Acharei Mot-Kedoshim: Being Worthy of the Land

Since October 7, 2023, Israel has found itself in an existential struggle for survival. What began with Hamas’s brutal assault on the communities of the Gaza envelope, quickly escalated into a multi-front war. Hezbollah soon joined the fray, launching rockets and artillery from the north, displacing tens of thousands and threatening central Israel with its formidable arsenal. In April—and again in October—Iran directly entered the conflict, unleashing hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles from the east. Meanwhile, from the south, the Houthis in Yemen have persistently fired missiles and drones toward Israeli territory. All of this forms part of Iran’s “Ring of Fire” strategy—an orchestrated campaign to surround and destabilize Israel through relentless attacks from multiple fronts.

While Israel has struck significant blows against this encircling threat, the danger has not passed. Hamas remains entrenched in Gaza and continues to hold 59 Israeli hostages. The Houthis persist in their assaults, and Iran presses forward with its nuclear ambitions. Victory and lasting security are not yet within reach.

This week’s Torah reading, Acharei Mot–Kedoshim, addresses not external threats to our survival in the Land, but internal ones. The parasha opens with a stern warning: sexual immorality, especially violations of family sanctity, defile the Land and will result in the people being “spewed out” from it (Leviticus 18:25–28). The message is clear: our right to remain in the Land is not granted solely through successes on the battlefield, but through our behavior in our personal and communal lives.

The Torah then issues a bold charge: “You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy” (Leviticus 19:2). It follows with a sweeping vision of what that holiness entails—not cloistered piety, but a society grounded in justice, truth, compassion, and integrity. These values must guide us not only in our homes, but in the marketplace, in the courtroom, and in the public square. The section then concludes with another powerful reminder: “You shall faithfully observe all My laws and all My regulations, lest the land to which I bring you spew you out” (Leviticus 20:22). In other words, worthiness of the Land depends not only on our adherence to a code of sexual ethics but to all the mitzvot detailed in the parasha as well.

This teaching is particularly urgent today. As we struggle to defend our Land from external enemies, we must not neglect the moral foundations that safeguard our survival in the Land from within. Thus, several mitzvot in this parasha call out for renewed attention—both individually and nationally:

• “You shall not stand idly by the blood of your fellow” (Leviticus 19:16): This can be understood both literally—as a call to do what is necessary to protect others from danger—and more broadly, as a prohibition against pursuing personal gain at the expense of another’s well-being.
• “Love your fellow as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18): This commandment, which Rabbi Akiva called a fundamental principle of the Torah (Sifra, Kedoshim 4:12), demands that we extend love and respect even to those with whom we disagree.
• “You shall do no wrong in judgment, in measures of length, weight, or volume. You shall have honest scales…” (Leviticus 19:35–36): While referring to fairness in our business transactions, this mitzvah also challenges us to ensure fairness in the broader distribution of our national resources.

Thus, even as we bolster our military strength, we would do well to strengthen our moral and spiritual resilience. By recommitting ourselves to these core mitzvot, we can help secure not only our defense of the Land—but our worthiness to dwell within it as well.