Spiritual Bond of Vision and Heart

ברש"י נסתמו עיניהם ולבן של ישראל.

In Rashi it is stated that the eyes and the heart of Israel became blocked.

The Sefat Emet begins by explaining that spiritual obstruction affects both sight and inner understanding.

כבר כ' במ"א כי הגלות והגאולה תלוים בעין ולב.

It was already written elsewhere that exile and redemption depend on the eye and the heart.

According to the Sefat Emet, the condition of one’s perception and emotional orientation determines spiritual descent or ascent.

והם בחי' ברית המעור והלשון.

These correspond to the aspects of the covenant of the flesh and the covenant of the tongue.

The eye and heart parallel the sanctity of physical and verbal expression.

בחי' יהודה ויוסף.

These are the aspects of Judah and Joseph.

Judah represents sanctified speech, while Joseph represents sanctified physical covenant.

וברית הלשון תלוי בלב כדכ' לאדם מערכי לב כפי היגיעה בלב נותן לו הש"י מענה לשון.

And the covenant of the tongue depends upon the heart, as it is written: “To a person belong the arrangements of the heart; according to one’s effort of the heart, the Holy One grants the reply of the tongue.”

The purity and effort of the heart shape the divinely guided words that emerge from one’s mouth.

וכפי שמירת העין זוכים לברית המעור לכן כתיב ול"ת אחרי לבבכם ואחרי עיניכם כו'.

And according to one’s guarding of the eyes, one merits the covenant of the flesh; therefore it is written, “Do not stray after your heart and after your eyes.”

The discipline of sight protects deeper covenants and preserves spiritual integrity.

ומסיים אשר הוצאתי אתכם מארץ מצרים.

And it concludes: “I am the One who took you out of the land of Egypt.”

This teaches that maintaining these covenants is a form of liberation from spiritual enslavement.

כי ברית הוא התקשרות.

For a covenant is a form of bonding.

A covenant links the person to the Divine, establishing a living connection.

וכפי מה שנמצא זה ההתקשרות נעשים בני חורין וכאשר נסתם זה הכח אז יש גלות כנ"ל:

And to the extent that this bond is present, one becomes free; but when this power becomes sealed, then there is exile, as noted above.

Freedom flows from spiritual connectedness; exile arises when that channel becomes blocked.

Summary: The Sefat Emet teaches that exile and redemption hinge on the purity of sight and heart, which manifest in the covenants of word and deed. Maintaining these covenants creates a bond that brings spiritual freedom, while their obstruction leads to exile.