The final Mitzvah of the entire Torah appears in our Parsha, but it is slightly hidden. At the end of Parshat Vayelech, God tells Moshe: “And now write for yourselves this song and teach it to the Children of Israel to place it in their mouths; in order that this song will be for Me a witness against Children of Israel.” The identity of the song seems clear. Rashi defines it as Parshat Ha’azinu, next week’s Parsha. That interpretation also seems correct in light of the other verses in this week’s Parsha. 

However, our tradition identifies this song as something else. As Maimonides writes, there is a Mitzvah “for each man to write a Torah scroll for himself, as [Deuteronomy 31:19] states: “Write down this song.” So for reasons of Jewish law, the “song” is interpreted as the entire Torah. That God is commanding Moshe, and through him each of us, to write a Torah scroll, or at least purchase one. 

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Why is there a mitzvah to write a Torah scroll? There’s already a mitzvah to study the Torah, what difference does writing a Torah scroll make? 

There are two possible explanations. The first is to remember that before the advent of the printing press, books and scrolls were not easily accessible. The requirement for everyone to write a Torah scroll allows for an abundance of Torah scrolls for people to read from, and to learn from. This is the opinion of the Sefer HaChinuch. 

The other explanation involves the power of writing something out. When we write something out, we actually take more ownership over what we are writing. Perhaps you are someone who remembers things better when you actively write them out. Or perhaps having a written copy allows us to always have an authoritative text to refer back to. Either way, the act of writing it out, or the act of purchasing a Sefer Torah, is the means through which we claim ownership over the Torah. 

In a few weeks, we will read one of the final verses in the Torah, in which Moshe declares: “Moshe commanded us the Torah; it is an inheritance for the community of Yaakov.” It is truly an inheritance for the entire people of Israel, individually also has a stake in the Torah, a claim to its holiness. And in the final mitzvah of the Torah, we are commanded to take that stake, to claim it, each one of us. 

Rabbi Eliezer Finkelstein serves Bais Abraham Congregation and is a member of the St. Louis Rabbinical and Cantorial Association, which coordinates the d’var Torah for the Jewish Light.