Fearing God & remembering Amalek
The portion is about remembering what Amalek did to us.
The Malbim explains that “he did not fear God” (Deut. 25:18). God had taught that all human beings were entitled to respect, and Amalek did not respect them.
Another view says that the verse can be read as referring to Israel, not Amalek: “You were famished and weary and did not fear God”.
The Israelites saw Amalek coming and put the young and strong men at the front of the column to protect the old and weak at the rear. They put their trust in human strength and forgot to appeal to God (cf. Psalm 147:10).
