Chasidut su Osea 14:78

Collection regarding matters regarding repentance to those who repent from Jacob. In the Gemara Yoma [86a], "Great is repentance etc." see ibid. there are 7 saying regarding the greatness and advantages of repentance. And it is known that repentance follows understanding of the heart as is written "and their hearts will understand and they will repent" and because of this it said that repentance is after understanding as they [the Talmudic Sages] said in Megillah [17b]. It it also known that there are 7 levels in the instantiation of an action from understanding of the heart until completion of the action which correspond to the essential 7 sefirot [revealed in this lower world] Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferet,Netzach, Hod, Yesod and Malchut and corresponding to them is all the lists of 7 and so too the 7 greatnesses of repentance: "[Great is repentance] that it brings healing to the world (Yoma 86a)" and it appears to me that the healing of forgiveness in accordance with the language of the verse "I will heal their backsliding" (Hosea 14:5)

Thus, one who fulfills the commandments and is occupied with Torah, which is after all an intelligence which extends from their holiness—not only the idea but the force and intellectual faculty of the soul residing in the intelligence of the Torah, and those who contemplate it, resides in his mind. A real, substantial, living, holy, soulful ‘drawing down’ flows inside him. One who merely fulfills the commandment also has this force flowing inside, but when he does not also study and analyze them, he is akin to a child born with mental capacity but who never uses it. Thus, those capacities remain latent and hidden, even from himself. But when he uses those capacities, he reveals the treasure within him, and his wisdom—even he himself—grows and rises. Even regarding the commandments which are inoperable today, such as sacrifices, we say “instead of bulls we will pay our lips,”²⁸¹Hosea 14:3. i.e. that speech and learning are equated to having performed them. This is only so, however, because we perform other commandments and have incorporated their holiness; we can therefore dress the commandments which to our sorrow we are unable to perform, with the force of the intellect we have accrued by performing the other commandments, as an intellectual faculty can be dressed with various ideas. This would not be the case for one who does not fulfill the operable commandments, God forbid. Even would he spend the entire day learning Torah he would be unable to say “instead of bulls we will pay our lips,” for he will be merely contemplating ideas, shadowy and empty things without the force of a substantial, intelligizing soul.²⁸²Only a religiously observant hasid is therefore able to draw down and reveal the ontic essence of those contextually unfulfillable commandments. R. Shapiro seems to be warning against one who would suffice with learning about the commandments without actively fulfilling them.

But through this you can understand what they said, “The tzaddik rules [through] reverence for God (2 Sam. 23:3) … [I rule over humans, but] who rules over Me? The tzaddik, [for I make a decree but he annuls it]” (Moed Katan 16b). For at the hands of the wicked the world collapses and remains in contraction and judgment, God forbid; but at the hands of the tzaddikim the king’s anger is settled, as if it were possible. This can be compared to the child of a king, who when he enters into his father’s [presence] – even at the time of his anger – since the king’s will is to draw very close to his precious child, the characteristic of love is awakened within [the king] toward his child; and then that characteristic expands to all those who are in the king’s gate as well. So it is at the hands of the tzaddikim, who bring themselves closer – along with all things – to their Father in Heaven, giving [God] a restful spirit: [God’s] mind settles, as if it were possible, and the judgments that were awakened at the hands of the wicked are sweetened. And that is [the meaning of] “to collect from the wicked, who destroy [a world created] through ten statements” – for even though the Creation happened through ten statements for their benefit, in order that even there in their lowly place they should be able to hold onto [God’s] characteristics, and similarly [God’s] characteristics and divinity were contracted for them in order that they should recognize [God’s characteristics], as was stated above – and even still, on the contrary, on account of [all] this they distance themselves further. “And to give good reward to the tzaddikim, who sustain a world created through ten statements” – as we have stated above, by way of [the world] being created through ten statements, through contraction; for without this it would not have been possible, and understand this.

