#sichos

The Torah portion Eikev begins with the verse, “Because (eikev) you listen to these laws and safeguard and keep them, G-d your L-rd will keep His covenant and kindness that He swore to your fathers.”1

The Hebrew word eikev not only means “because,” but also “heel.” Thus Midrash Tanchuma2 explains that “these laws” refers to mitzvos that seemingly lack significance, so that people tend to “ignore them and cast them under their heels.”

Superficially, it would seem that the Midrash is inferring that these seemingly unimportant commandments are treated so lightly by some individuals that they do not observe them at all.

However, if this were indeed so, what is the connection between their non-performance and their being “cast under the heel” — if they are not performed at all then they are “cast out entirely,” not merely “cast under the heel”?

Truly, the Midrash is not referring to people who maintain that these “insignificant” mitzvos need not be performed, and surely it does not allude to those individuals who defile them by casting them under their heels.

Rather, the Midrash is making reference to those persons who recognize that all mitzvos are to be performed, no matter how inconsequential they may seem, only that these individuals prioritize the order of their performance, delaying the performance of mitzvos that they treat lightly — they cast their performance “under their heels.”

These persons maintain that they will first see to it that the “head,” i.e., the most important and stringent matters, will be performed properly. Afterward they will see to those mitzvos that are in close proximity to the head — mitzvos that are slightly less major. Only at the very last will they think about observing “heel mitzvos ,” and surely going above and beyond the letter of the law through the beautification and enhancement of these mitzvos will be put off to the very end.

Such individuals contend that one cannot possibly begin with the “heel”; order dictates that one must first do those things that are of greatest import and only then can one begin to think about deeper piety, enhanced performance, beautification of mitzvos , etc.

Although such thinking has a certain validity,3 it is absolutely vital that divine service begin with faith and acceptance of G-d’s yoke, not with the dictates of logic. And the Jewish faith exhorts the individual to be as scrupulously observant of the seemingly minor mitzvos as the major ones.

For the quintessential aspect of all mitzvos is that they unite the individual with G-d.4This applies to all the mitzvos , without the slightest difference between “major” and “minor” mitzvos , “head mitzvos ” or “heel mitzvos.” It is therefore out of place to think about a sequential order to the performance of mitzvos.5

Thus we also observe that the condition which enabled the Jewish people to receive the Torah and become a nation was their prefacing “We shall do” to “We shall hear” — a totally illogical sequence.6

For a Jew’s spiritual beginning, similar to the beginning of the Jewish nation as a whole, must be with faith and acceptance of the divine yoke and not with intellect; even those matters that are readily understandable must be performed out of a sense of faith and G-dly submission.

So too, children — people at the beginning of their lives — should know not only about the natural, i.e., logical, events that transpired with the Jewish people, but the miraculous, i.e., faith and belief, as well. This instills a firm foundation of faith in G-d.

This manner of conduct is especially important in times of exile, when the Jewish people are “like a sheep surrounded by 70 wolves”7 : When we transcend our self-imposed order and are equally fervent in our performance of all commandments, then G-d too foregoes the “order” of natural events, and the “Great Shepherd protects His sheep,”8 and abundantly provides them with children, health and sustenance.

Based on Likkutei Sichos Vol. XIX, pp. 89-93.

FOOTNOTES

1. Devarim 7:12.

2. Ibid.

3. See Mo’ed Kattan 9a.

4. Likkutei Torah , Bechukosai 45c; Rebbe Omer 5700 , conclusion of ch. 1 and onward.

5. See Kuntres U’Mayon p. 22.

6. See Shabbos 88a.

7. Tanchuma, Toldos; Esther Rabbah 10:11; Pesikta Rabosi ch. 9.

וַיָּבֹא משֶׁה וַיְדַבֵּר אֶת כָּל דִּבְרֵי הַשִּׁירָה הַזֹּאת בְּאָזְנֵי הָעָם הוּא וְהוֹשֵׁעַ בִּן נוּן (דברים לב, מד) AND MOSHE CAME AND SPOKE ALL THE WORDS OF THIS SONG IN THE EARS OF THE PEOPLE, HE, AND HOSHEA SON OF NUN. (DEVARIM 32:44) 

The Torah recounts the first time that Moshe and Yehoshua jointly addressed Bnei Yisrael: “And Moshe came and spoke all the words of this song… he, and Hoshea son of Nun.”

