ציטאַט אויף דברים 5:24

"This day we have seen that God speaks with a human being — and they live." (Deuteronomy 5:21) And after this it is written: "If we continue to hear… any more, we shall die."(Deuteronomy 5:22) Behold, the two verses apparently contradict and refute one another: they themselves said "that God speaks with a human being and they live," and then said, "if we continue… we shall die."

And this is what Israel said: "This day we have seen that God speaks et ha-adam" — with the human being, as two speaking with one another: the Blessed God speaks and decrees, and the tzaddik decrees and annuls; even if death, God forbid, has been decreed upon a person, the tzaddik can draw aliveness to them. And if you say, as above — how can a human being, whose aliveness is not their own essence, give aliveness? — to this it said va-chai: through the devekut the tzaddik has in the Blessed God, in the eternal Life, that aliveness too is found essential. And they said "if we continue" — that is: what we heard from the mouth of the Gevurah, Anochi and Lo yihyeh lecha (Deut. 5:7; Ex. 20:3), the positive and negative commandments in Divinity — that is devekut, and we were well able to hear it, and live. But if we continue to hear the rest of the mitzvot from the Blessed God directly — this is impossible, that God speak with a human being and they live, except for the need of some matter: as God spoke with Moshe panim be-fanim, face to face, in order to speak to Israel. And were it not for this — "who of all flesh…" (Exodus 16:3) Therefore: "you draw near, and hear."