Devarim 7: The Fly!

During Moshe’s description of the Exodus and the miracles of the wilderness, he reminds the people that God will continue to assist them in conquering the land in unexpected ways:“Moreover, the LORD your God will send the tziʿirah among them, until those who remain and those in hiding perish before you.” (Deuteronomy 7:20)וְגַם אֶת־הַצִּרְעָה יְשַׁלַּח ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ בָּם עַד־אֲבֹד הַנִּשְׁאָרִים וְהַנִּסְתָּרִים מִפָּנֶיךָWhat is the tziʿirah? There are many approaches among the commentators.Ramban, believes it was more of a feeling of terror that would envelop the enemies of Israel not necessarily a physical thing or being. Chizkuni and Ibn Ezra explain that tziʿirah refers to a disease similar to tzara’at. This interpretation is likely motivated by the linguistic similarity between the terms, as well as by their assumption that the Torah would not introduce a completely new phenomenon that does not appear elsewhere. It therefore makes sense to understand tziʿirah as something already familiar from earlier biblical descriptions.Rashi, however, cites a striking explanation from the Talmud:“The tziʿirah was a kind of flying creature that would shoot venom at them, blinding their eyes and castrating them.” (Sotah 36a)According to this view, the tziʿirah were large venom spitting insects. They were not permitted to enter the land of Israel itself; rather, after Israel defeated the kingdom of Og, these creatures spat their venom across the Jordan River at the Canaanite nations, weakening them before Israel’s arrival.Rabbeinu Bachya offers a more restrained interpretation. He explains that the tziʿirah were not fantastical or uniquely miraculous beings, but simple swarms of hornets. This is also the translation given to the word in the Septuagint. Moshe mentions them here specifically to contrast them with the verse immediately prior, which describes the plagues of Egypt:“The great trials that your eyes saw, the signs and wonders, the mighty hand and the outstretched arm with which the LORD your God brought you out.” (Deuteronomy 7:19)הַמַּסֹּת הַגְּדֹלֹת אֲשֶׁר רָאוּ עֵינֶיךָ וְהָאֹתֹת וְהַמֹּפְתִים וְהַיָּד הַחֲזָקָה וְהַזְּרֹעַ הַנְּטוּיָה אֲשֶׁר הוֹצִאֲךָ ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָVerse 19 describes the dramatic, nature overturning miracles of Egypt—open displays of God’s mastery over creation. Verse 20, by contrast, describes a far subtler form of divine intervention. God does not suspend nature; instead, He directs an ordinary natural phenomenon toward a purposeful end. These hornet swarms represent hidden miracles rather than overt ones.This approach may be further supported by the Torah’s language. God says that He “will send (yeshallach) the tziʿirah”, employing the same verb used to describe one of the Egyptian plagues:“The LORD did so, and heavy swarms (arov) entered the house of Pharaoh and the houses of his courtiers.” (Exodus 8:17)וַיַּעַשׂ ה׳ כֵּן וַיָּבֹא עָרֹב כָּבֵד בֵּיתָה פַרְעֹה וּבֵית עֲבָדָיו וּבְכָל־אֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִםThe plague of arov is commonly translated as wild animals, but Rashi is among the commentators who understand it as swarms of insects. If the Torah deliberately uses the same verb here as it did in Egypt, it strengthens the argument that tziʿirah, too, refers to insect swarms. In this way, Moshe teaches that just as God once sent overwhelming miracles to redeem Israel, He will now guide even mundane forces of nature to secure their future in the land.