PERASHA EKEV
08/23/2024 10:51:43 AM
"And now Israel what does G-d your G-d demand from you? Nothing but to fear G-d your G-d to walk in all his ways…." (10, 12)
Fear of G-d
The holy Rabbi Pinchas of Koritz ob'm says a deep thought in his book Imrei Pinchas on this verse according to what our Rabbis ob'm said "What does it mean "After G-d your G-d shall you walk" – Can a person walk behind the Divine Presence? Why, it says "For G-d your G-d is a consuming fire".
What the verse means is that a person must follow in the traits of G-d – Just as he dresses the unclothed so you should dress the unclothed. And likewise, our Rabbis ob'm also said "You should be similar to Him (G-d). Just as He is compassionate and merciful, so you should be compassionate and merciful.
A person who looks well into the matter will see that all traits belong to G-d: compassionate, merciful, great benevolence, etc. However, one trait has nothing to do with G-d and that is the trait of Fear, for G-d is One and Only and Unique who created everything and all creations are dependent on Him, so who would tell Him what to do?
We see from here that the trait of fear is the only trait that has no connection with G-d. Therefore, it says, "And now Israel what does G-d your G-d demand from you? Nothing but to fear G-d…" and the verse stresses "from you" because you cannot learn this trait from G-d. You yourself (with your own efforts) must learn about it in order to reach Fear of Heaven.
Concerning this matter, it says in the book Toldot Yakov Yosef that the power of G-d who created the world is within the creations, in other words in the world. Therefore, all the good traits that are found in G-d – compassion, mercy, patience, great benevolence, etc. – are inherent in the world. Consequently, a person who wants to cleave to G-d and follow in His ways (in these traits we have mentioned) has Heavenly assistance to attain these traits for they are, as we have said, inherent in the world by the power of G-d.
Moreover, our Rabbis ob'm have said, "Our Rabbis teach: There are three partners in a person – G-d, his father and his mother and Rashi explained that his father and mother give him his body while G-d gives him his soul, and we know that the soul is a part of G-d, as it says, "and He breathed into his countenance the breath of life" – and our Rabbis ob'm interpreted: That which G-d blew in He blew from Himself."
Therefore, every person has within him a part of G-d and it is consequently easy for him to arouse G-d's traits within his soul, for there is a rule – In the branch (= a person) there are all the traits that are in root (=G-d).
However, all this applies only to traits that, as if, are associated with G-d. But the trait of Fear, as we have said, has no connection at all with G-d because He has no one to be afraid of and therefore a person does not have the trait of fear within his soul and he consequently is missing Divine Assistance and he must work hard to bring out the trait of fear within him, in an arousal from himself.
This is what the holy Torah is saying: "what does G-d your G-d demand from you? Nothing but to fear G-d your G-d" – You must work by yourself without Divine Assistance in order to reach the trait of Fear.
Shabbat Shalom!!
Mayer Sasson