Opening the Well of Torah

בפסוק אז ישיר ישראל

On the verse "Then Bnei Yisrael sang this song" (Bamidbar 21:17).

The piece opens on the verse describing the song Bnei Yisrael sang over the well in the midbar.

אמרו חז"ל פי הבאר נברא בע"ש ביה"ש

Chazal said that the mouth of the well was created on Erev Shabbos at twilight (bein hashemashos).

Chazal teach that the mouth of the well was among the things created at the very edge of the first Erev Shabbos, at twilight.

הרמז כי שבת הוא עצם הבאר

The hint in this is that Shabbos itself is the very essence of the well.

The Sfas Emes reads this as a hint that the well, the source of life-giving Torah, is really one with Shabbos itself.

אך לפתוח פי הבאר תליא בהכנת ימי המעשה זוכין בע"ש ביה"ש אל פי הבאר

However, the opening of the mouth of the well depends upon the preparation accomplished during the weekdays; through that preparation one merits, on Erev Shabbos at twilight, to reach the mouth of the well.

Although the well's source is Shabbos, the actual opening of its mouth depends on the avodah of the weekdays; it is precisely the toil of the six days that earns the opening at twilight as Shabbos enters.

וכן היא בהכנת האדם בעוה"ז זוכה לעוה"ב כמ"ש עוה"ז דומה לפרוזדור התקן עצמך בפרוזדור כדי שתכנוס לטרקלין שיפתח לך הפתח של עוה"ב שהוא יום שכולו [*שבת] ואיתא במד' מ"ח פעמים כתיב בתורה באר שבמ"ח דברים התורה נקנית בהם

And so it is with the preparation of a person in this world (olam hazeh): through it he merits the World to Come (olam haba), as Chazal said, "This world is like an antechamber before the World to Come; prepare yourself in the antechamber so that you may enter the banquet hall" (Avos 4:16) — meaning that the doorway of the World to Come, which is "the day that is entirely Shabbos," should be opened for him; and it is brought in the Midrash that the word "be'er" (well) is written forty-eight times in the Torah, corresponding to the forty-eight things through which the Torah is acquired.

He extends this to the whole of life: olam hazeh is the antechamber where a person prepares so that the door of olam haba, "the day that is entirely Shabbos," opens for him, and the Midrash ties the forty-eight mentions of "be'er" to the forty-eight means by which Torah is acquired.

פי' קנין התורה ע"י מ"ח דברים הנ"ל זוכה להיות לו קנין בתורה ונפתח לו הבאר כמ"ש באר מכרת אדוני' ונפתחת למי שמוכן לה

The explanation is that through acquiring the Torah by means of those forty-eight things mentioned above, a person merits that the Torah becomes his own acquired possession, and the well is opened to him — as it says, "a well that recognizes its masters" — and it opens itself to whoever is prepared for it.

When a person acquires Torah through those forty-eight things, the Torah becomes truly his, and the well "recognizes its master" and opens of itself to one who has prepared for it.

והנה מרע"ה מדריגתו למעלה מזה כמ"ש בו וישב על הבאר ולכן לא נשתתף בשירה זו

Now, the level of Moshe Rabbeinu was above this, as it says of him, "and he sat down by the well" (Shemos 2:15); and therefore he did not take part in this song.

Moshe Rabbeinu stood on a higher rung, as one who already "sat by the well" possessing Torah directly, so he had no part in this particular song of the well.

ובנ"י כשנפתח להם פתח בתורה אמרו שירה

But Bnei Yisrael, when the doorway of the Torah was opened for them, broke out in song.

Bnei Yisrael, by contrast, sang because for them the doorway into Torah had just now been opened.

והנה כתיב המשלח מעינים בנחלים בין הרים יהלכון

Now it is written, "He sends forth springs into the streams; they flow between the mountains" (Tehillim 104:10).

He brings the verse about Hashem sending springs into the streams that flow between the mountains as the key image for what follows.

כי כל מה שברא הקב"ה בעולמו הכל למילף מיני' חכמתא

For everything that the Holy One, Blessed is He, created in His world was created so that wisdom may be learned from it.

The premise is that everything Hashem placed in His world is there to teach us wisdom, so this verse too carries a lesson.