Drawing from the three distinct sources, Rashi comments on this episode: “It was a Shabbos of joint leadership; authority was taken from one and given to the other (Sotah 13b). Moshe appointed a spokesperson for Yehoshua (to broadcast his lectures to the public,) so that he could teach in Moshe’s lifetime, so that the Jewish people would not say, “During your teacher’s lifetime you would not raise your head!” (Sifrei 31:1) And why does Scripture here call him Hoshea (for his name had long since been changed to Yehoshua [see Bamidbar 13:16])? To teach us, that he did not become haughty. Though he was given high status, he humbled himself as he had formerly (Sifrei 32:44).”

Rashi’s three points each answer a question that the previous one gives rise to.

Unlike any other transfer of leadership in the Torah and Prophets, where the successor began to lead only after his predecessor’s passing, Moshe and Yehoshua’s joint address was, in effect, a compromise on Moshe’s exclusive leadership—“Authority was taken from one, and given to the other.” Why was this exception necessary?

During his predecessor’s lifetime, Yehoshua was the quintessential follower. He was known as Moshe’s “attendant” (Shemos 33:11), and not as a leader. As such, the people might believe he was too meek to lead and say, “During your teacher’s lifetime you would not raise your head!” in Rashi’s words. It was therefore necessary to establish Yehoshua’s leadership—to raise his head, as it were—while Moshe was still alive.

But if the objective was to dispel the notion that Yehoshua was timid, why did the Torah revert to calling him Hoshea here, a name that recalled his early years as Moshe’s attendant, before it was changed to Yehoshua?

This illustrates Yehoshua’s extraordinary humility, says Rashi. The Torah calls him Hoshea here to underscore that despite Moshe specifically elevating him and imbuing him with the preeminence necessary to lead, Yehoshua actively maintained his trademark humility—“He humbled himself, as he had formerly.”

דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִקְחוּ לִי תְּרוּמָה (שמות כה, ב) SPEAK TO BNEI YISRAEL AND HAVE A CONTRIBUTION TAKEN FOR ME. (SHEMOS 25:2) 

The command to build the Mishkan, and Bnei Yisrael’s donation of materials for its construction, took place immediately after the Giving of the Torah, before the episode of the Golden Calf, according to one opinion in the Zohar. Because the Golden Calf was made from molten earrings (Shemos 32:2-3) rather than from the plentiful supply of gold that Bnei Yisrael took from the Egyptians, we can deduce that they had already given most of their gold to the Mishkan. (Zohar, vol. 2, p. 224a)

Per this chronology of events, when G-d commanded Bnei Yisrael to build the Mishkan they were in their most elevated, pure state, having just been spiritually cleansed at Mount Sinai (see Talmud, Shabbos 146a). Yet, at that very point G-d instructed them to build a physical Mishkan, demonstrating that using our mundane possessions to create a home for G-d is man’s highest calling, even if he is already perfect in all other areas.

Moreover, according to this opinion, had Bnei Yisrael not already consecrated the bulk of their gold for a higher purpose—for use in the Mishkan, all that gold would have contributed toward their most grievous sin—the Golden Calf. This teaches us that only by wholly dedicating the material aspects of our lives to the goal of creating a home for G-d, can we ensure that we will remain anchored in our righteousness.

בְּעֵבֶר הַיַּרְדֵּן בְּאֶרֶץ מוֹאָב הוֹאִיל משֶׁה בֵּאֵר אֶת הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת לֵאמֹר (דברים א, ה) ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE JORDAN, IN THE LAND OF MOAV, MOSHE BEGAN EXPLAINING THIS TEACHING, SAYING… (DEVARIM 1:5) 

At the very beginning of Devarim, Moshe hintingly rebukes Bnei Yisrael, reminding them that although G-d had shortened the duration of their journey from eleven days to only three, in order to hasten their arrival in the Land of Israel, their misconduct had caused them to wander for an additional 40 years.

According to the Midrash, G-d assigned Moshe the task of rebuking Bnei Yisrael, saying, “Let Moshe, who loves them, reprimand them” (Devarim Rabbah 1:4). How was his love evident in this reproof?

