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Abarbanel on Torah
Abarbanel on Torah — Sefaria Community Translation
Unverified edition · DEU-6
Reading language: eng · Original language (catalog): English
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Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:1
Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one, etc., until 'when He brings you, etc.' In the need for these five sections that come after the Ten Commandments, which are interconnected, I have seen, after examining them now in this manner, that it is the intention of our master Moses to prove to the Israelites that the commandments they heard from his mouth are divine, like those very words they heard from the divine presence when the Ten Commandments were spoken at Sinai. And now I will explain to them that besides the initial understanding they derived from them, there are further sublime teachings that, if not understood and taught by Moses, since they heard them from the mouth of the blessed Name, they should be considered on par with those teachings and instructions that they received from the blessed Name, as if they heard them from His mouth. And since the first statement was 'I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, etc.,' these first five sections are connected to it. And it is the 'Hear, O Israel, etc.' section. In it, five precious teachings are included, which were not understood from Moses, even though they heard it and understood it at that time, for they heard them from the Almighty.
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:2
The first concept is the unity of our blessed God and the negation of multiplicity from Him. Regarding this, it is stated, 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one,' which means, 'Israel, incline your ear and listen, and understand in your heart.' For all of this is encompassed in the term 'hear' that our God, whom you heard in the first statement, 'I am the Lord your God, etc.,' is one. Know and see that He is one. And behold, within this unity, two types of oneness are included.
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:3
The first is His absolute oneness, blessed be He, in His essence. In utmost simplicity, composition and multiplicity of inherent things are precluded. Neither multiplicity of forms nor accidental attributes exist within Him, whether in His essence or beyond His essence.
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:4
The second is the negation of multiplicity. When His oneness is established as simple in itself, the doubt regarding the existence of another deity is eliminated. Thus, to remove all forms of doubt, He illuminated our eyes with the statement, 'the Lord is one.' And to allude to these two types of oneness, the verse uses the name of God twice. The first name, 'the Lord our God,' alludes to the first type of oneness, where the Lord who guides us is one in Himself, absolutely simple. And to allude to the second type of oneness, it says, 'the Lord alone.' This refers to His divinity, not His role in governing us, which is also singular without duality. The word 'one' returns to both aspects mentioned together. The springs have already demonstrated a wonder regarding the oneness of God in the first aspect, as His governance causes the entire reality to be like one person, each part connected to the other, and the entities of the universe extend from this substance, preparing it. No celestial body can move without being moved by the necessary mover of existence. It is impossible for Him to be composed because any composite is formed by two things and is not a necessary existent. From this, it becomes clear through the governance of the world that the Lord is one in Himself without composition and without multiplicity of entities.
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:5
Indeed, if there is another deity who is not involved in the existence of the reality, then the doors of intellectual inquiry and investigation are closed. Therefore, the Lord of prophets informed us through the Divine Name the truth of His blessed unity. If it is from the first type due to the governance of the world, it is referred to as 'The Lord our God.' And if it is from the second type, unrelated to governance, it is simply referred to as 'The Lord.' Thus, He is referred to as one regarding both aspects, meaning that He is one in Himself, having no duality in His divinity. This hint is found in the phrase 'I am the Lord your God' when all things are attributed to His Name of unity, signifying that He is one without plurality and without sharing in His divinity. Therefore, the commandment of unity was not newly instituted in this place since it was already hinted at in the phrase 'I am' as I mentioned before. Although it was also hinted in His statement 'Anyone who sacrifices to any god other than the Lord alone,' you should know that in addition to these two evidences on which the Name of the One is mentioned, there is a third aspect of unity. It is when the Name of the One is spoken in relation to the totality and perfection, for 'one' and 'complete' are uttered together, as it appears in the book of Ma'aseh Merkavah (mystical work). Thus, it is said, 'And the tabernacle shall be one,' meaning complete and comprehensive, encompassing all that is needed. From this perspective, the Almighty is also referred to as one, meaning complete and encompassing all completeness. From this viewpoint, the unity and kingship are one in themselves, as kingship is not merely a unique elevation and dominion, but all authorities and ranks are encompassed within it. Likewise, it is said, 'And the Lord shall be King over all the earth,' which means that when His Name and throne are complete, the kingship and unity will also be completed since they are inherently one. For this reason, the custom was established in the Rosh Hashanah prayer to recite the verse 'The Lord our God, the Lord is one' after mentioning the kingship and numbers, representing the third aspect of unity. We, the congregation of the devout, respond to this verse with the blessing 'Blessed be the name of the glory of His kingdom forever and ever,' because unity truly indicates the kingship. Indeed, the first and second aspects I mentioned earlier, derived from the Divine unity, are negations of composition and duality, which are well-known and understood by the masses. However, the third aspect, arising from completeness and kingship, is loftier, concealed, and wondrous. It belongs to the domain of abstract intellect. It is possible to conclude that the agreement of unity, completeness, and true generality from all sides has been concealed from the comprehension of the sages of the Divine spheres, as explained in the words of our sages in Devarim Rabbah and Pesachim, chapter 'Makom She'nechagu' (Pesachim 56a). They mentioned that Moses blessed be his memory did not reveal it, but Yaakov blessed be his memory revealed it secretly. By this, they intended to say that since Moses blessed be his memory aimed to teach the unity to the people of Israel in general, he refrained from discussing negation of composition and duality as explained in his words. He did not clarify the third aspect, the agreement of kingship with unity. However, Yaakov blessed be his memory, since his words were with his sons who were.
