הַקְשִׁ֤יבוּ אֵלַי֙ עַמִּ֔י וּלְאוּמִּ֖י אֵלַ֣י הַאֲזִ֑ינוּ כִּ֤י תוֹרָה֙ מֵאִתִּ֣י תֵצֵ֔א וּמִשְׁפָּטִ֔י לְא֥וֹר עַמִּ֖ים אַרְגִּֽיעַ׃
Прими Меня, народ Мой, и внимай Мне, народ Мой; Ибо от Меня пойдут наставления, и Мое право внезапно для света народов.
Peri Tzadik
And now that the Torah has already been given, it is due to this reason that we must remain awake and occupy ourselves with the oral Torah. And it is as it is written in the holy Zohar (1:98a), "Since one must be occupied on that night with the Oral Torah, because, etc." And in another place (Introduction 14:125), it is found, "to be occupied with the Torah, from the Torah to the Prophets, from the Prophets to the Writings, from the Writings to the teachings about the verses and the secrets of wisdom, etc." And that is, that secret [raz] has the numerical value of light [ohr], as it is written in the holy Zohar (3:215a). And that which it said, "from the Torah to the Prophets, etc.," is that also in the verses in the written Torah, there is oral Torah. And it is as we said in the name of our holy rabbi from Izbiza, may the memory of the righteous be for a blessing, about that which they said (Vayikra Rabba 16:2), "Rabbi Yannai said, 'All my life I have been reading this verse, but I did not know how obvious it is until this peddler came and informed [me]'": Even though he only said the verse as it is written — the peddler nevertheless needed a correction with this, since that is why he is called a peddler [rokhel], like the usage of, One who goes talebearing [rakhil] (Proverbs 11:13). And he merited that it be clarified in this way, so he felt light and imbued the verse with a new taste [taam, which also means explanation]. And by way of R. Yannai hearing this verse from him, he also felt this light. And these are the explanations of the light of the Torah that is found in the words of Torah, which make one feel taste and sweetness. And this is the reason it is established that we read the order of Shavuot night [which also includes the reading of verses by themselves]. But the intention is not about only saying it, rather it is necessary that the light of the Torah be planted into the heart. And with us, all of the wisdom of the oral Torah — since it has already been written — is included in the wisdom of the aspect of the written Torah, whereas the essence is to feel the light from the words of the Torah in the heart. The Understanding [Binah] of the heart, that is the aspect of the oral Torah. And this is that on the night before the time of the giving of the Torah each year, a person may merit this, that the words of the Torah be planted into the heart, just like the Jewish people merited then on the night before the giving of the Torah. And because of this, we need to stay awake and be occupied with the Oral Torah. And this is [the meaning of] that which it says in the holy Zohar (Emor 35:171), " What did his mother do that night? She went into the storeroom and brought out a noble crown set with 70 precious stones, etc." And that is with the crown with which his mother crowned him (Song of Songs 3:9). And his mother is the Congregation of Israel, according to that which is said in the midrash (Shir HaShirim Rabbah 3:11:2), "He did not stop loving them until he called them My mother [imi], as it is stated, Heed Me My people, listen to Me My nation [uleumi] (Isaiah 51:4), My mother [ulimi] is written. For the congregation of Israel is called Mother. And that which is written in the Zohar, "the supernal Mother," is the supernal divine presence, Understanding. And that is as it is written, Then you will understand the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 2:5), since the fear entered the depths of the heart. And then God, may He be blessed, called the Jewish people, My Mother, with the crown with which his Mother crowned him, and that is the Congregation of Israel. And here it also said that the crown was with the number of the 70 precious stones, and that is according to the number of the Children of Israel [when they entered Egypt]. And that number is from the powers of the soul, which are 70, as the ancients wrote, and they are the precious stones. And that is according to that which they said in the holy Zohar (Emor 21:91-92), "This secret is that at first, it is, and I will be sanctified amongst the Children of Israel; and afterward, I am the Lord who sanctifies you (Leviticus 22:32)" — since afterward, He crowns the Jewish people with seventy crowns, and as it was on the night before the giving of the Torah. And this is what is written in the holy Zohar (in the Introduction 14:26), "Rabbi Shimon said, 'My sons... shall have their names recorded in the Book of Remembrance, and the Holy One, blessed be He, shall bless them with seventy blessings and adornments of crowns of the supernal world.'" As the original light that was hidden for the righteous in the future to come is in the oral Torah, as it is written in Sefer HaBahir. And so is it written (Tanchuma, Noach 3) that the Holy One, blessed be He, hid it away for those who toil with the oral Torah. It is the dew of the Ancient One, let my saying drip like dew [alluding to Deuteronomy 32:2]. And there are 70 faces to the Torah in the oral Torah, and these are the 70 blessings and the 70 crowns of the supernal world. Be exact, the dew of the Ancient One. And it said afterward in the Raiya Mehemna (Zohar Chadash 98b) [Zohar, Emor 35:172], "Afterwards she went into the house of the bride, etc. she said to them, 'I have prepared a bathhouse, etc.'" Immersing in water is hinting to Torah — there is no water besides Torah (Bava Kamma 17a). And that is the Oral Torah, the aspect of fear, and the fear of the Lord is pure, and it purifies [alluding to Psalms 19:10], that it shall last forever. And it is as it says in the holy Zohar (Kedoshim 3:11), "Since you will find purification in Torah, etc.; as it is always found in that purification, and it does not move away from it." And every year when that night before the giving of the Torah arrives, we can merit to that fear and oral Torah, to sense the light in the words of Torah. And that is why we must remain awake and be occupied with the oral Torah, so that it brings [its] light and sweetness into the heart.
