The blessing of kol as yearning for Hashem

וה' ברך את אברהם בכל.

"And Hashem blessed Avraham with everything (bakol)" (Bereishis 24:1).

The Sefas Emes opens on the blessing of "bakol" given to Avraham and sets out to explain what this all-encompassing blessing really is.

וזהו ברכת האבות בכל מכל כל.

And this is the blessing of the Avos: "bakol, mikol, kol."

Chazal teach that the three Avos were each blessed with an aspect of "kol" — Avraham "bakol," Yitzchak "mikol," and Yaakov "kol" — together forming the complete blessing.

והענין דכתיב וירא אלקים את כל אשר עשה והנה טוב מאוד דהעולם נברא בפרט ובכלל.

The matter is as it is written: "And Hashem saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good" (Bereishis 1:31) — for the world was created both in particular and in general (b'frat u'b'klal).

Creation has two dimensions: each individual thing on its own, and the whole taken together as one unified totality.

ובכל פרט כתיב כי טוב.

And of each particular it is written, "ki tov" ("it was good").

On each day of Creation, of each separate thing, Hashem said simply "tov" — good.

וכל אשר עשה זה הכלל טוב מאוד.

But "all that He had made" — this is the totality (klal) — was "very good" (tov me'od).

Only when all the parts are gathered into one whole does the Torah elevate the description to "tov me'od," very good — the totality is greater than the sum of its parts.

ובאמת האדם כולל כל הבריאה לכן דרשו חז"ל מאד זה אדם.

And in truth, the human being contains all of Creation; therefore Chazal expounded: "me'od" — this refers to Adam (man).

Man is a microcosm that includes all of Creation within him, which is why "tov me'od" alludes specifically to Adam, the crown and unifying point of the whole.

וזה בחי' כל שניתן לאדם.

And this is the aspect of "kol" (everything) that was given to man.

Because man embraces all of Creation, the all-inclusive "kol" is entrusted into his hands.

כמ"ש כל שתה תחת רגליו.

As it is written: "You have placed everything (kol) beneath his feet" (Tehillim 8:7).

All of creation was given over to man's dominion, confirming that the totality "kol" is placed in his charge.

שכלל העולם נמסר בידו והוא כלי המחזיק ברכה.

For the totality of the world was handed over into his hand, and he is the vessel that holds blessing.

Man is the kli (vessel) capable of containing berachah, as Chazal say there is no vessel that holds blessing like shalom (peace).

שלום.

Peace (shalom).

Shalom is the unifying vessel that binds all the particulars into a single whole — the very quality that allows blessing to rest and be contained.

וכן ש"ק הוא כלל כל הימי בראשית.

And likewise Shabbos kodesh is the totality (klal) of all the days of Creation.

Just as man unifies all of space, Shabbos unifies all of time — it gathers the six days of Creation into one comprehensive whole.

והוא מחזיק ברכה לכל הימים.

And it holds blessing for all the days.

As the klal of the week, Shabbos is the vessel from which berachah flows to all the days, "for from it all the days are blessed."

ובאמת כל הוא מלשון חמדה ורצון כמ"ש ותכל (נפש) דוד.

And in truth, "kol" is an expression of yearning and desire (chemdah v'ratzon), as it is written, "and the soul of David longed (vatechal)" (Shmuel II 13:39).

The word "kol" is rooted in "kelos hanefesh" — a soul's longing. The all-inclusive blessing is, at its core, a blessing of yearning desire for Hashem.

והאדם שיש בו נשמה הרצון והתשוקה אל הבורא ית"ש נמסר בידו.

And to man, who has a neshamah, the ratzon and the longing toward the Creator, may His Name be blessed, was handed over.

What truly defines man is the neshamah within him, carrying an innate desire and yearning to cleave to Hashem — this ratzon is the deepest "kol" placed in his hands.

וכמו כן הרצון של הקב"ה לבני ישראל שנק' אדם כמ"ש אדם אתם.

And correspondingly, the ratzon of HaKadosh Baruch Hu toward Bnei Yisrael, who are called "Adam," as it is written, "You [Yisrael] are Adam" (Yechezkel 34:31).

The longing is mutual: just as man yearns for Hashem, Hashem desires Bnei Yisrael — who alone are called "Adam," the unifying point of Creation.

וכמ"ש ועלי תשוקתו.

As it is written: "and toward Me is His desire (teshukaso)" (cf. Shir HaShirim 7:11).

This verse expresses the reciprocal yearning between Hashem and Knesses Yisrael — a mutual desire of love.

ומכש"כ האבות הקדושים.

And all the more so the holy Avos.

If this ratzon is given to every person, how much more so was it given in full measure to the Avos, who were the choicest of mankind.

וזה הכל שנמסר להם.

And this is the "kol" that was handed over to them.

The blessing of "kol" granted to the Avos was precisely this consummate ratzon and yearning for Hashem.

וכמו כן בעולם בשבת קודש כתיב וינפש.

And likewise in the world, regarding Shabbos kodesh it is written, "vayinafash" ("He rested / was re-souled").

On Shabbos a new dimension of soul enters the world — "vayinafash," related to nefesh — paralleling the ratzon that the neshamah carries.

והוא הרצון שגם יום השבת עצמו משתוקק למעלה כמ"ש ויום השביעי משבח ואומר.

And this is the ratzon — that even the day of Shabbos itself yearns upward, as it is said, "and the seventh day praises and declares…"

Shabbos itself possesses a longing to ascend to Hashem; the day "sings out" in praise, expressing its own desire to rise toward its Source.

וז"ש ורצה בנו ושבת קדשו הנחילנו:

And this is the meaning of: "and He desired us (v'ratzah vanu), and gave us His holy Shabbos as an inheritance."

The very word "ratzah" reveals it: Hashem's desire for us and the gift of Shabbos are one and the same — the mutual ratzon and yearning that is the inner essence of "bakol."

Summary: The blessing of "bakol, mikol, kol" given to the Avos reflects the two dimensions of Creation — each particular is "good," but the unified whole is "very good," and man (Adam), who contains all of Creation, is the vessel that holds this totality and its blessing. At its root, "kol" is an expression of chemdah v'ratzon — yearning. The neshamah's deepest gift is its longing for Hashem, matched by Hashem's reciprocal desire for Bnei Yisrael, called "Adam." Shabbos embodies this same ratzon, itself yearning upward, as we say "v'ratzah vanu" — He desired us and gave us His holy Shabbos.