Chasidut su Levitico 26:78

Leviticus 26,3. “if you will walk in My statutes and ‎observe My commandments and carry them out.” At first ‎glance there appears to be unnecessary verbiage in this verse. We ‎would have expected the Torah to write simply: ‎אם תשמרו את ‏מצותי ונתתי גשמיכם בעתו‎, “if you will observe My commandments I ‎will provide your rainfall at the appropriate time.” However, the ‎reason for the additional words may be understood when we recall ‎that the Talmud in Kiddushin 40 states that G’d will ‎account a good intention as if it were a good deed, i.e. that the ‎good intention is already accounted as fulfillment of a ‎commandment. In other words, the good intention is accounted ‎as if it had already been translated into action, so that if through ‎an accident beyond one’s control actual performance of the good ‎intention was prevented, one is still given credit for it.‎Leviticus 26,3. “if you will walk in My statutes and ‎observe My commandments and carry them out.” At first ‎glance there appears to be unnecessary verbiage in this verse. We ‎would have expected the Torah to write simply: ‎אם תשמרו את ‏מצותי ונתתי גשמיכם בעתו‎, “if you will observe My commandments I ‎will provide your rainfall at the appropriate time.” However, the ‎reason for the additional words may be understood when we recall ‎that the Talmud in Kiddushin 40 states that G’d will ‎account a good intention as if it were a good deed, i.e. that the ‎good intention is already accounted as fulfillment of a ‎commandment. In other words, the good intention is accounted ‎as if it had already been translated into action, so that if through ‎an accident beyond one’s control actual performance of the good ‎intention was prevented, one is still given credit for it.‎
From this it follows that when one performs a good deed ‎‎(commandment) truly without any ulterior motive this may ‎result in such a person being transported to a higher spiritual ‎level than the one he had been on prior to performance of that ‎commandment. As a result of such a spiritual “promotion,” one ‎will be granted the opportunity to fulfill still other ‎commandments. The process will continue as a self-fulfilling ‎prophecy. This is what the sages had in mind when they said that ‎the reward of fulfilling a commandment is another ‎commandment. (Avot 4,2) It is also the meaning of ‎מצוה ‏גוררת מצוה‎, “performance of one commandment drags an ‎additional commandment in its wake.” (ibid.) Keeping this in ‎mind we can also understand the meaning of the line in ‎‎Niddah 73 quoted in the name of Tanna de bey Eliyahu ‎that every person who makes it a rule to study at least one ‎‎halachah daily, is assured that he will have a share in the ‎world to come. The meaning is that that individual will progress ‎daily ever closer to his ultimate objective of the world to come as ‎he has not been deflected from his path. This is the meaning of ‎the verse from Scripture quoted by the author of this saying, i.e. ‎Chabakuk 3,6 ‎הליכות עולם לו‎, “he will make steady progress ‎towards another, eternal life.”‎
The words: ‎אם בחקותי תלכו‎, mean that “if you cleave to My ‎statutes,” you will be considered as “walking” on the right path, ‎תלכו‎. The words: ‎ואת מצותי תשמרו‎, refer to your planning, ‎thinking of, performing My commandments, even if you have not ‎succeeded for some reason to carry out your good intention, I will ‎consider it as if you had done it, i.e. ‎ועשיתם אותם‎. When ‎understood in this manner, none of the words in our verse are ‎superfluous or repetitious.‎

Leviticus 26,4. “then I will provide you with your rain ‎at the appropriate time.” Seeing that we have referred to ‎the reward for performance of the commandments as being ‎reserved for the world to come, this verse poses the question that ‎it appears to contradict the statement of our sages that there is ‎no reward for mitzvah performance to be expected in this ‎life on earth. (Kiddushin 39)
We may answer this ‎apparent contradiction by reminding the reader of Avot 4,2 ‎in which we are told that the reward for performing a ‎‎mitzvah is the opportunity to perform additional ‎‎mitzvoth. Receiving the rain we need on time results in our ‎economic viability and our ability to perform additional ‎commandments such as being charitable to the poor with our ‎disposable income. All this comes under the heading of ‎‎“performance of a commandment dragging in its wake the ‎opportunity to perform additional commandments.” This does ‎not contradict what the sages meant when they described the ‎‎“real” reward for performing the commandments being saved for ‎life beyond the death of our bodies.‎

