<b>As these nations that you are, etc. (Deuteronomy 18:14):</b> This is that which is stated in the verse (Deuteronomy 28:13), "The Lord will make you the head, not the tail; you will always be at the top and never at the bottom." That there should not be lying judges and that you all be poor in Torah. [It is as you say (Isaiah 9:14), "Prophets who give false instruction, such are the tails." "You will always (<i>rak</i>) be at the top," you will only (<i>rak</i>) be few in this world, not forever. Another interpretation: "You will always (<i>rak</i>) be at the top (above),"When you come to ask something, you should not ask what is above, and not ask what is below, in the way that the [other] nations of the world [ask], as it is stated (Isaiah 29:4), "your speech shall sound like a ghost’s from the ground."As these nations that you are dispossessing, etc.," such that you should ask from it: This is that which is stated in the verse (Isaiah 8:19), "Now, should they say to you, 'Inquire of the ghosts and familiar spirits that chirp and moan,'" say to them (Isaiah 8:19, cont.), "Does a people inquire of its god, of the dead on behalf of the living?" The needs of the dead are done by the living. Would the needs of the living be done by the dead? "That moan," as they do not do not serve the needs of their heads. "As these nations, etc. but not like this to you." There is a story about a convert who was from Batsra. He said, "When I was a foreigner, I would ask of idolatry. Now I have become an Israelite and it is forbidden to me." What did he do? He saddled his donkey and went to a province and he did not ask of the idolatry. He entered the province and its priest was standing at the entrance of the province. When he entered, he saw them and was immediately afraid. He descended from the donkey and the donkey fled. The [people] that were standing there came down and he became frightened of them. [But] they stood him upright, supported him and said, "This old man fell." They [then] immediately brought him to his donkey, and [so] he entered in peace and left in peace. What caused him this? Because he held on to the Torah. Hence, "As those nations that you are about to dispossess listen to soothsayers and augurs, but the Lord your God did not give like this to you." There is a story about Rabbi Yannai and Rabbi Yochanan who were sitting at the entrance of Teveriya. There were two astrologers there who saw two Jews going out to their work. These astrologers said, "Those two men will go out but they will not come back, [as] a snake will poison them." Rabbi Yannai and Rabbi Yochanan heard [this]. What did they do? They sat at the entrance of the province to know if those two men would come back from their work. And they did come back and Rabbi Yochanan and Rabbi Yannai saw them. They said to the astrologers, "Did you not say that these two men would go out but not come back, as a snake would poison them?" They said, "Yes." They said [back], "Behold, they went out in peace and came back in peace." The astrologers observed them [and then] they said to them, "Tell us, what did you do today?" They said, "We did not do anything [unusual], but rather that which we are accustomed to do. We read the Shema and we prayed." They said to them, "You are Jews, the words of astrologers do not materialize with you, as you are Jews." Hence, "but the Lord your God did not give like this to you."