וכמו שהמעינות נמשכים מן ההרים על ידי הנחלים

And just as the springs are drawn down from the mountains by way of the streams,

On the surface the springs come down from the mountains through the channels of the streams.

ואעפ"כ בכל מקום שחופרין נמצא מים

and yet, in every place where one digs, water is found —

Yet experience shows that water can be found wherever one digs, not only near the mountains.

אבל שורש המעינות בנחלים בין ההרים

nevertheless, the root of the springs is in the streams that run between the mountains.

Still, the true root and source of all the springs lies in the streams between the mountains.

והכל רמז אל התורה שהכל נברא בתורה והכל תורה רק שהטבע מכסה

And all of this is a hint to the Torah, for everything was created through the Torah, and everything is in truth Torah — it is only that nature conceals it.

All of this is a mashal for Torah: since the world was created through Torah, everything is really Torah, only that the veil of nature hides it from view.

והנה האבות מצאו שורש התורה ונק' הרים וכמו כן י"ב שבטים הם הנחלים בין ההרים

Now the Avos discovered the root of the Torah, and they are called "mountains"; and likewise the twelve Shevatim are the "streams that run between the mountains."

The Avos uncovered the root-source of Torah and are therefore called "mountains," while the twelve Shevatim are the "streams" channeling that flow downward.

ויש מקומות שבנקל למצוא שם תורה ואיש ישראל צריך לייגע עצמו למצוא התורה בכל מקום

And there are places where it is easy to find Torah there, yet every Jew must exert himself to find the Torah in every place.

Some places yield Torah easily, like ground near a spring, but every Jew is obligated to labor to draw out the Torah hidden in every place.

וכל המקומות שכתוב בתורה שלא מצאו מים שהי' המקום קשה להתגלות התורה והקב"ה הנהיג אותו הדור במדברים ובמקומות החריבות מקום הסט"א ונחשים ואעפ"כ זכו לפתוח להם מעינות התורה וע"ז נאמר ההופכי הצור אגם מים חלמיש למעיינו מים

And all the places written in the Torah where they found no water were places where it was difficult for the Torah to be revealed; the Holy One, Blessed is He, led that generation through deserts and through desolate places, the dwelling-place of the sitra achra (the side of impurity) and of serpents, and even so they merited to have the springs of Torah opened for them — and concerning this it is said, "Who turns the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a fountain of waters" (Tehillim 114:8).

The places in the Torah where no water was found were spots where Torah was hard to reveal, the haunt of the sitra achra and serpents, yet even there Bnei Yisrael merited that springs of Torah were opened, as in "Who turns the rock into a pool of water."

וע"ז נא' עוברי בעמק הבכא מעין ישיתוהו

And concerning this it is said, "Those who pass through the valley of weeping (emek habacha) make it into a wellspring" (Tehillim 84:7).

This is also the meaning of those who pass through the "valley of weeping" and transform it into a wellspring, drawing Torah out of the hardest place.

ולכן כשנפתח להם הבאר אמרו שירה כמ"ש גם ברכות יעטה כו':

And therefore, when the well was opened for them, they broke out in song, as it says there, "the early rain also clothes it with blessings" (Tehillim 84:7).

Therefore, when this hidden well was finally opened to them, Bnei Yisrael responded with song, just as the verse continues that the early rain clothes that valley with blessings.

Summary: The Sfas Emes builds on Chazal's teaching that the mouth of the well was created on Erev Shabbos at twilight, reading it to mean that Shabbos is the very essence of the well, yet the actual opening of its mouth depends on the preparation of the weekdays. He widens this into a principle of avodah: just as olam hazeh is the antechamber in which a person prepares for the door of olam haba, "the day that is entirely Shabbos," to open, so the well of Torah opens itself to whoever acquires Torah through the forty-eight means by which it is acquired. Moshe Rabbeinu, who already "sat by the well," stood above this and had no part in the song, but Bnei Yisrael sang precisely because the doorway of Torah was newly opened to them. Through the image of springs that flow from the mountains yet can be dug out anywhere, he teaches that since the whole world was created through Torah everything is in truth Torah hidden beneath nature; the Avos are the mountains and the Shevatim the streams, and every Jew must toil to draw Torah out of every place. Even in the most desolate places, the dwelling of the sitra achra, Bnei Yisrael merited that flint became a fountain and the valley of weeping a wellspring, and therefore, when the well was opened, they broke out in song.