Kedushat Levi
The Talmud in Shabbat 133 urges each one of us to “attach” ourselves to the virtues manifested by Hashem, by emulating them whenever possible, giving as an example: “just as He is merciful, you are to be merciful also.”
The problem with this “moral imperative” posited by the Talmud is that one of the attributes G’d has revealed to Moses in our portion is called א-ל, usually understood as a reference to G’d being omnipotent, תקיף; (compare Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim 5) how are we to emulate such an attribute? We need to understand this slightly differently, i.e. that G’d has given the tzaddik the power to “compel” Him to carry out the tzaddik’s wishes. This is what the Talmud in Megillah 18 had in mind when it posed the rhetorical question of “how do we know that G’d called Yaakov by the attribute א-ל?” What possible “omnipotence” did Yaakov possess, seeing that all he could do was to abide by rules established in the Torah? Our sages in the Talmud in Ketuvot 111 alluded to this problem when they taught us that G’d made the Jewish people swear three oaths at the time of the destruction of the Temple. One of them was: “do not pressure Me to postpone the date of the coming of the messiah.” [Our author prefers an alternate version of that oath with the word ירחקו being replaced by the word ידחקו, i.e. pressuring G’d to advance the date of the coming of the messiah. Ed.] The root דחק is well known as referring to someone “hastening an event,” the best known example being the saying in B’rachot 64: כל הדוחק את השעה השעה דוחק אותו, “whosoever tries to advance the timetable for events destined to occur later, will find that it proves to have been counterproductive.”
Concerning the appropriate time for the coming of the messiah, the prophet Isaiah had predicted in Isaiah 51,4 כי תורה מאתי תצא , “for a teaching will come forth from Me, etc.” The prophet refers to a teaching which prior to that era could not have been understood at all by man, [as his spiritual horizons had not been sufficiently expanded. Ed.] This “Torah” will be called superior to all.
Besides, how is it possible to hasten the end of the exile, seeing that if all of Israel‘s virtues are the result of emulating G’d’s attributes, it follows that everything the Israelites do is pattered on the Torah, so how could they possibly be able to influence G’d’s timetable for the coming of the Messiah then? The answer is that by conferring on Yaakov the title א-ל, (Genesis 35,10, 33,20), He had conferred on him (and subsequent tzaddikim) some of His powers so that He had to warn them not to abuse these powers by making them take an oath. This complimentary title that G’d bestowed on Yaakov and other zaddikim after him was conditioned on his regarding the Torah and its laws inviolate. G’d had decided on His timetable for the coming of the messiah either at the same time as when He bestowed the title א-ל on Yaakov, or even earlier, so that his “powers” did not extend to overriding this. How could man then interfere with G’d’s decree? If man, i.e. the tzaddik could not interfere, why would the בנות ישראל, “chronologically later generations of Israelites,” have to swear an oath concerning something that was beyond their power to do anyways?
The apparent contradiction is resolved by an interesting commentary on Song of Songs 2,10, (a few verses after the verse in which G’d beseeches the “daughters of Jerusalem” to swear the abovementioned oath); we read there, concerning G’d: הנה זה עומד אחר כתלנו משגיח מן החלונות מציץ מחרקים, “here He is standing behind our walls looking down through the windows, peering through the blinds.” This verse describes G’d, Who, on the one hand is לעילא מן כל, “towering high above all,” as also on occasion retreating so far into the background that He only peers through the lattices. The verse alludes to the varying degrees of light that emanates from Him, tailored to what the situation requires. On occasion, if warranted, the tzaddik can override G’d’s plan; seeing that this is so, G’d had to protect His ultimate program for mankind by making the בנות ירושלים swear that they would not interfere with certain of His plans.