Leviticus 26,16. “I will wreak misery upon you;” the ‎root ‎פקד‎ usually refers to the lack of something, something being ‎missing that should have been there. We find it in this sense ‎when David’s seat near King Sha-ul was empty. (Samuel I 20,25) ‎G’d says that He will remove certain plagues from us, seeing that ‎the fact that we will sow and not reap but our enemies are ‎reaping the fruit of our labours, this is sufficient punishment. ‎According to the predictions of our sages (Shabbat 30) in the ‎future the soil of the land of Israel will bring forth ready made ‎buns and scones so that the Israeli farmer does not need to ‎plough, sow, and harvest. At that time these labours will be ‎performed for us by the gentiles. Our verses describe the very ‎opposite occurring as G’d’s retribution for neglecting the Torah, ‎so much so that even when we perform these labours ourselves, ‎they will serve only others, as we will not benefit from our ‎labours.‎

Moses prefaces his remarks with the word: ‎ועתה‎, “and now,” ‎to hint that just as G’d in His capacity of Hashem has ‎imposed upon Himself restrictions in as much as He treats you as ‎if you deserved that He consults you before acting, i.e. ‎שואל‎, ‎much as a student who seeks clarification from his teacher, this ‎very characteristic of not acting high-handedly but consulting ‎higher authority first, is a characteristic that G’d expects of you ‎to be practiced unreservedly, i.e. you will prove this in the ‎manner in which you revere Him. This is also what Rashi ‎‎(Leviticus 26,12) where the Torah writes of G’d saying: ‎והתהלכתי ‏בתוככם‎, “I will be walking amongst you,” had in mind, when he ‎paraphrased Moses by saying: ‎אטייל עמכם‎, “I shall go for a walk ‎with you,” i.e. although you will feel so familiar with Me, you ‎must not forget for one moment that in spite of this I must be ‎related to with utmost reverence, ‎יראה‎.‎
A third interpretation of our verse, is one that portrays Moses ‎as making maximal demands on the Jewish people, instead of ‎minimal ones, as a superficial reading of our verse would imply.
‎ The axiom that the Creator is ‎אין סוף‎, “a Being the extent of ‎whose multifaceted attributes knows no limits,” [my ‎translation, Ed.] includes the inability of His angels to ‎fully comprehend Him also. This is already alluded to in the ‎commentary of Vayikra rabbah Leviticus 24,9 where the ‎author, in trying to explain the line:‎קדושים תהיו כי קדוש אני ‏‎, ‎commonly translated as “strive to be holy for I am holy,” states ‎‎“you will never be able to be as holy as I am, as My holiness will ‎progressively appear to you as just beyond reach, the closer you ‎have come to Me.” Not only that, but as you attain greater ‎insights, you will realise how far beyond I am. At the same time, ‎the more you endeavour to become holy, the more of My holiness ‎will become part of you.‎ ‎

