location of these stones. One approach, based on Talmudic tradition, suggests that multiple sets of stones were set up at various stations. This included stones erected by Moses in the plains of Moab, stones placed by Joshua inside the Jordan River, and stones taken from the river and brought to Gilgal and Mount Ebal [רש״י, מזרחי, גור אריה]. Conversely, another view maintains that the focus is strictly on the stones used to build the altar at Mount Ebal, completely separate from any memorial stones left in the Jordan [שד״ל, הכתב והקבלה].

The stones used for this monument had to be large to provide a wide surface area. This ensured that the commandments of the Torah could be written in clear, easily readable letters rather than in tiny script [רלב״ג, חזקוני]. Plastering the stones served two complementary purposes. First, the plaster smoothed out the rough stone and created a white surface suitable for writing [ביאור שטיינזלץ, ביאור יש״ר]. The text was written with ink over the plaster rather than engraved directly into the stone, as the display was meant to be a temporary fixture for the moment the covenant was made [שד״ל]. Second, the plaster functioned as a highly durable mortar that bound the rows of stones together [חזקוני]. Because plaster is stronger than regular chalk, it protected the structure from rain and weather damage. This ensured the monument would stand firm for a long time, allowing the people to get used to studying from it [אבן עזרא, רבנו בחיי, בכור שור, מלבי״ם].

Writing the Torah on these stones also carried a universal message. The text was translated into seventy languages to share the truths of faith and the commandments with the nations of the world. This public declaration of Israel's true faith was intended to serve as a holy counterweight to the Canaanite custom of carving their idolatrous laws onto pillars [העמק דבר, אם למקרא].