Whole days bound to creation's root

במדרש יודע ה' ימי תמימים.

In the Midrash: "Hashem knows the days of the wholehearted" (Tehillim 37:18).

The Midrash opens with a verse linking the "days" of the tzaddikim to Hashem's special knowledge of them.

חביב שנותיהן של צדיקים בעוה"ז ובעוה"ב.

The years of tzaddikim are cherished in this world (olam hazeh) and in the World to Come (olam haba).

The lifespan of the righteous is precious to Hashem both here and in the eternal world; their days carry lasting worth in both realms.

דכתיב ימים יוצרו ולא אחד בהם.

As it is written: "Days were fashioned, and not one (lo) among them" (Tehillim 139:16).

The verse about days being formed contains a word that can be read two ways, which the Midrash will now unpack.

והכתיב ולא.

And the written text reads "lo" (with an aleph — "not").

The written spelling of the word is "lo" meaning "not," even though it is read differently.

פרש"י כשהיו הימים עומדים לפניו ית' לא הי' בהם ממשות עדיין.

Rashi explains: when the days stood before Him, may He be blessed, there was as yet no substance to them.

Before creation, the days existed only as a potential design before Hashem, without any concrete reality of their own.

והקרי ולו הוא יום שבת או יוה"כ שהבדיל לו ע"ש.

And the read text is "lo" (with a vav — "for Him"): this is the day of Shabbos or Yom Kippur, which He set apart for Himself; see there.

Read the other way, the verse points to a day — Shabbos or Yom Kippur — that Hashem singled out and designated as uniquely His own.

והענין כמ"ש אתה יצרת עולמך מקדם.

And the matter is as we say: "You formed Your world of old."

The deeper point is that there is a primordial level of "days" that Hashem fashioned at the very root of creation, before time as we know it.

ומ"מ נמצא בעוה"ז ג"כ התגלות מימים הקדמונים הנ"ל כמו בש"ק שהוא מעין עוה"ב כמ"ש ביום השבת יפתח.

Nevertheless, there is found in this world too a revelation from those primordial days mentioned above, as on Shabbos Kodesh, which is a foretaste of olam haba, as it is written, "on the day of Shabbos it shall be opened."

Even within our ordinary world, that hidden primordial light breaks through — especially on Shabbos, which is a sample of the World to Come, when the inner gate is opened.

וכמו כן בצדיקים שנאמר עליהם יודע ה' כו'.

And likewise with the tzaddikim, of whom it is said, "Hashem knows…"

Just as Shabbos reveals the primordial light, so do the days of tzaddikim, which Hashem "knows" because they too are bound to that hidden root.

כי כפי העדות שבני ישראל מעידין עליו ית' שכל הימים מתחדשין בטובו ית' כמ"ש על הצדיקים שמקיימים העולם שנברא בעשרה מאמרות.

For according to the testimony that Bnei Yisrael bear about Him, may He be blessed — that all the days are renewed through His goodness — as is said of the tzaddikim who sustain the world that was created with ten utterances.

Bnei Yisrael testify that Hashem renews each day with His goodness. The tzaddikim, through this testimony, uphold the very world that Hashem brought into being with the ten utterances.

ושבת קודש סהדותא אקרי וכל בנ"י מעידין בש"ק זה העדות דכתיב עם זו יצרתי לי תהלתי יספרו והצדיקים בכל יום מבררין זה העדות.

And Shabbos Kodesh is called "testimony" (sahaduta), and all of Bnei Yisrael bear this testimony on Shabbos Kodesh, as it is written, "this people I formed for Myself, they shall declare My praise"; and the tzaddikim each day clarify this testimony.

Shabbos itself is a "witness" to Hashem's creation and renewal of the world. Bnei Yisrael affirm this witness on Shabbos, and the tzaddikim bring it to light every single day.

וכפי בירור זה העדות כך יודע ה' ימי תמימים ומתקשרין הימים בשורש הקדמון כנ"ל.

And according to this clarification of the testimony, so "Hashem knows the days of the wholehearted," and the days become bound to the primordial root, as above.

The more a tzaddik clarifies this testimony to Hashem, the more his days are "known" by Hashem and reconnected to their primordial source.

ואיתא במשנה בתלמידיו של א"א אוכלין בעוה"ז ונוחלין לעוה"ב דכתיב להנחיל אוהבי יש.

And it is taught in the Mishnah, regarding the disciples of Avraham Avinu, that they eat in this world and inherit the World to Come, as it is written, "to bequeath substance (yesh) to those who love Me" (Mishlei 8:21).

The students of Avraham receive blessing in both worlds: they enjoy this world while also inheriting the eternal world, a double portion promised to those who love Hashem.

וז"ש ונחלתם לעולם תהי'.

And this is the meaning of: "and their inheritance shall be forever."

Their portion is not temporary; it endures eternally, reaching into olam haba.

ואוצרותיהם אמלא כמ"ש מספר ימיך אמלא.

"And their storehouses I shall fill," as it is written, "the number of your days I shall fill" (Shemos 23:26).

Hashem fills the "treasuries" of the righteous — and "the number of your days" hints that the true filling is the hidden content packed into each of their days.

כי הימים בעוה"ז הם להכין כלים לקבל אור העליון בעוה"ב שהם למעלה מהשגה רק ע"י העבודה בעוה"ז מכינים לבושים וכלים להשיג אותן ההארות.

For the days in this world serve to prepare keilim (vessels) to receive the supernal light in olam haba, which is beyond comprehension; only through the avodah in this world does one prepare garments and vessels to grasp those illuminations.

Our days here are the workshop in which we craft the spiritual vessels and garments needed to absorb the infinite light of the next world. Without the avodah of olam hazeh, that light would be unbearable and unreachable.

וזה פנימיות הימים שבעוה"ז וזהו מספר ימיך פי' הארות הגנוזין בהם ואז הם תמימים וכמו כן בש"ק שנקרא שלום מזה הטעם שמתגלה בו הארת היום בשרשו העליון.

And this is the penimiyus (inner dimension) of the days in this world; and this is "the number of your days" — meaning the illuminations hidden within them — and then they are "wholehearted" (temimim); and likewise Shabbos Kodesh, which is called "peace" (shalom) for this very reason, since on it the day's illumination is revealed in its supernal root.

The inner essence of our days is the hidden light stored within them; when that light is realized, the days become "whole." Shabbos is called shalom because on it the day's light shines forth fully connected to its lofty source.

[ולהיפוך ברשעים כתיב לא יחצו ימיהם פי' אפילו הימים שבעוה"ז שהם רק מחצה נאבד מהם]:

[And the reverse, of the wicked, it is written: "they shall not live out half their days" — meaning that even the days of this world, which are only "half," are lost to them.]

The resha'im squander even the partial value of their earthly days. Having no inner content, their days never reach their fullness, and even the "half" they possess is forfeited.

Summary: The days of the tzaddikim, like Shabbos, are "whole" because they are bound to the primordial root of creation. Through avodah in this world, the righteous fashion the vessels to receive the supernal light of olam haba and clarify the testimony — borne by Bnei Yisrael and by Shabbos itself — that Hashem renews creation daily. The inner light hidden within each day is what makes the days of the wholehearted truly complete.