Comentario sobre Deuteronómio 30:6

AND THE ETERNAL THY G-D WILL CIRCUMCISE THY HEART. It is this which the Rabbis have said,⁵⁷Shabbath 104a. “If someone comes to purify himself, they assist him” [from on High]. The verse assures you that you will return to Him with all your heart and He will help you.
This following subject is very apparent from Scripture: Since the time of Creation, man has had the power⁵⁸Literally: “the permission.” to do as he pleased, to be righteous or wicked. This [grant of free will] applies likewise to the entire Torah-period, so that people can gain merit upon choosing the good and punishment for preferring evil. But in the days of the Messiah, the choice of their [genuine] good will be natural; the heart will not desire the improper and it will have no craving whatever for it. This is the “circumcision” mentioned here, for lust and desire are the “foreskin” of the heart, and circumcision of the heart means that it will not covet or desire evil. Man will return at that time to what he was before the sin of Adam, when by his nature he did what should properly be done, and there were no conflicting desires in his will, as I have explained in Seder Bereshith.⁵⁹Genesis 2:9 (Vol. I, pp. 72-73). See also Vol. III, pp. 456-457. — It should be noted here that Ramban’s intention is not to state that man in the era of Messiah will be completely devoid of the desire to do evil, for if that were the case there would be no place for reward and punishment, which is founded upon the principle of man’s freedom of choice between good and evil. Rather, the import of his words is to state that man will then be so motivated for good that he will naturally be doing the good and proper according to the Will of G-d, and it will appear as if the instinct for evil has been completely eliminated from him, although potentially it will still be with him. The case is similar to what we say now of a normal knowledgeable person that it is “impossible” for him to jump into a blazing fire. Of course, it is within his powers to do so, but it is his knowledge of the danger entailed that makes it “impossible” for him to do so. In the Messianic era man will have that kind of reaction to all things prohibited by G-d. There will, therefore, still be place for reward and punishment, since potentially man will still have his freedom of choice. See my Hebrew commentary, Vol. I, p. 36-37, where I quote this thought in the name of Rabbi Yeruchum, one of the great leaders of the Musar movement. It is this which Scripture states in [the Book of] Jeremiah, Behold, the days come, saith the Eternal, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers etc. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Eternal, I will put my Law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it.⁶⁰Jeremiah 31:30-32. This is a reference to the annulment of the evil instinct and to the natural performance by the heart of its proper function. Therefore Jeremiah said further, and I will be their G-d, and they shall be My people; and they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying: ‘Know the Eternal;’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them.⁶¹Ibid., Verses 32-33. Now, it is known that the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth⁶²Genesis 8:21. and it is necessary to instruct them, but at that time it will not be necessary to instruct them [to avoid evil] for their evil instinct will then be completely abolished. And so it is declared by Ezekiel, A new heart will I also give you, and a new spirit will I put within you;⁶³Ezekiel 36:26. and I will cause you to walk in My statutes.⁶⁴Ibid., Verse 27. The new heart alludes to man’s nature, and the [new] spirit to the desire and will. It is this which our Rabbis have said:⁶⁵Shabbath 151b. “And the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say: ‘I have no pleasure in them’⁶⁶Ecclesiastes 12:1. — these are the days of the Messiah, as they will offer opportunity neither for merit nor for guilt,” for in the days of the Messiah there will be no [evil] desire in man but he will naturally perform the proper deeds and therefore there will be neither merit nor guilt in them, for merit and guilt are dependent upon desire.

ומל ה' אלוקיך את לבבך ואת לבב זרעך, לאהבה, He will open your eyes so as to remove every erroneous conceptions which have prevented you from recognising the theological truth of all aspects of the Jewish religion. Once these “blinds” have been removed from your eyes you will realise that everything G’d has done was out of His love for you, and had to be done למען חייך, in order to ensure that you will be part of eternal life after your body dies.

ומל ה׳ אלוקיך את לבבך, And the Lord your G'd will circumcise your heart, etc." In view of the Torah already having described the Israelites as having done תשובה why would G'd have to circumcise their hearts? Besides, what does the Torah mean in verse 8 ואתה תשוב ושמעת בקול השם, "and you will return and hearken to the voice of G'd?" This seems to contradict the statement in verse 2? Moreover, the words ואתה תשוב after G'd has circumcised our hearts make no sense at all. What can still be lacking in the process of penitence once G'd has circumcised our hearts?