הלכה אויף ישעיהו 4:5

And you ought to know that at the intellectual meal which is for the soul alone, prepared for the righteous in the world of souls or in the life of the world to come, the righteous are not all equal in this, but there is a hierarchy of status, one above the other. And thus they interpreted “sove’a’ semahot“¹⁵³An expression in Ps 16:11: “You will teach me the path of life. In your presence is perfect joy – sove’a’ semahot.” – “perfect joy” in a midrash in Sifre:¹⁵⁴Sifre Devarim 10. “The faces of the righteous in time to come will be like the sun, the moon, the horizon, the stars, lightning, flowers, and the menorot of the Temple.” And likewise they said in Seder Eliahu Zuta,¹⁵⁵Chavel says he couldn’t find this tradition in Seder Eliahu Zuta, but it is in b. Baba Batra 75a. “The righteous have seven huppot in the Garden of Eden, as it is said, ‘The Lord will create over the whole shrine and meeting place of Mt. Zion cloud by day, and smoke with a glow of flaming fire by night, etc.”¹⁵⁶Is 4:5: “The Lord will create over the whole shrine and meeting place of Mt. Zion cloud by day, and smoke with a glow of flaming fire by night. Indeed, over each ‘glory’ (kavod) will hang a huppah.” Cf Is 4:1: “In that day seven women shall take hold of one man…” You can see where the midrash gets the idea of seven wedding huppot in the future to come. So Rashi explains in a comment to b. Baba Batra 75a: “Indeed over each glory (or honor ) will hang a huppah: (1) “the cloud by day,” (2) “smoke”, (3) “glow”, (4) “fire”, (5) “flaming”, (6) “over each glory”, and (7) “huppah.” But “over each glory” doesn’t seem to belong to this count, but rather the “sukkah which will serve for shade by day” which follows immediately in the next verse (Is 4:6), making seven. It was this that was referred to when the Holy One Blessed be He promised Abraham Our Father in the “Covenant between the pieces” when He said to him, “Count the stars,” and “So shall your offspring be,”¹⁵⁷Gen 15:5. that is to say, just as the stars are arranged by levels, each star’s light greater than its neighbor, with some below it and some above, so in time to come your offspring will be arranged in levels, based on their light of Torah and wisdom, each one greater than the other, each one above the other. And thus in the light of the world to come, the level of the righteous will be one above the other, some of them worthy of the “glass that does not reflect”¹⁵⁸That is, the least obstructed view of God. See the Second Gate (pp. 492-3)., others “the glass which does reflect,” some that go up inside, that is, have permission to, and others who do not go up inside. And all of this they described in a midrash in Tractate Sukkah,¹⁵⁹B.Sukkah 45b. “The row [of righteous men immediately] before the Holy One, blessed be He, consists of eighteen thousand, for it is said, ‘It shall be eighteen thousand round about,'”¹⁶⁰Ez 48:35. which Rashi explained as “eighteen thousand of the righteous surrounding the Shekhinah.”¹⁶¹Rashi’s comment to B.Sukkah 45b. And the explanation of his explanation is that they do so at each of the four winds of the world, and if so, each wind has four thousand five hundred righteous people, and this is what “eighteen thousand round about”¹⁶²Ez 48:35. refers to.

The interpretation of “ḥupah” is from the expression: “He covers (protects) him all day” (Deuteronomy 33:12); this is an expression of covering and separating (them) from other people. And in the Aggadic literature, our sages, may their memories be for a blessing, wrote: “The Holy One, Blessed be He, is destined to make for each righteous man seven ‘ḥupot’ ” (Baba Batra 75a), meaning (special) coverings of honor, to distinguish them from other people, as it is written: “For on all glory shall be a ‘ḥupah’ ” (Isaiah 4:5). It was established to make a “ḥupah” of honor, and to recite the seven benedictions over them, and with this she is (considered) married completely. The (omission of) intercourse will not hinder (the validity of marriage) “everyone knows why the bride enters the ‘ḥupah’ ”. (Ketubot 8b). So there is no need for witnesses to the “yiḥud”, or ten men (to witness) the wedding benedictions, (because) immediately afterwards they will have intercourse, and this would be indecent (for others to be present).
Every kind of “ḥupah” that has been customary constitutes acquiring (a woman) through marriage, since their intent is (always) marriage, and now they are separated from other people. The two of them stand in one place for the sake of marriage, for example, when he leads her into his house and has “yiḥud” with her, as the Rambam wrote (Cf. III). And it would appear to me that the Rambam’s intention is also not that it is a complete “yiḥud” if the two of them are alone in one room, rather (when) they have “yiḥud” to live together as a man and his wife; they stand next to each other, and the seven benedictions are recited for them. Therefore, the opinion that we wrote in paragraph 6, viz. that “ḥupah” is not (only) “yiḥud” but the bringing her into his house for the sake of marriage, is essentially the opinion of the Rambam; for it is obvious that this opinion also acknowledges that, if he brings her to his house but is not with her, this is nothing. It is also obvious that he must be together with her, and recite the seven benedictions for then.
However, regarding this opinion, what the Halakhic authorities worte with respect to the opinion of the Rambam, that he holds that complete “yiḥud” in one room is necessary, and that no one else should be with them - this is the opinion concerning which there is disagreement. But, (in) our interpretation of the opinion of the Rambam: this and this are one (the same).