The Talmud (Menachos 65a-b) records a disagreement between R. Yochanan ben Zakkai and a group of recalcitrant Jews regarding which day of the week to observe Shavuos. They argued that “Moshe, our teacher, was a lover of the Jewish people. Knowing that Shavuos is only one day, he established the holiday to always occur on the day after Shabbos, for the Jews to enjoy two consecutive days.” Citing the verse about the eleven-day distance the Jews traveled in three, R. Yochanan ben Zakkai retorted, “If Moshe was a lover of the Jewish people, why did he delay them in the wilderness for 40 years?”

Did R. Yochanan ben Zakkai not think of Moshe as a lover of the Jewish people? Of course he did! He was explaining that Moshe’s love was far more profound than these renegades imagined it to be.

The Jewish people’s 40 years of wandering in the desert were not merely punishment. The trials they faced throughout those years enabled them to grow in their devotion to G-d, until Moshe could confidently say, “You, who held fast to Hashem your G-d, are all alive today” (Devarim 4:4). Their devotion had been tested and proven; even their failures had been followed by genuine repentance. And now, after 40 years, they stood ready to enter the Land with a deeper and stronger commitment to G-d.

This was the meaning behind Moshe’s loving rebuke: Remember that G-d could have made the journey miraculously swift. Yet you were delayed in the wilderness—out of love! From my perspective, this gave you the opportunity to learn the value of toil and personal effort—the true path to growth—and the ability to develop a deep, internal, and ironclad devotion to G-d.

הַקְהֵל אֶת הָעָם . . לְמַעַן יִשְׁמְעוּ וּלְמַעַן יִלְמְדוּ וְיָרְאוּ אֶת ה’ אֱלֹקֵיכֶם, וְשָׁמְרוּ לַעֲשׂוֹת אֶת כָּל דִּבְרֵי הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת . . וְעַתָּה כִּתְבוּ לָכֶם אֶת-הַשִּׁירָה הַזֹּאת וְלַמְּדָהּ אֶת-בְּנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל שִׂימָהּ בְּפִיהֶם (דברים לא, יב-יט) ASSEMBLE THE PEOPLE… IN ORDER THAT THEY HEAR, AND IN ORDER THAT THEY LEARN AND FEAR HASHEM, YOUR G-D, AND THEY WILL BE CAREFUL TO DO ALL THE WORDS OF THIS TORAH. …AND NOW, WRITE FOR YOURSELVES THIS SONG, AND TEACH IT TO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL; PLACE IT INTO THEIR MOUTHS… (DEVARIM 31:12-19) 

In his last days, Moshe conveyed to Bnei Yisrael two final positive commandments: the mitzvah of Hakhel and the mitzvah of writing a Sefer Torah.

These two mitzvos share a common objective: to allow future generations to experience some degree of what Bnei Yisrael experienced at the Giving of the Torah. WithHakhel, we replicate the events at Sinai by gathering the entire Jewish nation in one place, and listening to the king read select passages from the Torah, to “encourage them to perform mitzvos, and strengthen them in the true faith” (Rambam, Laws of Chagigah 3:1). Everyone in attendance, says the Rambam (Ibid, 3:6), “Should view himself as though he was instructed now for the first time regarding the Torah, as though he is hearing it now from the Almighty.” Similarly, when a person writes a Sefer Torah for himself, “Scripture regards as if he had received it at Mount Sinai” (Talmud, Menachos 30a).

Why do we need two such mitzvos, which fulfill the same purpose?

Prior to receiving the Torah, Bnei Yisrael declared, “We will obey, and we will listen,” (Shemos 24:7), expressing their commitment to both aspects of the Giving of the Torah that would take place at Mount Sinai: the giving of the Torah itself (to study and know it), and the giving of the commandments within it (to obey and observe them).

The mitzvos of Hakhel and writing a Sefer Torah, whose shared purpose is to recreate the experience of receiving the Torah, each focus of one of these aspects. Hakhelfocuses on invigorating our acceptance of the mitzvos, as the Torah articulates, “In order that they will… fear Hashem, your G-d, and they will observe to do all the words of this Torah.” In contrast, the primary emphasis of writing a Sefer Torah is to strengthen our study of the Torah, as the Torah emphasizes, “And now, write for yourselves this song, teach it to Bnei Yisrael; place it in their mouths.”