It is written in the Zohar (Bo, 33a): “[G-d said to the Accuser, "Have you considered My servant Iyov? There is none like him on earth, a sincere and upright man, God-fearing and shunning evil. And he still maintains his integrity,] though you incite Me to him, to destroy him without cause” (Iyov, 2:3) If, as God says, there is no reason to afflict Iyov, then the punishment was unjust; the sole reason being the incitement of the Accuser, who wants him to falter. Yet, in reality, it is all according to justice. This is as Elihu said to Iyov (34:11), “For according to the work of a man shall God pay him back, and things happen to man according to his ways.” And so it was. Just as Pharaoh had decreed upon Israel, so did God decree upon him. As for that which God said, “though you incite Me to him, to destroy him without cause,” notice that the verse does not say, “you incite Me to destroy him,” but rather, “you incite Me to him, to destroy him.” That is, to him, to his own mind, it seems that “you incite Me against me.” This is like Iyov said, “[Is it good that You should oppress, despise the work of Your hands,] and shine upon the counsel of the wicked?” In a similar vein it says (Tehillim, 78:36), “They seduced Him with their mouths and lied to Him with their tongues.” For this reason it is not written, “They seduce Him and lie to Him.” But it says, “They seduce Him in their mouths,”⁴²⁰“B’fihem,” in Hebrew, could either mean with their mouths or in their mouths. to show us that their seduction and lies exists only in their mouths (i.e., in their minds, whereas God knows all).⁴²¹The point being, here, that the rebelliousness of the wicked is only from their perspective, but not from G-d’s. On the other hand, just as man fixes the faith in God in his soul, so does God deal with him. This is as it is written in the Zohar (Vayikra, 103b): “Her husband is known in the gates.” (Mishlei 31:23) “Her husband,” is the Holy One, blessed be He. He is “known” and connected to every one according to how much a person estimates God in his heart.⁴²²The word for “gate” – sha’ar is the same letters as the word for estimation – sha’er. Directly corresponding to how much one can cleave himself to God in the spirit of wisdom, so is God known to him. As we have written in the introduction, God’s providence is according to man’s faith. This is as it is written in Torat Kohanim (on Vayikra, 26:21), “‘If you go with me haphazardly,⁴²³B’keri also, “by chance.” Rashi translates this as “in opposition.” That is, they harden their hearts to prevent themselves from coming close to God. The meaning here, however, is “by chance”; that is, if a person imagines that the world runs haphazardly, without supernal direction, then G-d indeed allows the world to run that way for a person, and he lacks divine providence. then I too will only go with you haphazardly.’ If you consider Me to be impermanent in the world, then I will make you impermanent in the world.” That is, if a person believes that the world runs by chance, then God relates to him according to his faith, and his life is subject to chance. However, when one believes that God’s providence extends to every detail of creation, then, from His side, God’s providence extends to every detail of creation for the person’s benefit. This is as it is written in the Talmud (Yevamot, 63a, and Midrash Rabbah on Lekh Lekha 39:11), “Even barrels of impure wine⁴²⁴Yayin nesech – wine used for idolatrous rituals. being brought from Gaul to Spain were blessed in the merit of Avraham Avinu.” You may ask how this could be as they were barrels of impure wine (and thus not worthy of being blessed). The answer is that even vinegar brings down the price of wine.⁴²⁵That is, even good quality vinegar drives down the price of wine – all the more so, wine itself (even if it is non-kosher). In other words, God blesses the efforts of idolatrous wine merchants coming from distant lands, all in order that Avraham receive benefit from the lower prices that result. Here we see that in the merit of Avraham, whom G-d wanted to benefit, He directed the events of even distant places, so that Avraham might derive even a minute benefit, even through a very distant connection, or a lengthy series of causes and effects. In this way, with regards to Avraham, the entire creation and all of its minutiae were intimately led by God’s providence, even though each of those details themselves were only led by general providence. However, to the man of faith, all the minutiae of creation are led by an intimate, individual providence. We find that each person has his own frame of reference, and within the boundaries of his frame, he is led according to his level of preparedness and faith, with no person on the level of any other.⁴²⁶The disbeliever, though led by general providence, could be used for the benefit of the believer, and at this time be influenced by the individual providence of the believer. Thus from the perspective of the believer he is led by individual providence.

We read the following in Sh’mot Rabbah ‎‎23,1 concerning psalms 93,2 where the psalmist ‎describes G’d’s throne as having been firmly ‎established since “‎אז‎,” that Rabbi Berechyah, citing ‎Rabbi Avahu says as follows:” what the psalmist has in ‎mind is that You (the Lord) have never sat securely on ‎Your throne, and Your Name has not become a byword ‎amongst mankind until after Your children, the Jewish ‎people, aggrandized Your Name in song and poetry, ‎i.e. with the song commencing with ‎אז ישיר‎. The sages in ‎the Midrash explain that a king, until he has ‎won impressive victories in battle, may be a king in ‎name only. Once he has won impressive victories he is ‎no longer referred to only as “king,” but as “Emperor.” ‎The Israelites conveyed this idea in the shirah, ‎by recalling that prior to the experience at the sea of ‎reeds, G’d was perceived like a king who is standing ‎upright, measuring the contours of the earth ‎‎[compare Chabakuk 3,6). Now that He had won ‎impressive victories, He is perceived as sitting on His ‎throne, [resting on His laurels. Ed.] The song ‎that the Israelites sang after the Egyptians had been ‎drowned may be viewed as an accolade to the newly ‎revealed aspect of G’d the Creator.‎
What precisely was the new aspect of G’d that the ‎people had experienced so that the Torah described it ‎as:‎וירא ישראל את היד הגדולה....ויאמינו בה' ובמשה עבדו‎, “Israel saw ‎the great hand of the Lord, etc,….and they had faith in ‎the Lord and in His servant Moses?” After all, they had ‎already witnessed the splitting of the sea, the marching ‎through the sea’s bed as if marching on dry land, the ‎sea’s reversing direction and drowning their enemies.” ‎What new dimension was revealed to them as a result ‎of which they decided to break out in song?‎
Surely, the word ‎אז‎, “then,” as well as the word: ‎ישיר‎ ‎in the future mode must contain the answer to our ‎question! Nowhere else in the Torah has the word ‎אז‎ ‎been coupled with an event in the future! [not ‎quite correct, compare Leviticus 26,34 where the Torah ‎predicts, ‎אז תרצה‎, then the land will rest” after the ‎many shmittah years which have been ‎disregarded, neglected by the Jewish people. Compare ‎also Deut.4,41 ‎אז יבדיל‎, Ed.]