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:6
And the second principle, it is the love of the glorious Name, as it is stated, 'And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.' This means to say, 'Hear, O Israel,' in that first statement that you heard at Sinai, as the Blessed Name said, 'Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage,' it includes sublime knowledge. And after the Lord, blessed be He, greatly favored you and bestowed upon you many benefits, that you should love Him, for it is natural for a person to love that which is good for him. And since He performed for you three kinds of goodness in the Exodus from Egypt: the first is the physical goodness in bringing you out from slavery to freedom, the second is the spiritual goodness by connecting you to His love and guidance and giving you the Torah and commandments, and the third is the great wealth and possessions that He bestowed upon you from Egypt. Therefore, the love should be with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might, for the heart corresponds to bodily freedom, and the soul corresponds to the divine perfection you have acquired, and the might corresponds to the wealth and possessions He has bequeathed to you. It is also possible to interpret this in the sense that it is incumbent upon you to obligate yourself with this supreme love because of the three aspects mentioned in that statement: the first being in His saying, 'I am the Lord your God, who brought you out,' and this concludes according to His excellence, alluding to His name, and because of His conduct, alluding to 'your God.' And because of His goodness, mentioned in His saying, 'Who brought you out.' This indicates that it is fitting for you to love Him. For love, as mentioned by Maimonides in the Book of Traits, Chapter Three, consists of three types: love of the good, which is according to reason; love of pleasure, which is according to the senses and desires; and love of utility, which is according to wealth. Therefore, it is necessary to say that in all these three aspects of imagination, love for Him, blessed be He, is fitting. This is what is meant by 'with all your heart,' which is the intellectual part, as it says, 'A discerning heart seeks knowledge' (Proverbs 15:14). And 'with all your soul,' which is the soul that desires pleasure, as it says, 'His soul desires food' (Job 33:20). And 'with all your might,' which is the aspect in which you seek and pursue wealth, for all these goods, whether spiritual or physical, in a person and externally, are fitting to be dedicated to the love of the Creator, blessed be He. Through this, all kinds of perfections and deficiencies are included, for in saying 'with all your heart,' as I have explained, the true beliefs and opinions, the study of Torah, and constant prayer are included. And 'with all your soul' includes refraining from sins, fulfilling practical commandments, fasting, and the like. And 'with all your might' includes charity and lending to the poor, refraining from theft, robbery, and deception, and all other commandments dependent on wealth. Did the Sages not interpret in Berakhot, Chapter "Ha-Roeh" (page 61), and in many other places, 'And with all your soul, even if He takes your soul'? They meant by this that even though many evils and troubles befall a person, one should uphold the judgment and believe in the love of the Almighty and love Him, and not think in one's heart that there are two beginnings in accordance with the interchange of different types of things that are influenced from above. But rather, one should cleave to his God and not fear His love, as we have seen with Rabbi Akiva in the case of the iron combs that scraped his flesh, yet Rabbi Akiva's taste and fragrance were not diminished. Therefore, it is said, 'Fortunate are you, Rabbi Akiva, that your soul departed while you were reciting the Shema.' This is to indicate that the sufferings did not separate his attachment to Him, blessed be He. This is the second principle, the love of the Almighty, included in that first statement. And it has already been mentioned in the commandment to love the Almighty, as He commanded, 'And you shall serve the Lord your God,' for the service to Him, blessed be He, is from the love of Him
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:7
The third principle is when He said, 'And these words which I command you today shall be upon your heart.' The meaning of this statement is that the later sages among our people thought that the name of the commandment and its definition should not apply to beliefs alone, but rather to practical matters dependent on a person's choice and actions. Moreh Nevukhim (Maimonides) informed them that it is not as they had thought. For the name of the commandment, which designates that it is a command of the blessed God concerning those beliefs, also applies to those beliefs. They are also called commandments because if not for this, the blessed God would not have commanded the people of Israel regarding His beliefs at Sinai. Since He said, 'I am the Lord your God,' which is the general statement that includes His existence, His oneness, and His governance, which are those beliefs, it follows that even regarding beliefs, the name of governance and its definition apply. I