The Targum Jonathan on (Deuteronomy 11) turns the promise of rain into a precisely timed agricultural calendar. The Hebrew says God will give "the early rain and the late rain." The Targum specifies: "the early in Marcheshvan, and the latter in Nisan." These are the exact months—the first rains of autumn and the final rains of spring—that determine whether crops live or die in the land of Israel.
This is not a poetic flourish. It is practical farming advice embedded in a theological promise. If Israel obeys, the rains arrive on schedule. If they disobey, "He will shut up the clouds of heaven, and let not the rain come down." The Targum makes divine blessing measurable. You can check the calendar and know whether God is pleased.
The chapter opens with a reminder of Dathan and Abiram, who challenged Moses' authority. The Targum identifies them precisely: "the sons of Eliab bar Reuben." The Hebrew says "sons of Eliab." The Targum adds the tribal grandfather, anchoring the rebellion in Reuben's lineage—a tribe that would struggle with loyalty throughout Israelite history.
The land of Israel receives a beautiful description that contrasts it with Egypt. In Egypt, "thou didst sow thy seed, and water it thyself as a garden of herbs." The land of Israel is different—"it drinketh water from the rain that cometh down from the heavens." Egypt runs on human irrigation. Israel runs on divine rain. Living in Israel means depending on God for every drop of water. The Targum adds that God "inquireth after" the land "by His Word"—the land itself is the object of ongoing divine attention, inspected from "the beginning of the year to the year's end."
The passage about blessings and curses on Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal gets a choreographic addition. The Targum specifies: "They who recite the blessings shall turn their faces towards Mount Gerizim, and they who recite the curses shall turn their faces towards Mount Ebal." The Hebrew says Israel will stand on both mountains. The Targum directs their gaze—blessing and curse each have a direction.
Moses identifies himself by name at the close: "MOSHEH the prophet said: Behold, I have this day set in order before you a Blessing and its contrary." The Targum uses "its contrary" rather than "curse"—a euphemism that reflects the Aramaic reluctance to speak curses directly.