torah: rabbi david etengoff

Some thoughts on truly serving Hashem

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The expression, “And you shall love the L-rd, your G-d” appears twice in the Torah, the first instance in Parashat Vaetchanan (Devarim 6:5), and the second in this week Parashat Eikev (Devarim 11:1). While both pasukim begin with this phrase, they conclude quite differently from one another:

•“And you shall love the L-rd, your G-d, with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your means.” (6:5)

•“And you shall love the L-rd, your G-d; keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments, all the days. (11:1)

In broad terms, the first verse focuses upon what one needs to dedicate to Hashem in order to demonstrate love for Him, namely, one’s heart, soul and means. Rashi explains each term in the following manner:

With all your heart: Love Him with your two inclinations [the good and the evil]. (Midrash Sifrei; Talmud Bavli Berachot 54a) Another explanation; “with all your heart,” is that your heart should not be divided [i.e., at variance] with the Omnipresent (Midrash Sifrei).

And with all your soul: Even if He takes your soul (Midrash Sifrei; Talmud Bavli, Berachot 54a, 61a).

And with all your means: There are people whose possessions are more precious to them than their own bodies. Therefore, it says, “and with all your means.” (Midrash Sifrei) Another explanation of this is: You shall love G-d with whatever measure He metes out to you, whether it be the measure of good or the measure of retribution.

In contrast, our parasha’s pasuk teaches us what we need to do in practice to express our love of Hashem, namely, “keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments;” in sum, fulfill the Torah throughout our entire lives.

The Ramban (Nachmanides) was very sensitive to every nuance of language that is found in Tanach. As such, he focuses upon our pasuk’s phrase “keep His charge” (“v’shamarta mishmarto”), since this is the sole time it appears in the Five Books of the Torah. He offers two interpretations of this expression; the first is verse-specific, whereas the second is holistic in nature:

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