have already explained in the book Moreh Nevukhim that beliefs are in the category of forms that occur constantly in their subjects, regardless of time. However, the prior preparations for them necessarily occur in time. This is also the case with beliefs, for even though their essence occurs in the soul without will and without time, the things that lead a person to believe, such as learning, examination of the words and the nature of the miracles and the like, are actions of will and choice, and these are done in time. Hence, the aspect of governance falls under the commandment's name and definition, not because the blessed God commanded that they should acquire beliefs in their souls, but rather that they should pay attention to His wonders and examine the words of His prophets in a manner that leads to true belief in His divinity. Therefore, it says here, 'And these words which I command you today shall be upon your heart,' to indicate that one should constantly contemplate and consider them. This is the third principle.
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:8
The fourth principle is in His statement, "And you shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up." This matter refers to divine knowledge that is not openly taught, and its transmission is only to those who remain, whom the Lord calls. As stated in the Mishnah, "They do not expound on the work of Creation before two [students], nor on the Merkavah before one [student], and they only teach these divine wisdoms to a worthy student and only the main chapters and only once a week, and it should not be during the time of choosing [the students for such studies]. As Rabbi Elazar said to Rabbi Yochanan, at the beginning of the chapter 'They do not expound,' when he was told to study the work of the Merkavah, 'I am not strong enough for that.' However, these sciences, stemming from the unity of the Holy One, blessed be He, and His providence over the nation and the creation of the world, and His love for Israel, are not like that, for they are worthy to be expounded in assemblies in great numbers to the people of Israel, not only to the elders but also to the youth, as it is written, 'And you shall tell your children on the day of the Exodus from Egypt.' And this is what it means by 'And you shall teach them diligently to your children.' It did not say, 'And you shall inform them,' but 'And you shall teach them diligently,' which means that many times, one after another, they should be taught, even to the young children along with the adults, and no allusion or hidden teaching should be made. They should be spoken of in every place, not only in the House of Study and not only once a week, but when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. This means in every place, at every time, and in every situation that you find yourself in, whether it is sitting, lying down, walking, or standing. Now, Rabbi Meir carried this science out from what he saw, that the Holy One, blessed be He, did not say, "I am the Lord your God" only to him and to the elite of the people of Israel, but also to the entire nation, from the youngest to the oldest. And he teaches that this knowledge encompasses every individual, both young and old, and in every time and in every place.
Abarbanel on Torah, Deuteronomy 6:4:9
The fifth principle is that just as natural things are not forgotten unless one's intellect and faculties are impaired, for who would forget to eat and sustain their life or to perform permissible activities that depend on their life, similarly, divine knowledge should not be forgotten, for it sustains one's life. Therefore, it was commanded to make signs as reminders so that they would not fall into forgetfulness, since their completeness and the vitality of their soul depend on it. Regarding this, it is stated, "And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." This is because there are people who make signs to remember the things they strive to recall. Some place them in their hand or on their finger, some place them on their head with headbands, and some place them in their homes and on their gates so that every time they enter or exit, they see them and remember their content. Thus, the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded to bind this commandment as a sign on their hand and to place them as frontlets between their eyes, which are the commandments of tefillin for the hand and head. Similarly, the commandment of the mezuzah on the doorposts. This is also meant to signify that they should place the sign on the hand corresponding to the heart and the frontlet on the head corresponding to the brain, to indicate that in both faculties, meaning the vital and the spiritual, they should remember the commandments of the Lord, perform them, and remember the gift of the land of Israel. Even in homes that were not built by themselves, they should place mezuzot on the doorposts. This was already mentioned in the portion of Bo, when they entered Egypt. Now, these sublime sciences were included in the first utterance that they heard at Sinai, but they did not fully comprehend it. They only attained a general understanding through what Moses, peace be upon him, heard and taught to the people of Israel.
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