The posuk promises Bnei Yisroel that Hashem will always send prophets and leaders to guide them. The purpose for them is not to take the place of the various prophets and soothsayers who controlled the lives of the pagans. This is not a requirement in the life and goal of Bnei Yisroel. Our lives and destiny, all that we are to do and not to do, are regulated and satisfied by the Torah. The purpose of the prophet is not to consent to the advisability of our plans, nor to satisfy our desires by some knowledge hereby denied to ordinary human beings, and certainly not to find out through him that which we would like to know. His purpose is but to tell us what is Hashem’s Will; he is not our instrument, he is an agent of Hashem. “To him you shall listen”, he is not there for you to consult, but rather for you to listen, to obey, to submit to.
The Torah describes the nature and character of this prophet. The men whom Hashem will send will be “out of your midst”. They will live ordinary lives amongst you, and no obscurity will hover over them. You will be aware of their origin, since they will have been born and grown up amongst you. You will know their parents, brothers, sisters, for they will be from your midst. In no way will they come to you with super-human pretensions; they will be human beings, and claim to be nothing more than human beings “hbunf” – Just as I am the first prophet sent by Hashem. And again, “”hbunf” in the same position and for the same purpose as I am sent. They are to be nothing other than messengers of the word of Hashem to you.
