“The Lord, God of your fathers [shall add to you one thousand times as you are…]” (Deuteronomy 1:11) – Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov said: In considering Moses’s blessings, they contain [unlimited blessing] from one end of the world to the other. What is written? “One thousand times [pe’amim]” – “one thousand times [paam]” is not written here, but rather, “one thousand times [pe’amim].”32The plural term pe’amim is employed, rather than the singular paam.
This is expounded to mean one thousand times one thousand. Another matter, “shall add to you…as you are” – Rabbi Aḥa said: Israel could have said to him: ‘Our master Moses, are we responsible for any of the matters regarding which you are rebuking us?’33They could have responded to him that he was rebuking them for the sins of their parents, for which they were not responsible (Etz Yosef). Nevertheless, they accepted his rebukes and were silent.34Translation based on the textual emendation suggested in Etz Yosef.
That is why it says: “As you are” – righteous like you, who receive rebukes and are silent. Another matter, why did he bless them with an expression of addition? It is because the addition of the Holy One, blessed be He, is larger than the principal. The way of the world is that a person takes from another a litra of meat, and says to him: ‘Add more for me.’
How much does he add for him? One ounce. But the Holy One blessed be He, His addition is larger than the principal. How so?
Isaac was the principal son for Abraham. But what He added for [Abraham] was more numerous than the principal, as it is stated: “Abraham took an additional wife” (Genesis 25:1).35Abraham’s additional wife, Keturah, bore him six sons (see Genesis 25:2); many more than the one son, Isaac, who was his principal son. Joseph was the principal son for Rachel, Benjamin was an addition. From where is this derived?
As it is written: “May the Lord add another son for me” (Genesis 30:24). What is written? “And the sons of Benjamin: Bela, Bekher, and Ashbel…” (Genesis 46:21) – they are more than Joseph.36Benjamin had ten sons, many more than Joseph, who had only two sons. Hezekiah’s principal reign was fourteen years.
What the Holy One blessed be He added for him was more numerous than the principal. From where is this derived? As it is stated: “I will add fifteen years to your days” (Isaiah 38:5) – the addition of the Holy One blessed be He was more numerous than the principal. That is why [Moses] blessed them with an expression of addition.
“And He will bless you” (Deuteronomy 1:11) – Rabbi Levi said: To what is the matter comparable? To a king who told the commander of his army to distribute to each of his soldiers a litra of gold.37There are one hundred gold pieces in a litra. He went and gave some of them five gold pieces and some of them ten gold pieces. They said to him: ‘The king told you to give each of us a litra of gold, and you gave each of us five gold pieces?’
He said to them: ‘These are from what is mine; when the king comes, he will give you from what is his.’ So Israel said to Moses: ‘The Holy One blessed be He did not set a limit for our blessings, and you said one thousand times?’ He said to them: ‘What I blessed you, I blessed you from my own; the Holy One blessed be He will bless you “as He spoke to you”’ (Deuteronomy 1:11).