דִּרְשׁוּ ה’ בְּהִמָּצְאוֹ קְרָאֻהוּ בִּהְיוֹתוֹ קָרוֹב (ישעיהו נה, ו)SEEK G-D WHEN HE IS FOUND, CALL HIM WHEN HE IS NEAR. (YESHAYAHU 55:6) 

Commenting on the verse “Seek G-d when He is found,” the Talmud (Rosh Hashanah 18a) declares that the time of year when “G-d is found” - which is therefore the best time to “seek Him” - is during the ten-day span from Rosh Hashanah until Yom Kippur. These days are particularly opportune for teshuvah, repenting and returning to G-d. In the words of the Rambam: “Even though repentance and calling out [to G-d] are desirable at all times, in the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, they are even more desirable and will be accepted immediately as is written: “Seek G-d when He is found” (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Teshuva 2:6).

What is the significance of G-d being “found” in the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah and the unique service of “seeking” Him in teshuvah?

At the start of a new year, when a person begins to make an honest reckoning of the year that passed, he is certain to find many areas in his spiritual life that were far from admirable. Considering all his shortcomings, one may begin to question if he is indeed capable of being genuinely “close” to G-d.

In response to this, the prophet tells us that there is a time when G-d is “found.” Unlike that which you have earned and have come to expect, a “find” is something that comes unexpectedly. During the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, the period from Rosh Hashana until Yom Kippur, says the Talmud, G-d is found. Out of His love for His people, G-d makes Himself available and close even to those who in the past have not made any effort to find Him, who could not expect to experience His closeness.

The undeserved accessibility to G-d that a Jew discovers in the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, the result of G-d’s unconditional love for the Jewish people despite their shortcomings, inspires the individual however not to merely chance upon G-d, but to actively “seek” Him: to aggressively pursue a more consistent relationship with G-d through regular Torah study and mitzvah observance. Because G-d is found, we begin to seek.

לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ לָכֶם אֱלִילִם . . אֶת שַׁבְּתֹתַי תִּשְׁמֹרוּ . . אֲנִי ה’ (ויקרא כו, א-ב) YOU SHALL NOT MAKE IDOLS FOR YOURSELVES…YOU SHALL KEEP MY SABBATHS... I AM HASHEM. (VAYIKRA 26:1-2) 

The final verses of Parshas Behar caution us in the observance of a number of mitzvos stated previously in the Torah. Rashi explains that the Torah directs these warnings at the person discussed in the preceding verses—a Jew who has sold himself into slavery to a non-Jew. He might assume, says Rashi, “Since my master has illicit relations… worships idols… desecrates the Shabbos, I may also be like him.” The Torah therefore warns that despite his subjugation to a non-Jew, he must nevertheless observe the mitzvos. The parsha then concludes, “I am Hashem,”—“Who is faithful to give reward” (Rashi); i.e., the slave’s devotion to the Torah despite his circumstances will not go unrewarded.

Though every person who observes the mitzvos elicits a divine response, the Torah makes special mention that G-d will reward the slave because the slave might suspect that in his current situation he is incapable of receiving divine compensation.

To explain:

Everything we have comes from G-d: our rains and our crops, our health and our livelihood. Still, the “G-dliness” of our blessings, i.e., the degree to which their divine source is revealed, varies.

During the Shemittah year, for example, when agricultural work in the Land of Israel is prohibited, the survival of the Jewish people living in Israel is distinctively and recognizably supernatural. Now, in truth, a Jew’s needs are always provided for supernaturally—just as the Jewish nation has been miraculously preserved by G-d throughout history. But in the non-Shemittah years, when G-d instructs us, “Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard,” our truly supernatural blessings come to us through a natural vehicle—our physical toil and the workings of nature.

For a non-Jew, the garb of nature through which G-d provides is even more concealing. So much so, that a non-Jew is prone to believe that the forces of nature determine his sustenance and that they are not merely carrying out the will of G-d (see Devarim 4:19).

Since the Jewish slave of a non-Jew is dependent upon his gentile master for his sustenance, he might begin to assume that he, too, is (currently) incapable of receiving the divine reward for observing the Shabbos and refraining from idol-worship—rewards which certainly transcend any natural disguise whatsoever. The Torah therefore reiterates that G-d Himself—“who is faithful to give reward”—has given the commandments, and He can and will fully compensate all who observe the mitzvos, regardless of their current circumstances.