The problem with this “moral imperative” posited by the Talmud is that one of the attributes G’d has revealed to Moses in our portion is called א-ל, usually understood as a reference to G’d being omnipotent, תקיף; (compare Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayim 5) how are we to emulate such an attribute? We need to understand this slightly differently, i.e. that G’d has given the tzaddik the power to “compel” Him to carry out the tzaddik’s wishes. This is what the Talmud in Megillah 18 had in mind when it posed the rhetorical question of “how do we know that G’d called Yaakov by the attribute א-ל?” What possible “omnipotence” did Yaakov possess, seeing that all he could do was to abide by rules established in the Torah? Our sages in the Talmud in Ketuvot 111 alluded to this problem when they taught us that G’d made the Jewish people swear three oaths at the time of the destruction of the Temple. One of them was: “do not pressure Me to postpone the date of the coming of the messiah.” [Our author prefers an alternate version of that oath with the word ירחקו being replaced by the word ידחקו, i.e. pressuring G’d to advance the date of the coming of the messiah. Ed.] The root דחק is well known as referring to someone “hastening an event,” the best known example being the saying in B’rachot 64: כל הדוחק את השעה השעה דוחק אותו, “whosoever tries to advance the timetable for events destined to occur later, will find that it proves to have been counterproductive.”
Concerning the appropriate time for the coming of the messiah, the prophet Isaiah had predicted in Isaiah 51,4 כי תורה מאתי תצא , “for a teaching will come forth from Me, etc.” The prophet refers to a teaching which prior to that era could not have been understood at all by man, [as his spiritual horizons had not been sufficiently expanded. Ed.] This “Torah” will be called superior to all.
Besides, how is it possible to hasten the end of the exile, seeing that if all of Israel‘s virtues are the result of emulating G’d’s attributes, it follows that everything the Israelites do is pattered on the Torah, so how could they possibly be able to influence G’d’s timetable for the coming of the Messiah then? The answer is that by conferring on Yaakov the title א-ל, (Genesis 35,10, 33,20), He had conferred on him (and subsequent tzaddikim) some of His powers so that He had to warn them not to abuse these powers by making them take an oath. This complimentary title that G’d bestowed on Yaakov and other zaddikim after him was conditioned on his regarding the Torah and its laws inviolate. G’d had decided on His timetable for the coming of the messiah either at the same time as when He bestowed the title א-ל on Yaakov, or even earlier, so that his “powers” did not extend to overriding this. How could man then interfere with G’d’s decree? If man, i.e. the tzaddik could not interfere, why would the בנות ישראל, “chronologically later generations of Israelites,” have to swear an oath concerning something that was beyond their power to do anyways?
The apparent contradiction is resolved by an interesting commentary on Song of Songs 2,10, (a few verses after the verse in which G’d beseeches the “daughters of Jerusalem” to swear the abovementioned oath); we read there, concerning G’d: הנה זה עומד אחר כתלנו משגיח מן החלונות מציץ מחרקים, “here He is standing behind our walls looking down through the windows, peering through the blinds.” This verse describes G’d, Who, on the one hand is לעילא מן כל, “towering high above all,” as also on occasion retreating so far into the background that He only peers through the lattices. The verse alludes to the varying degrees of light that emanates from Him, tailored to what the situation requires. On occasion, if warranted, the tzaddik can override G’d’s plan; seeing that this is so, G’d had to protect His ultimate program for mankind by making the בנות ירושלים swear that they would not interfere with certain of His plans.
Kedushat Levi
In Tractate Megillah (16b:11), [it teaches], “All the songs are written a half brick arranged upon a whole brick and a whole brick arranged upon a half brick.” At first glance, we should wonder about that which is written (Vayikra Rabbah 13:4), “A new Torah will go out from Me”: Is it not one of the Thirteen Principles [of Faith] that this Torah will not be switched and that there will no other Torah? Rather [its] content is like this - that behold, it is known that the letters of the Torah are the aspect of inner (penimi) lights, which come in the revelation of the order of descent of the worlds; whereas the white borders which surrounds the letters are the aspect of the surrounding (makif) lights which do not come to be revealed except through hiding in the aspect of surrounding lights. And from this it is understood that even the white borders are also the aspect of letters; except they are letters hidden above the revealed letters. And it is from this reason that touching in the Torah scroll is forbidden. For with touching, he negates and covers the aspect of whiteness, which is the hidden letters. However with the splitting of the Red Sea - which is a great miracle above nature - [it was otherwise]. As the light and the vitality of the Lord, which is far above the order of the descent - which is the aspect of encircling the aspect of surrounding lights - was revealed. And that is why song was written a half brick arranged upon a whole brick and a whole brick arranged upon a half brick: Because it was the gathering of both of them together. Meaning that the aspect of whiteness, which is the aspect of the hidden letters, was drawn into revelation in the aspect of the revealed letters. And this is [the meaning of] what our Sages, may their memory be blessed, said, “A maidservant at the sea saw, etc.” It was because there was so much revelation of God, to the point that even a maidservant had the ability to grasp, etc. And this is the explanation of the verse (Isaiah 51:4), “A (new) Torah will go out from Me.” For in the future there will be a revelation of God, and the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all flesh shall see, etc. That is, there will be a revelation from the aspect of encircling and the aspect of whiteness will be revealed - meaning the hidden letters that are surrounding - in the revealed letters of the Torah. And this is [the meaning of], “a new Torah from me.” Be precise and you will understand.