Guarding the Covenant, Pt. 2
Translation and commentary by Rabbi Moshe Miller
"Abram threw himself upon his face and G-d spoke with
him saying, 'As for Me, this is My covenant with you'" (Gen. 17:3-4) From
this we understand that until he was circumcised he would prostrate himself when
G-d spoke to him. But after he was circumcised he stood upon his feet and was
not afraid. (See also Pirkei d'Rabbi Elazar 29.) [Moreover, it was
precisely at this point that Abraham's circumcision took place, for immediately
after he threw himself upon his face it states,] "As for Me, this is My covenant
with you..." [When he arose,] he found himself already circumcised.( Zohar I, 96b)
Rabbi Levi said: "It is not written here that Abraham
circumcised himself, but rather that he was circumcised (by the Holy One)" ( Bereishit
Rabba chap. 47, 9. See below verse 17:26.  | | " A man who is worthy and guards this holy covenant... is called a tzadik..." | | |
A man who is worthy and guards this holy covenant...is
called a tzadik. And he is called this from head to toe [i.e., he is a
tzadik in every sense, not just in terms of guarding his brit. This
is because the covenant includes all of the limbs of his body, as mentioned
above. Also,] anyone who guards the holy covenant it is as if he fulfills the
entire holy Torah, for the covenant of circumcision is equal to all of Torah.(Zohar I,162a, 197a)
"How great is circumcision, for thirteen covenants
were made in regard to it" ( Mishna Nedarim 3:11).
Only those who have guarded the covenant [of
circumcision] and have not placed it where it is not supposed to be will remain
alive at the time of the Resurrection of the Dead. From where do we know this?
From the verse, "Of every remnant that will be in Zion and every remaining one
in Jerusalem, 'Holy' will be said of him".(Isaiah 4:3)
Only those who guard the covenant of circumcision are
called "holy". See Zohar Chadash, Vayeshev in Sitrei Torah.
They will be signed into eternal life, and through
them the Holy One, blessed be He, will renew the world and in them He will
delight.
It seems that the Zohar's opinion here is that
those who are alive when the Resurrection of the Dead takes place will not have
to die first and then be resurrected. Rather they will proceed directly into
eternal life. See Damasek Eliezer.(Zohar II 57b) | | " ...since he was privileged to fulfill the commands of the Torah he rises to the level of man" | | |
Rabbi Shimon taught: How privileged Israel is that the
Holy One calls them "adam" ["man"], as is written, "You are my flock, the
flock that I pasture; you are man (in Hebrew, "adam")" (Ez.
34:31); "When a man ("adam") will sacrifice..." (Lev. 1:2). Why does
the verse refer to them as "adam"? Since it is written, "And you who
cleave to the Lord your G-d..." (Deut. 4:4).
The word "adam" is a derivative of the word "domeh",
meaning "like" or "similar to."
(See Radak, Shorashim s.v. Adam.)
Because the Jewish People cleave to G-d they are in His likeness, as in the
verse, "We shall make man in Our image in Our likeness" (Gen. 1:26). Note
that the word for likeness is "kidmuteinu" - also a derivative of "domeh".
And therefore, "you are man" - you are called "man",
and the nations of idolaters are not called "man". (Yevamot 114a) For
Rabbi Shimon taught that when a Jewish man is circumcised and enters into the
covenant the the Holy One made with Abraham [the covenant of circumcision]... then
he is permitted to enter that place [of holiness]. And since he was privileged
to fulfill the commands of the Torah he rises to the level of "man" and cleaves
to the King Himself, and then he is called "man".(Zohar II, 86a)
The secret of the holy covenant [of circumcision is
that] through this covenant all of the limbs of the body are nourished, for it
includes all of them. (Zohar II 92a)
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai said: When a man has a son
[and he introduces the child into the covenant of circumcision], he becomes
bound to the Shechina, [not as manifested below, but as it is above] the
entrance to all supernal doors. | | " The Holy One gazes upon the blood [of circumcision] and redeems the world..." | | |
The Shechina is the attribute of malchut,
from which all the other supernal attributes are accessed. Malchut is
associated with the name Ado-nai which is bound to the ineffable holy
name Havayah. The latter name, known as the Tetragrammaton, denotes the
absolute transcendence of G-d (Kuzari 2:2; Moreh
Nevuchin 1:63), where past, present and future are all
one (Ref. Tur, Orach Chaim 5; Rabbi Eliezer of Garmiza on Sefer
Yetzira 1:1). It therefore cannot be uttered. (See Sanhedrin 90a.)
Instead, it is cloaked in the name Ado-nai so that it is not read as
written. (See Rashi to Shemot 3:15; Shaarei Orah, shaar 1.)
When severity is aroused upon the world, the Holy One
gazes upon the blood [of circumcision] and redeems the world [from the severe
judgments which threaten it.] Therefore it is written, "Every male shall be
circumcised when he is eight days old." (Zohar III, 14a) [See also
Shabbat 137b: "If not for the blood of circumcision the laws of heaven and
earth would not endure."]
"If not for My covenant [of circumcision] I would not
have established day and night, and the laws of heaven and earth (Jeremiah
33:25). . . . One who succeeds in guarding his circumcision properly [by not
indulging in illicit sexual activities] and does not transgress with it
throughout his life, thereby unites day and night. [These are the attributes
divine] revelation [i.e., kindness, as in the verse, "G-d commands His Kindness
in the daytime" (Psalms 42:9)], and concealment [i.e. severity, as in the verse
"In the night His song, i.e. prayer, will be with me" (ibid.).[Cf. Ibn Ezra;
Metzudat David. Prayer is effective especially at times of trouble when G-dliness
is concealed. See Sotah 5b.] Through this] he is worthy of both worlds,
This World and the World to Come. It was in this regard that Abraham was called
perfect [in the sense of complete], as it is written, "Walk before Me and be
perfect." [He achieved this perfection only after circumcising himself.](Zohar III, 14a)
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