Rus joins Torah, tefillah, and tzedakah

בענין קריאת רות בשבועות שמעתי ממו"ז ז"ל כי הוא לחבר תורה ותפלה כו' כי דוד המע"ה כתיב בי' ואני תפלה.

Concerning the reading of Rus on Shavuos, I heard from my grandfather, z"l, that it is to join together Torah and tefillah, etc. — for of Dovid HaMelech, may peace be upon him, it is written "and I am tefillah (prayer)."

The Sefas Emes brings his grandfather's (the Chiddushei HaRim's) teaching that Megillas Rus is read on Shavuos to unite Torah and tefillah. Since Rus is the ancestress of Dovid HaMelech — about whom it says "I am prayer" — her megillah connects the day of Torah-giving with the dimension of tefillah.

ולהוסיף ביאור כי הם בחי' נעשה ונשמע.

And to add an explanation: they [Torah and tefillah] are the aspects of "naaseh" (we will do) and "nishma" (we will hear/understand).

The Sefas Emes maps the pairing onto Bnei Yisrael's declaration at Sinai: tefillah/action corresponds to "naaseh," and Torah/understanding corresponds to "nishma."

כי תפלה הוא בחי' עושי דברו דכתיב הקול קול יעקב פרשנו קול תורה ותפלה.

For tefillah is the aspect of "doers of His word," as it is written "the voice is the voice of Yaakov" — which we explained [refers to] the voice of Torah and tefillah.

Tefillah belongs to the dimension of action ("doers of His word"); the "voice of Yaakov" is interpreted to include both the voice of Torah and the voice of prayer.

וע"ז כתיב שמע ה' קול יהודה כי ממנו יצא נעים זמירות ישראל כו'.

And concerning this it is written "Hear, Hashem, the voice of Yehudah," for from him [Yehudah] came forth "the sweet singer of Yisrael" [Dovid], etc.

The "voice of Yehudah" that Hashem is asked to hear is the voice of tefillah, since Dovid — the sweet singer of Yisrael, master of prayer and song — descended from Yehudah.

ותפלה הוא מלה דקיימא בעובדא כמ"ש בזוה"ק שצריכין הכנת מעשים לתפלה ציצית ותפילין כו'.

And tefillah is "a word that stands upon a deed (uvada)," as it is written in the Zohar that one needs a preparation of deeds for tefillah — tzitzis and tefillin, etc.

Tefillah is rooted in action: the Zohar teaches that prayer must be prepared for through physical mitzvos like donning tzitzis and tefillin — deeds that establish the "act" upon which prayer stands.

וכן מעשה הצדקה דאיתא בזוה"ק סוף הקדמת בראשית כי נעשה הוא צדקה כמ"ש שם האיש אשר עשיתי עמו היום בועז ע"ש וכ"כ והי' מעשה הצדקה שלום.

And so too the deed of tzedakah, as it is taught in the Zohar at the end of the Introduction to Bereishis, that "naaseh" is tzedakah, as it is written there [in Rus] "the man with whom I did [kindness] today is Boaz" (see there); and so it is written "and the deed of tzedakah shall be peace."

The "naaseh"/action dimension is identified with tzedakah and acts of kindness. The Zohar connects this to Rus's words about Boaz ("the man with whom I did today"), and to the verse "the deed of tzedakah shall be peace" — tzedakah is the quintessential mitzvah of action.

וכ' עושה צדקה בכל עת כי היא מצוה בידים ולכן איתא שצריכין ליתן צדקה קודם התפלה וכל זה בחי' דוד המע"ה דכתיב בי' ויעש דוד שם כו'.

And it is written "[fortunate is] one who does tzedakah at all times," for it is a mitzvah [performed] with the hands; therefore it is taught that one must give tzedakah before tefillah — and all this is the aspect of Dovid HaMelech, of whom it is written "and Dovid made a name," etc.

Tzedakah is a hands-on, active mitzvah, which is why the practice is to give before davening — preparing the "deed" before the "word." All of this active, deed-oriented avodah is embodied in Dovid, "who made a name" through his actions.

