Va’eschanan 6:4 · unit 1

TT #19 · Parashas Va’eschanan · Fifth / Sixth Aliyah · Passuk 6:4

The Complete Passuk

שְׁמַ֖ע יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל יְהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֵ֖ינוּ יְהֹוָ֥ה ׀ אֶחָֽד׃

Hear, O Israel: Hashem is our God, Hashem is One.

Chabad.org — 6:4

Source Citation

Torah Temimah points to Berachos 13a (R’ Yehoshua ben Korchah: why the paragraph of Shema precedes Vehayah im shamoa).

Sefaria — Berachos 13a

E-Daf image — Berachos 13a

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text
אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן קָרְחָה: לָמָּה קָדְמָה פָּרָשַׁת שְׁמַע לְוְהָיָה אִם שָׁמֹעַ? כְּדֵי שֶׁיְּקַבֵּל עָלָיו עוֹל מַלְכוּת שָׁמַיִם תְּחִלָּה וְאַחַר כָּךְ עוֹל מִצְוֹת.

English: R’ Yehoshua ben Korchah said: Why does the paragraph of Shema precede Vehayah im shamoa? So that one first accepts upon oneself the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven, and afterward the yoke of the mitzvos.

On the daf / in context: The order of the three paragraphs of Keri’as Shema is deliberate: first the declaration of God’s unity and the acceptance of His kingship, then the acceptance of the practical commandments.

Type of Learning

Custom (reason for the liturgical order of the Shema paragraphs).

What Is Learned

One must first accept the yoke of Heaven (the declaration of God’s oneness) before accepting the yoke of the mitzvos.