לא בשמים היא, "it is not in heaven;⁠" it is possible that the reason Moses makes this point is because prior to bringing the Torah to the people it had indeed resided in heaven, and we have quoted arguments offered by the angels opposing its descent to earth. The word היא which we might have considered as redundant, is a reference to the highest level of חכמה, the emanation wisdom, which does indeed reside in heaven.

ולא מעבר לים היא, "neither is it beyond the sea.⁠" This is a reference to the great ocean which surrounds all the land mass, an area where this superior wisdom is located. The reason the Torah (Moses) had to refer to it as ים, is that otherwise it would have to be described as תהום, and the Torah would have had to write לא בתהום היא. This is the way Job referred to it when he quoted the deep as saying: "it is not with me" (referring to wisdom compare Job 28,14). It is stylistically more elevating to refer to the ocean as something elevated than as something conjuring up visions of a deep abyss, as does the word תהום. The reason Moses added the word היא to each of these descriptions of different locations is that each time the word היא appears it represents a diminution of the area meant. In order to include the supreme wisdom we spoke of, the planetary system should also have been included seeing it surrounds the ocean. Seeing that the supreme wisdom surrounds the entire visible universe, Moses when referring to parts of it, made this point plain by limiting each part with the word היא, i.e. "it only.⁠"
The word הים used here is a reference to the part of the universe inhabited by man. This is why he added: "it is not too far from you,⁠" implying that there are indeed levels of wisdom which are beyond man to attain [even by means of studying the Torah and observing it. Ed.].
We may surmise that Moses used the word היא four times in order to allude to the four basic celestial fundamentals which are emanated from this supreme wisdom. They are alluded to in the names of the patriarchs Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, and David. The vision of the prophet Ezekiel (chapter 1) in which four חיות, beast-like figures equipped with angels, are featured also correspond to these four fundamentals of celestial wisdom emanated to creatures on earth. They are described elsewhere as ארבע אופנים, "four wheels,⁠" an allegorical description of what supports the מרכבה, the chariot the Shechinah is perceived as riding in. Translated into our terrestrial language, these are the four elements which are the constituent parts of all tangible matter on earth. They ensure the continued existence of the terrestrial universe when they are combined in the correct proportions.

A Midrashic approach to our verses, based on Eiruvin 55: The words "it is not in heaven,⁠" mean that Torah is not to be found amongst haughty, arrogant people. The words: "it is not beyond the ocean,⁠" mean that Torah is not to be found among people who constantly journey from place to place to make their livelihood, i.e. hawkers. Samuel said that Torah cannot be found among astrologers or professional astronomers, seeing that the Torah writes: "it is not in heaven.⁠" The Torah may be found only among people preoccupied with the pursuit of matters which are oriented toward heavenly concerns. People challenged Samuel, saying to him that seeing he himself was an astronomer how could he make such a statement? He answered: "in all my days I have never looked at חכמה except when I was relieving myself" [at a time when I was forbidden to engage in the pursuit of Torah. Ed.] (compare Devarim Rabbah 8,6). Thus far the Midrash.
Concerning these disciplines, i.e. astrology and astronomy, Isaiah warned the people of Israel, saying to them (Isaiah 55,2) "why do you spend money for what is not bread and your toil for that which does not satisfy?⁠" Isaiah meant that his compatriots were wasting their money in order to acquire "wisdom" which would neither satisfy their bodies nor their souls; he added: "give heed to Me, (God) and you shall eat choice food and enjoy the richest viands. Hearken and you shall be revived.⁠" Torah is described in Proverbs 4,2 as לקח טוב, "a good purchase.⁠" It is the true food, satisfying those that "consume it.⁠" When Isaiah said תתענגו בדשן נפשכם, "enjoy with your souls the richest foods,⁠" he refers to the "bread" which truly satisfies the soul of man, spiritual food, the Torah. The simile of דשן, something physical, material, is used by the prophet to illustrate in human language the spiritual essence of what Torah supplies to those who study it. Such metaphors for spiritual matters are also found in Psalms 63,6: "milk and fatness satisfy my soul.⁠" Clearly, David does not mean for the soul to be fed milk.
All of the above teaches that Samuel did not engage in the study of astronomy at a time when this would have competed with the study of Torah. Seeing that it is forbidden to engage in the speaking of Torah, or even contemplating thoughts of Torah, while one is in the bathhouse or in the toilet, he could use such time to increase his knowledge in other disciplines. Our sages (Menachot 99) said: "go and study Greek philosophy at a time which is neither day nor night.⁠" What they meant was that preoccupation with any disciplines other than Torah study exposes the student to the danger of being influenced by the theologically unsound element, some of which is always found scattered in those texts. This is the reason these disciplines have been compared to silver, seeing that silver invariably contains some impurities unless it has been refined over and over again. Our Torah is compared to such silver, i.e. כסף צרוף. This is what David meant in Psalms 12,7 when he wrote: "the words of the Lord are pure words, silver purged in an earthen crucible, refined sevenfold.⁠"

מי יעלה לנו השמימה, "who would ascend heaven for us?⁠" The acronym of these words is מילה from which we find a hint here that only people who have been circumcised have a chance to attain a true appreciation of the unique nature of Hashem. Only the Jewish people who wear the sign of the covenant on their very bodies have a chance to attain such a spiritual level. We also find that even prophets cannot prophesy while in a standing position unless they had been circumcised. As long as Avraham had not been circumcised he always fell down when God spoke to him [other than in a dream when he was prostate anyway. Ed.] Compare Genesis 17,3: "he fell on his face.⁠" This was prior to his circumcision. On the other hand, after he had been circumcised and recovered from the effects, and prayed on behalf of the righteous people in Sodom, the Torah speaks of him as עודנו עומד לפני ה', "still standing in the presence of the Lord.⁠" (Genesis 18,22 compare Tanchuma Lech Lecha 20). Bileam, by contrast, prophesied only when in a prone position as we know from Numbers 24,4. Moses also alluded to the inability of the Jewish people in his time to attain a true appreciation of the holy name of God. This is why he said to God: "if the people will ask me what is His name (the God in whose name you claim to speak), what shall I tell them?⁠" He may have meant that the few Israelites who were circumcised at that time would ask such a question.

Seeing that המצוה (the term used in our passage for the entire Torah) which bears the seal of the Holy Covenant requires as a precondition of being fulfilled that the persons doing so have been circumcised, the sages of the Midrash (Shir Hashirim Rabbah 2,18) said concerning בצבאות או באילות השדה, "by the Hosts or by the hinds of the fields,⁠" that the word "Hosts" refers to the Upper Hosts as well as the lower Hosts, those on earth who witnessed the covenant (Song of Songs 2,7). The Hosts referred to are the ones which already bear a distinguishing mark, (circumcision) as opposed to those who will only bear this mark in the future.
Our verse indirectly refers to the circumcision of our flesh after having openly referred to the circumcision of our hearts with the words: "and the Lord your God will circumcise your heart.⁠" This latter circumcision brings in its wake the neutralization of the evil urge. Once this has occurred all organs of a person are eager to play their respective parts in the fulfillment of the Torah's commandments, something that reason dictates. Being drawn to the name of the Lord will then be a natural state of affairs. This is all alluded to in the words: "who will ascend to heaven on our behalf?⁠" [At such times when you no longer suffer from the evil urge, there is no need for an intermediary, for someone to ascend to heaven in your behalf; you can do it yourself. Ed.] The prophet Jeremiah refers to this state of affairs when he writes (Jeremiah 31,33) "for all of them know Me, from the least of them to the greatest.⁠"