וע"י שקלקלנו נעשה צריכין עתה ביום הזה שהוא נשמע לשוב ע"ז ולהתפלל ולתקן ג"כ שורש העשי'.

And because we damaged the "naaseh," we now need, on this day [of Shavuos] which is "nishma," to do teshuvah for this, and to pray, and also to rectify the root of action (asiyah).

Although Shavuos is the day of "nishma" (receiving the Torah), the Sefas Emes says we must use it to repair the damaged "naaseh" — to do teshuvah, pray, and mend the very root of our deeds.

ועיין מ"ש לקמן עוד מזה.

And see what is written further below regarding this.

The Sefas Emes refers the reader to additional discussion of this theme elsewhere.

ולכן נראה שנענש אלימלך הגם שעשה עפ"י דין שלא יצא מארץ ישראל עד שהי' רעב גדול כדאיתא בגמ' ומד'.

And therefore it appears that Elimelech was punished even though he acted according to the law — for he did not leave Eretz Yisrael until there was a great famine, as it is taught in the Gemara and the Midrash.

The Sefas Emes addresses why Elimelech was punished for leaving Eretz Yisrael: technically he was within his rights, since he left only during a severe famine.

אך ע"י שכל עיקר שבטו של יהודה ומלכות בית דוד הי' בחי' הצדקה דלית לי' מגרמי' כלום לכן נענשו עד כחוט השערה.

However, because the entire essence of the tribe of Yehudah and the kingship of the House of Dovid is the aspect of tzedakah — [the trait of] "having nothing of one's own" (lais lei migarmei klum) — therefore they were held accountable to a hair's breadth.

Since the tribe of Yehudah and the Davidic dynasty embody tzedakah and total bittul — having "nothing of one's own," giving entirely to others — Elimelech, as their forebear, was judged with exacting strictness for abandoning his people in their need, even though it was technically permitted.

וכ"כ במד' כי כל מגילת רות להודיע כח גמילות חסדים שהוא מעשה הצדקה כנ"ל וזכה בועז ויצא ממנו עובד שהוא בחי' עובדא כנ"ל.

And so it is written in the Midrash, that the entire Megillas Rus is to make known the power of gemilus chasadim, which is the deed of tzedakah, as above; and Boaz merited that there came forth from him Oved — who is the aspect of "uvada" (deed), as above.

The Midrash teaches that the whole purpose of Megillas Rus is to convey the power of chesed, the active mitzvah of tzedakah. Boaz, who personified this, merited a descendant named Oved — whose very name echoes "uvada," deed/action — the line that leads to Dovid.

וכן פי' התרגום עבודה שבלב ע"ש:

And so the Targum explained: "the service of the heart (avodah she'balev)," see there.

The Sefas Emes closes by linking the name Oved/avodah to the Targum's rendering of "the service of the heart" — tefillah — thereby tying the whole thread back together: Rus's line unites the avodah of deed (tzedakah) with the avodah of the heart (tefillah), joining "naaseh" and "nishma," action and Torah.

Summary: Building on the Chiddushei HaRim, the Sefas Emes explains that Megillas Rus is read on Shavuos to unite Torah and tefillah — the dimensions of "nishma" (understanding/Torah) and "naaseh" (action/prayer), since Rus is the ancestress of Dovid, "the sweet singer of Yisrael," about whom it says "I am tefillah." Tefillah is a "word that stands upon a deed," requiring preparation through active mitzvos like tzitzis, tefillin, and especially tzedakah — the hands-on mitzvah given before davening. The tribe of Yehudah and the House of Dovid embody tzedakah and total bittul ("having nothing of one's own"), which is why Elimelech was judged to a hair's breadth for abandoning his people. Since we have damaged the "naaseh," Shavuos — the day of "nishma" — must be used to repair the very root of action through teshuvah and tefillah, just as Boaz's chesed produced Oved (uvada/avodah she'balev), the line of Dovid that fuses deed, prayer, and Torah.