Sanctity of Covenant and Time

איתא כי היונים רצו לבטל חודש שבת ומילה.

It is stated that the Greeks sought to abolish the new month, the Sabbath, and circumcision.

The Sefat Emet begins by identifying the three spiritual institutions the Greeks attacked, each representing a gateway to holiness for Israel.

דכ’ שער החצר הפנימית כו’ ביום החודש יפתח וביום השבת יפתח.

As it is written: “The gate of the inner courtyard… on the day of the new month it shall be opened, and on the Sabbath it shall be opened.”

These commandments correspond to inner gates of divine revelation that open specifically on the Sabbath and the new month.

ובהם התגלות הפנימיות שנמסר רק לבנ”י.

And within them is the revelation of the inner dimension given only to the children of Israel.

The holiness accessed on these days is a unique inheritance of Israel, an inner light that others cannot grasp.

ולעומת זה ג”כ בנפש ברית הלשון וברית המעור.

And corresponding to these are, within the soul, the covenant of the tongue and the covenant of the flesh.

The Sefat Emet draws a parallel between cosmic gates and the human being, whose covenants of speech and purity serve as internal portals to holiness.

והרשעים עמדו לסתום אלה הפתחים.

And the wicked stood to block these openings.

The Greeks’ decrees sought to spiritually obstruct Israel’s access to both the external and internal gates of divine connection.

וגם ברית הלשון ע”י שכפו לתרגם התורה יונית.

And also the covenant of the tongue, by forcing the Torah to be translated into Greek.

They attacked the sanctity of speech itself by compelling translation, stripping Torah of its inner linguistic holiness.

וכשנעקרו אותן הרשעים נגלה לבנ”י עוד הארה על הפתח גם מבחוץ:

And when those wicked ones were removed, an additional illumination was revealed to Israel at the gate, even from the outside.

After their defeat, not only were the gates reopened, but new light shone forth-extending outward to the external world as well.

Summary: The Greeks tried to block Israel’s sacred “gates”-Sabbath, new month, circumcision, and the inner covenants of speech and purity. Their defeat reopened these gates and caused an even greater light to radiate outward.