Moses Pleads at the Jordan and Parses Every Word of His Prayer

"O Lord God (Deuteronomy 3:24)." You are Master over all who enter the world, and Your mercies are upon all, and who is there that can protest against Your hand? If You have mercy upon me, there is none who can say to You "No," neither among those above nor among those below. What will You do? "You have begun." If You should say that You have sworn that I shall not cross the Jordan, ask to be released from Your oath: just as I annulled my vow and my oath that I had made to Jethro, so release Your vow. And "you have begun" (hechilota) means nothing other than the language of vow and oath, as it is said, "he shall not break (yachel) his word" (Numbers 30:3) — he himself does not annul, but others may annul for him. "To show Your servant." As you say, "And the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire" (Exodus 3:2). "Your greatness." As it is said, "And now, let the power of the Lord be great, I pray" (Numbers 14:17). "And Your mighty hand." With a mighty hand You redeemed Israel from Egypt, for they were not worthy to go out, since they were worshippers of foreign worship, yet You were long-suffering toward them and You redeemed them, as it is said, "whom You redeemed in Your greatness" (Deuteronomy 9:26). "Who can do according to Your deeds" — at the sea. "And according to Your mighty acts" — against Amalek. And if for Israel You did all these things though they were not worthy, with my people too deal by the measure of mercy. Even though I have sinned, may it be Your will: "Let me cross over, I pray, and see," and so forth. "The Lebanon." This is the Temple.