Comentario citado sobre Deuteronómio 28:65

HE WILL DESTROY THEM, AND HE WILL BRING THEM DOWN. The meaning thereof is that “He will bring them down and He will destroy them” [because, obviously, they could be destroyed after having been brought down, but not vice versa]. The expression ‘yachni’eim’ (He will bring them down) denotes “humiliation,” as in the usage, Seest thou how Ahab ‘nichna’ (humbleth himself) before Me?;¹¹⁰I Kings 21:29. if then perchance their uncircumcised heart ‘yikana’ (be humbled),¹¹¹Leviticus 26:41. and so all [similar expressions]. And the purport thereof is that these peoples were very frightened of Israel. With a trembling heart,¹¹²Deuteronomy 28:65. low spirit and feebleness of hands¹¹³Jeremiah 47:3. they went out [against them in battle], as it is stated, And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, that were by the sea, heard how the Eternal had dried up the waters of the Jordan etc. that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel.¹¹⁴Joshua 5:1. It is possible that the expression He will destroy them alludes to the nations greater and mightier than thyself¹¹⁵Above, Verse 1. — and He will bring them down refers to the sons of the Anakim,¹¹⁶Verse 2. for despite all their might and height, their hearts were more humbled than [those of] the rest of the people and they did not go into battle at all, but were hiding in the mountains and in the fortified cities, as it is said, And Joshua came at that time, and cut off the Anakim from the hill-country, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill-country of Judah, and from all the hill-country of Israel; ‘with’ their cities Joshua utterly destroyed them,¹¹⁷Joshua 11:21. that is to say he destroyed them “in” their cities [indicating that the Anakim never entered the battlefield]. Similarly, it is said, And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron etc. and they smote Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.¹¹⁸Judges 1:10. Here likewise it is stated that the Anakim were “in” Hebron, indicating that they were fearful of entering the field of battle.

V. 3. ולא נתן וגו׳ (siehe zu Kap. 28, 65). Alle diese euch bei eurer Entstehung zum Volke von Gott bereiteten Erfahrungen hätten genügen sollen, die Erkenntnis der Wahrheit von Gott, seiner Macht, seinem Wesen und Walten, seiner der sträflichen Verirrungen der Menschen und Völker nicht gleichgültig zuschauenden Gerechtigkeit, in euer "Herz" für immer zu pflanzen, auf daß ihr auf Grund dieser Erkenntnis die Welt und ihre Erscheinungen in ihrem wahren Lichte, mit ganz anderen "Augen" hättet anschauen, und eure "Ohren" bereitwillig und ausschließlich den Lehren der Wahrheit und der Pflicht hättet öffnen und damit zum Antritt der Verwirklichung eures Berufes als Gottesvolk im Gotteslande hättet befähigt sein sollen. Allein es hatten diese beim Auszuge aus Mizrajim gemachten Erfahrungen nicht genügt. Mit allem, was euch Gott da erleben ließ, hatte er euch noch kein לב לדעת ועינים לראות ואזנים לשמע gegeben, es musste noch alles das hinzukommen, was ihr seitdem עד היום הזה bis auf diesen Tag weiter erlebt habt.

my spirit pines If one longs and does not attain, it is called the pining of the eyes and the pining of the spirit.

her soul grieves an expression of ‘her soul grieves.’ We translate (Deut. 28:65) “And grieving of the soul (וְדַאֲבוֹן נֶפֶֹש)” as וּמַפְּחַן נְפָֹש.

I cause...to fail in that I did not fulfill her desire, which is “failure of the eyes.” One who desires and does not achieve is called “failure of the eyes.”