Dedicating Beginnings To Hashem

במדרש תנחומא כי מרע"ה ראה שלא יהי' מצות ביכורים בגלות תיקן ג' תפלות בכל יום

In the Midrash Tanchuma it is taught that Moshe Rabbeinu foresaw that the mitzvah of bikkurim (the first fruits) would not be possible in galus, and so he instituted three tefillos to be said each day.

Since bikkurim could not be performed once Bnei Yisrael were in galus, Moshe Rabbeinu established the three daily tefillos as a substitute way to dedicate the first of one's time to Hashem.

ופי' מו"ז ז"ל כי מצות ביכורים היא ליתן את הראשית מהכל להש"י וכן התפלות בשינוי הזמנים ערב ובוקר וצהרים כו'

My grandfather, of blessed memory, explained that the mitzvah of bikkurim is to give the very first of everything to Hashem, and so too the tefillos correspond to this by being said at the changing points of the day — evening, morning, and afternoon, and so on.

Both bikkurim and the daily tefillos share one idea: giving the very first and best to Hashem, with the tefillos marking the key transition points of the day.

כי הכל תלוי בהראשית כמ"ש ז"ל טוב אחרית ד' כשהוא מראשיתו טוב

For everything depends upon its beginning, as Chazal said: "The end of a matter is good" (Koheles 7:8) when its beginning is good.

The whole outcome of anything is decided by how it begins; a good beginning, dedicated to Hashem, secures a good end.

וכן מראשית השנה נידון מה יהי' בסופה אינו דווקא בר"ה רק כל שינוי ודבר חדש נמשך הכל אחר הראשית

And likewise, from the beginning of the year it is determined what will be at its end — and this is not specifically on Rosh Hashanah; rather, every change and every new thing is drawn entirely after its beginning.

The principle that the start determines the finish is not limited to Rosh Hashanah — every fresh beginning of any kind sets the course for what follows.

וכל דבר בראשיתו צריך שמירה

And every thing, at its beginning, requires guarding.

Anything in its initial stage is fragile and needs spiritual protection.

כי בתחילת שבא הדבר מן השורש אל האדם עומד לחסרון

For at the moment that the thing first comes from its root into the person, it is exposed to deficiency.

When a thing first descends from its spiritual root into a person, that very moment of transition leaves it vulnerable to falling short.

וגם כי כל המקבל צריך שמירה שלא יבא לידי גבהות לכן כל מי שיש בו בחי' ראש צריך שמירה

And also, because everyone who receives requires guarding so that he should not come to haughtiness — therefore anyone who has in him the aspect of "head" (a beginning or position of primacy) requires guarding.

Whoever receives an influx, or holds a position of primacy, is in danger of arrogance, so any "head" or first thing needs guarding against that pride.

והעצה היא קבלת מלכותו ית' להתדבק בו ולהחזיר אליו הראשית לזכור כי הכל שלו

And the counsel for this is to accept upon oneself the kingship of Hashem, to cling to Him and to return to Him the first portion, in order to remember that everything is His.

The remedy is to accept Hashem's kingship and return the first portion to Him, thereby remembering that everything belongs to Him and avoiding self-importance.

לכן מיד שבאו לארץ הי' המצוה ביכורים

Therefore, immediately upon their entering the Land, the mitzvah of bikkurim applied.

Because beginnings need this safeguard, the mitzvah of bikkurim was given to take effect the moment Bnei Yisrael entered Eretz Yisrael.

וכן בפרט בכ"ד שע"ז כ' בראשית ברא פירשו ז"ל בשביל תורה וחלה כו' כ"ד שנקרא ראשית שזה קיום העולם כנ"ל

And likewise in particular regarding the twenty-four matters that are called "reishis" (first), concerning which it is written "Bereishis bara" — "In the beginning He created" (Bereishis 1:1) — Chazal explained: for the sake of the Torah and challah, and so on, the twenty-four things that are called "reishis," for this is the very existence of the world, as above.

Chazal teach that the world was created for the sake of the twenty-four things called "reishis," such as Torah and challah, because dedicating these first things to Hashem is what sustains the world's existence.

לכן נסמכה פרשת ביכורים לזכירת עמלק דכ' ראשית גוים עמלק לכך א' עדי אובד כנ"ל שמהראשית עומד להיות אובד [כמ"ש נגד שמי' אבד שמי' כשאינו בטל לשמו ית' ולכבודו כמ"ש על עמלק שאין שמו ית' שלם עד שימחה שם עמלק שמתנגד לשמו ית' כנ"ל]. אבל בנ"י ע"י שנותנין הראשית להשי"ת יש להם אחרית כנ"ל

Therefore the parashah of bikkurim is placed next to the remembrance of Amalek, for it is written "The first of the nations is Amalek" (Bamidbar 24:20); and that is why it says "and he comes to destruction" (Bamidbar 24:20), as above, that from the very beginning it is exposed to being lost — [as it is written, that one who sets himself against Heaven loses heaven, when he is not nullified before His Name and His honor, as it says concerning Amalek that His Name is not complete until the name of Amalek is erased, since he opposes His Name, as above]. But Bnei Yisrael, by means of giving the first portion to Hashem, have an "end" (a lasting outcome), as above.

The Torah juxtaposes bikkurim with remembering Amalek, who is "the first of the nations": a beginning not nullified to Hashem heads toward destruction, as with Amalek whose name must be erased and against whom Hashem's Name is incomplete; but Bnei Yisrael, by giving their first to Hashem, gain a lasting end.

וחז"ל דרשו מרשית שנה שרשה בתחילתה כו' הכל כמ"ש לעיל כי ע"י ההכנעה להש"י יש קיום להראשית וכלל הדבר כל הארה שמביאה בושה והכנעה לאדם הוא דבר של קיימא:

And Chazal expounded "mei-reishis shanah" — "from the beginning of the year" — as "sherashah bischilasah," that the year is rooted in its beginning, and so on; all of this is as written above, that through submission before Hashem there is endurance for the beginning. And the rule of the matter is: every illumination that brings a person to shame and submission is a thing that endures.

Chazal read "from the beginning of the year" as "the year is rooted in its beginning," teaching that submission to Hashem gives the beginning lasting endurance; the governing rule is that any illumination producing humility and submission in a person is something that lasts.

Summary: The Sfas Emes teaches that everything is determined by its beginning, and that the avodah of a Jew is to dedicate the first and best of all things back to Hashem. This is the meaning of bikkurim, and of the three daily tefillos that Moshe Rabbeinu instituted to fill its place in galus — both express the truth that the "reishis," the first portion, belongs to Hashem and that everything is His. A beginning is fragile and needs guarding, both because it is freshly descending from its root and because the one who receives is prone to haughtiness; the safeguard is accepting Hashem's kingship and returning the first to Him. This is why bikkurim is placed beside Amalek, "the first of the nations," who refused to be nullified to Hashem and therefore heads toward destruction. The governing principle is that any illumination which brings a person to shame and submission before Hashem is a thing that endures.