Bikkurim And True Submission

במדרש תנחומא לכו נרננה צפה מרע"ה שביכורים עתידין להיבטל ותיקן שלש תפלות כו'

In the Midrash Tanchuma on the verse "Come, let us sing joyously" (Tehillim 95:1), it is taught that Moshe Rabbeinu foresaw that the mitzvah of bikkurim, the first fruits, was destined to be nullified, and therefore he instituted the three daily tefillos.

Moshe Rabbeinu saw prophetically that bikkurim would one day cease, so he established the three daily tefillos to take their place. Tefillah carries on the spiritual work that bikkurim once accomplished.

דכ' והשתחוית לפני ה'

For it is written, "and you shall prostrate yourself before Hashem" (Devarim 26:10).

The Sfas Emes anchors the discussion in the verse that bikkurim culminate in prostrating oneself before Hashem.

וכנראה שזה הי' כנתינת שכר שע"י הביכורים זכה כ"א להיות מוכן להשתחות לפני ה'

It appears that this was, as it were, the reward, for through the bringing of the bikkurim each person merited to be prepared and fit to bow down before Hashem.

The act of bowing before Hashem was not merely part of the mitzvah but a reward earned through bringing the first fruits, which made a person fit for such submission.

וכעין זה מצאתי באוה"ח לפי דרש שלו ע"ש

And I found something similar to this in the Ohr HaChaim, according to his own derashah; see there.

He notes that the Ohr HaChaim offers a comparable idea in his own homiletical interpretation.

כן י"ל לפי פשוטו שע"י הביכורים שמסרו הראשית לה' באו להכנעה האמיתית מה שעתה צריכין ליגע בהרבה יגיעות בשר ג"פ ביום נשתחוה נכרעה נברכה וכולי האי ואולי נזכה להכנעה אמיתית

So too one may explain according to the plain meaning, that through the bikkurim, by which they handed over the very first and choicest portion to Hashem, they came to true submission and humility, the very thing for which nowadays we must labor with much physical exertion, three times a day saying "we bow, we kneel, we bend the knee," and despite all this exertion, perhaps we will merit true submission.

On the plain level, handing over the very first and best of one's produce to Hashem brought a person to genuine humility, something we now have to strain for through much physical effort in our daily prayers, hoping we might still reach true submission.

ובבהמ"ק ע"י ביכורים פ"א בשנה נתבטל כל האדם אליו ית'

But in the Beis HaMikdash, through the bikkurim, once a year the entire person was nullified before Him, may He be blessed.

In the time of the Beis HaMikdash, the bikkurim once a year accomplished a complete nullification of the self before Hashem.

ונראה שמצות ביכורים הי' הכנה לראש השנה כי רובן הביאו מסתמא קודם ר"ה

It appears that the mitzvah of bikkurim was a preparation for Rosh Hashanah, for most people presumably brought them before Rosh Hashanah.

Since most people brought bikkurim before Rosh Hashanah, the mitzvah served as a preparation for the Day of Judgment.

וכ' מראשית כמ"ש שם מראשית השנה

And it is written "from the first" (Devarim 26:10), as it is written there regarding Rosh Hashanah, "from the beginning of the year" (Devarim 11:12).

The word "reishis" used for bikkurim echoes "the beginning of the year" used for Rosh Hashanah, linking the two.

וי"ל דע"ז כ' תחת אשר לא עבדת כו' בשמחה כו' כי אז זכו לעבודת ה' ע"י מצות ביכורים שנאמר בו ושמחת

And one may say that it is concerning this that it is written, "because you did not serve Hashem your God with joy" (Devarim 28:47), for then, in the time of the Beis HaMikdash, they merited the avodah of Hashem through the mitzvah of bikkurim, concerning which it is stated, "and you shall rejoice" (Devarim 26:11).

The rebuke "because you did not serve with joy" points back to bikkurim, the joyous avodah through which Bnei Yisrael once served Hashem in the time of the Beis HaMikdash.

ועתה צריכין לעבוד ע"י יסורים כדמסיים ועבדת את אויבך כו' בעירום ובחוסר כו'

But nowadays we must serve through suffering, as the verse concludes, "and you shall serve your enemy... in nakedness and in want of all things" (Devarim 28:48).

In our times, avodah no longer comes through joy but through hardship, as the verse continues that we will serve our enemies in deprivation.

וחלילה שיהי' רק עונש רק הפי' שעתה בא עבודת ה' באמצעיות היסורים והרדיפות האויבים וחוסר כל

And Heaven forbid that this should be merely a punishment; rather, the meaning is that nowadays the avodah of Hashem comes about by means of suffering, the persecution of enemies, and want of everything.

This hardship is not simply punishment; rather, it has become the very vehicle through which we now serve Hashem when joy is unavailable to us.

והם ב' דרכים דכ' מרשית ודרשו כל שנה שרשה בתחילתה כו'

These are two paths, alluded to in that it is written "mei-reishis" (from the first), and the Sages expounded that every year is impoverished at its beginning ("rasha bi-techilasah").

The two routes are hinted in the word "mei-reishis," which can be read as "reishis" (first, choicest) or "rasha" (impoverished), reflecting two ways of beginning the year.

שבזמן המקדש הי' ע"י הראשית כנ"ל בשמחה

That in the time of the Beis HaMikdash it came about through the reishis, the choicest first portion, as above, with joy.

In the time of the Beis HaMikdash, the year began through the path of reishis, of offering one's first and best, in joy.

ועתה בעוה"ר היא בחי' מרשית ע"י יסורין והכנעה

But nowadays, because of our many sins, it is in the aspect of "mei-rasha," coming about through suffering and submission.

Now, in our diminished state, the year begins through the path of "rasha," of poverty, reaching Hashem through suffering and humbling.

השי"ת יחזירנו למדרגה הראשונה בשמחת עולם על ראשם:

May Hashem, may He be blessed, return us to the first and higher level, with eternal joy upon their heads (Yeshayahu 35:10).

The piece closes with a tefillah that Hashem restore us to the higher, joyous path, fulfilling the promise of eternal joy.

Summary: The Sfas Emes explains that the mitzvah of bikkurim brought a person to true submission and nullification before Hashem, culminating in prostration, and that this avodah was accomplished through joy by handing over the first and choicest of one's produce. Since bikkurim were generally brought before Rosh Hashanah, the mitzvah served as a preparation for the Day of Judgment, linking "reishis" of the first fruits to the "beginning of the year." He reads the rebuke "because you did not serve Hashem with joy" as pointing to this lost avodah of bikkurim, teaching that nowadays, in galus, the same submission must be reached through suffering and the persecution of enemies rather than through joy. This is not mere punishment but a second path to serving Hashem, hinted in the word "mei-reishis," which also reads as "impoverished" at the year's start. He closes with a tefillah that Hashem return us to the first and higher path of eternal joy.