The Original Introduction of D
The book of Devarim has accounts of history, but it does not have any ancient history. It does for instance not mention the creation of the world. While it does mention the fathers Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov, it does say anything about their lives. The question I wish to address is why this is, what is the heart of the matter. The clue is with the fragment Devarim 10:12-22, which in translation is as follows, excluding 10:13 and 10:19: And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul. Behold, unto the LORD thy God belongeth the heaven, and the heaven of heavens, the earth, with all that therein is. Only the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and He chose their seed after them, even you, above all peoples, as it is this day. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked. For the LORD yo...