But through this you can understand what they said, “The tzaddik rules [through] reverence for God (2 Sam. 23:3) … [I rule over humans, but] who rules over Me? The tzaddik, [for I make a decree but he annuls it]” (Moed Katan 16b). For at the hands of the wicked the world collapses and remains in contraction and judgment, God forbid; but at the hands of the tzaddikim the king’s anger is settled, as if it were possible. This can be compared to the child of a king, who when he enters into his father’s [presence] – even at the time of his anger – since the king’s will is to draw very close to his precious child, the characteristic of love is awakened within [the king] toward his child; and then that characteristic expands to all those who are in the king’s gate as well. So it is at the hands of the tzaddikim, who bring themselves closer – along with all things – to their Father in Heaven, giving [God] a restful spirit: [God’s] mind settles, as if it were possible, and the judgments that were awakened at the hands of the wicked are sweetened. And that is [the meaning of] “to collect from the wicked, who destroy [a world created] through ten statements” – for even though the Creation happened through ten statements for their benefit, in order that even there in their lowly place they should be able to hold onto [God’s] characteristics, and similarly [God’s] characteristics and divinity were contracted for them in order that they should recognize [God’s characteristics], as was stated above – and even still, on the contrary, on account of [all] this they distance themselves further. “And to give good reward to the tzaddikim, who sustain a world created through ten statements” – as we have stated above, by way of [the world] being created through ten statements, through contraction; for without this it would not have been possible, and understand this.

We find that in a time of sinning it says (Jeremiah.12.8), "She raised her voice against Me, therefore I have rejected her" -- the hatred is only by cause. When the cause becomes nullified, the hatred disappears. The love, in contrast, is intrinsic, absolute. So it says (Hoshea.14.5), "I will love them freely."

Yet another meaning of the shalshelet draws our ‎attention to a mystical aspect of hitkashrut, the bond ‎between disciple and master. The numerical value of the letters in ‎the name ‎יוסף‎ when deducting the respective “zeros” as the 0 in ‎‎60, is the same as in the name of G’d ‎אהיה‎. This is the name of G’d, ‎which according to ‎שערי אורה‎, is the key to linking all of G’d’s ‎names together. The numerical value of the name ‎יוסף‎, i.e. 156 is ‎also the same as the numerical value of the word ‎ציון‎, and in ‎Hoseah 14,6 the prophet says of G’d: ‎אהיה כטל לישראל‎. “I (G’d) will ‎be as beneficial for Israel as dew.” In psalms 133,3 G’d also speaks ‎of being like the dew that falls on Mount Hermon which descends ‎on Mount Zion as a blessing. We also find that the abbreviated ‎form of G’d’s name as a substitute ‎כוזו‎ used on the back of the ‎מזוזה‎ equal in numerical value the word ‎טל‎ =39. (Compare ‎‎Zohar II 261 on this, where the author states that G’d’s ‎name ‎אהיה‎.includes all of G’d’s names and ‎כנוים‎, “G’d’s ‎pronouns.”) The shalshelet over the word ‎וימאן‎, is meant to ‎alert us to all this.‎

Based on all that we have seen, “We now know how to run after the knowledge of God, for His presence is prepared as the morning.”⁴⁷⁶Hoshea, 6:3. Here the Malbim notes that since the absolute knowledge of God is impossible, for at the pinnacle of knowledge one knows that he really doesn’t know (God being infinite), what remains is to find a way to increase one’s knowledge, for then, the more a person knows, the more he will be inspired to pursue further knowledge of God. And for this declaration, God answers us, saying, “for Israel, I shall be as the dew. She shall bloom as the rose, and cast her roots as the great trees of Lebanon.”⁴⁷⁷Hoshea, 14:6. All of this is “the beginning of wisdom, which is the fear of God,”⁴⁷⁸Tehillim, 111:10. leading all who fulfill the Torah to good understanding and to sing God’s praises, which stand forever.