רמב"ן — עלה אל הר העברים / קח לך את יהושע

Q — Hashem tells Moshe 'עלה אל הר העברים הזה' and 'קח לך את יהושע' — but Moshe doesn't actually climb until Devarim and the smicha-ceremony is recorded with full detail in parashat Vayelech (Devarim 31). What's happening here?

A — Ramban: these aren't immediate commands but advance announcements. Right after the laws of inheritance ('לאלה תחלק הארץ'), Hashem gently tells Moshe: you yourself will not allot the land — 'תעלה אל הר העברים וראית את הארץ' — when the time comes. Similarly, 'קח לך את יהושע' = 'in your day,' you will take Yehoshua. The smicha-ceremony pesukim כב-כג at the end of our parsha are a forward-shadow of what Moshe will do, recorded here 'לספר כי עשה כן משה בלב שלם.' The full ceremony comes later. Reading these as advance notifications removes the textual puzzle of 'why isn't Moshe immediately going up the mountain?' — and reveals Hashem's tender preparation of Moshe for his death and succession.