First Fruits Defeating Amalek

המשך מצות ביכורים למחיות עמלק דכ' ראשית גוים ע' ואחריתו עדי אובד כמ"ש בפרוח רשעים כ' עשב כו' להשמידם ע"ע

The mitzvah of bikkurim (the first fruits) is connected to the mitzvah of wiping out Amalek, as it is written, "Amalek was the first of the nations, but its end shall be utter destruction" (Bamidbar 24:20), and as it is written, "When the wicked sprout like grass... it is so that they may be destroyed forever" (Tehillim 92:8).

The Sfas Emes links the mitzvah of bringing first fruits to the obligation to destroy Amalek, both being introduced by pesukim that speak of "first" and of destruction. Amalek, like Amalek's verse, is the "first of nations" yet destined to be destroyed.

כי עמלק היא חלק הסט"א מוץ ותבן שנתערב ע"י החטא כמ"ש ארורה האדמה כו' בעצבון תאכלנה כו' וקוץ ודרדר תצמיח רמז מלחמה לה' בעמלק מדר דר על דרדר הנ"ל

For Amalek is the portion of the sitra achra (the side of impurity), the chaff and the straw that became intermingled with the good through the sin, as it is written, "Cursed is the ground... in sorrow shall you eat of it... and thorns and thistles (kotz v'dardar) shall it bring forth for you" (Bereishis 3:17-18) — this hints at "a war for Hashem against Amalek from generation to generation (midor dor)" (Shemos 17:16), alluding to that very "dardar" mentioned above.

Amalek represents the side of impurity, the worthless chaff and straw that got mixed into the good when Adam sinned. The curse of "thorns and thistles" (dardar) hints at the eternal war against Amalek (midor dor), playing on the shared root.

שלעולם צריכין מלחמה להעביר הפסולת ותערובות מחלק הסט"א לכן עשו הי' בכור ויצא ראשונה כמו הקש שגדל מקודם

For there is always a need for war to remove the waste and the admixture that come from the portion of the sitra achra; therefore Esav was the firstborn and emerged first, just like the straw which grows first.

The world's order requires a constant struggle to separate out the impure admixture of the sitra achra. This is why Esav, the firstborn, came out first, just as straw and chaff grow before the grain.

ואח"כ בא האוכל ונאבד מעשו הבכורה כמ"ש ויבז

And afterward comes the edible part, and the birthright was lost from Esav, as it is written, "and Esav despised the birthright" (Bereishis 25:34).

After the worthless outer layer comes the edible inner core, and so Esav lost his birthright by despising it. The chaff emerges first but is then discarded.

ויעקב בזכותו זכה אל הבכורה כמ"ש בני בכורי ישראל

And Yaakov, through his merit, was privileged to receive the birthright, as it is written, "My firstborn son is Yisrael" (Shemos 4:22).

Yaakov earned the birthright through his merit, and Bnei Yisrael are called Hashem's firstborn son. The true inner worth belongs to him.

וע"י מצות הביכורים שמביאין הראשית לבהמ"ק מוציאין הפירות מארור לברוך

And through the mitzvah of bikkurim, by which one brings the first of the fruits to the Beis HaMikdash, one draws the fruits out from the realm of the "cursed" into the realm of the "blessed."

Bringing the first fruits to the Beis HaMikdash elevates the produce, lifting it from the domain of the curse to the domain of blessing. The act of dedicating the first transforms the fruit's status.

ולכן כ' אח"כ ושמחת בכל הטוב היפך ממ"ש בעצבון תאכלנה

And therefore it is written afterward, "and you shall rejoice in all the good" (Devarim 26:11), the very opposite of what was said, "in sorrow shall you eat of it."

This is why the Torah then says "you shall rejoice in all the good," reversing the original curse of eating "in sorrow." The bikkurim turn sorrow into joy.

וע"ז כ' אכל בשמחה לחמך כו' כי כבר רצה אלקים כו' כשנותנין הראשית לשמים

And regarding this it is written, "Eat your bread in joy... for Hashem has already favored your deeds" (Koheles 9:7) — this is when one gives the first portion to Heaven.

Koheles teaches that one may eat his bread in joy because Hashem has favored his deeds, which happens precisely when the first portion is given to Heaven. Dedicating the first earns the joy.

ולכן מזכירין יצ"מ על הביכורים כמ"ש בחג הפסח מזה

And therefore we mention Yetzias Mitzrayim (the going out of Mitzrayim) in connection with the bikkurim, just as it is mentioned regarding the festival of Pesach in this same vein.

We mention Yetzias Mitzrayim during the bikkurim declaration, paralleling how Pesach centers on that same remembrance. The two are spiritually linked.

כי הגזירה הי' בעצבון תאכלנה כל ימי חייך אך ביצ"מ הכין הקב"ה לנו שע"י זכירת יצ"מ כבר יצאנו בגלות מצרים ידי עצבון

For the decree was, "in sorrow shall you eat of it all the days of your life" (Bereishis 3:17); but at Yetzias Mitzrayim the Holy One, Blessed is He, prepared for us that through remembering Yetzias Mitzrayim we have already gone out, even while in the exile of Mitzrayim, from the grip of that "sorrow."

The curse condemned man to eat in sorrow all his days, but Yetzias Mitzrayim gave us a way out: by remembering it we are freed from that sorrow, a freedom that began even within the exile itself.

וז"ש לחם עוני שעונין עליו דברים כמ"ש וענית ואמרת כו' וע"י זכירה זו מוציא הלחם מארור לברוך

And this is the meaning of "the bread of affliction (lechem oni)" — bread over which one answers (onin) words of praise, as it is written, "and you shall speak up and say..." (Devarim 26:5); and through this remembrance one draws the bread out from "cursed" into "blessed."

Matzah is called "bread of affliction" but also "bread over which one answers" words of praise, as the bikkurim declaration begins "you shall speak up and say." This very act of remembrance and declaration lifts the bread from curse to blessing.

רמז לדבר כ' התם כל ימי חייך וכ' למען תזכור כו' יום צמא"מ כל ימי חייך:

A hint to this matter: there it is written, "all the days of your life" (Bereishis 3:17), and it is written, "so that you may remember the day of your going out from Mitzrayim all the days of your life" (Devarim 16:3).

A textual hint ties it together: the curse uses the phrase "all the days of your life," and so does the mitzvah to remember Yetzias Mitzrayim "all the days of your life," showing that the remembrance is the antidote to the curse.

Summary: The Sfas Emes connects the mitzvah of bikkurim with the war against Amalek, both introduced by verses about being "first." Amalek is the chaff and waste of the sitra achra that became mixed into the good through Adam's sin, which is why the curse of "thorns and thistles" (dardar) hints at the eternal war against Amalek; this admixture is also why Esav, like the straw that grows first, emerged as firstborn but then lost the birthright to Yaakov, Hashem's true firstborn. By bringing the first fruits to the Beis HaMikdash and dedicating the first portion to Heaven, Bnei Yisrael draw their produce out from the realm of the "cursed" into the realm of the "blessed," transforming the curse of eating "in sorrow" into rejoicing "in all the good." This is why Yetzias Mitzrayim is recalled over the bikkurim, for through that remembrance we are freed from the decree of sorrow, just as matzah is the "bread of affliction" over which we "answer" words of praise. The shared phrase "all the days of your life" in both the curse and the mitzvah of remembering Yetzias Mitzrayim shows that this remembrance is the very antidote that lifts bread and fruit from curse to blessing.