Accepting the Heavenly Yoke

בפסוק מוצא שפתיך תשמור כו' ועשית כו' אזהרה לב"ד שיעשוך

On the pasuk "That which has gone out from your lips you shall guard and you shall do" (Devarim 23:24) — Chazal expound that "you shall do" is an admonition to the beis din that they shall compel you to fulfill it.

The pasuk about keeping one's verbal vows teaches that beis din has the power to force a person to carry out what he obligated himself to do.

כופין אותו עד שיאמר רוצה אני

As Chazal say: we coerce a person until he says, "I want to."

This is the rule that beis din pressures a person until his outer refusal gives way and his true inner will to do the right thing emerges.

ובוודאי לאו דווקא על הדיין מוטל דבר זה רק שהאדם עצמו יכוף א"ע ע"י היגיעה בתורה ותפלה שהדברים אלו היוצאין מן הלב הם מכניעים הגוף

Surely this matter does not rest specifically upon the dayan; rather, a person himself must compel himself through toiling in Torah and tefillah, for these things that issue forth from the heart subdue the body.

The Sfas Emes shifts the focus inward: the real "compelling" is not mainly the court's job but each person's own task, accomplished through toiling in Torah and tefillah, which come from the heart and subdue the physical self.

לכן מצוון בכל יום לקבל בפה עמ"ש ועול מצות

Therefore we are commanded each day to accept verbally the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven and the yoke of mitzvos.

This is why we accept Hashem's Kingship and the yoke of mitzvos out loud every single day.

גם הוא הבטחה ועשית שבוודאי צריך כל אדם להאמין כי כל הקבלות שמקבלין על עצמינו בכל יום בוודאי יעשו פירות אם מיד אם לאחר זמן כי גם מלמעלה כופין את האדם החפץ באמת להטות הלב אליו ית' כמו שמבקשין וכוף את יצרינו

It is also an assurance — "and you shall do" — for surely every person must believe that all the resolutions we accept upon ourselves each day will certainly bear fruit, whether immediately or after some time, for from Above too they compel the person who truly desires it to incline his heart toward Him, Yisbarach, just as we ask, "Subdue our yetzer."

Beyond being a command, "and you shall do" is a promise: our daily resolutions will bear fruit, because Hashem Himself helps subdue the yetzer of anyone who sincerely wants to turn his heart to Him.

וכמו שהי' בכלל ע"י שקבלנו בהר סיני מלכותו ית' בנעשה ונשמע

And just as it was for the entire klal through our accepting at Har Sinai His Kingship, Yisbarach, with "We will do and we will hear" (Naaseh v'nishma).

This mirrors what happened with all of Bnei Yisrael when they accepted Hashem's Kingship at Har Sinai with Naaseh v'nishma.

לכן אף שחטאנו

Therefore, even though we have sinned,

Even after we fall and sin,

עכ"ז כתיב ביד חזקה כו' אמלוך עליכם

nevertheless it is written, "With a strong hand... I will reign over you" (Yechezkel 20:33).

the pasuk in Yechezkel assures us that Hashem will reign over us with a strong hand and not abandon the relationship.

כן בפרט כפי מה שמקבלין עמ"ש כראוי מתקיים אח"כ בוודאי

So too in the particular: according to how a person accepts the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven as is fitting, it is afterward surely fulfilled.

What is true for the whole klal is true for the individual: a sincere acceptance of the yoke of Heaven is ultimately fulfilled.

וכ"ז נרמז בק"ש ואהבת והי' א"ש

And all of this is hinted at in Krias Shema — "And you shall love" and "And it shall be if you hearken" —

All of this is alluded to in Krias Shema, in the words "And you shall love" and "And it shall be if you hearken."

שמקבלין ע"ע להתקרב אליו אם נזכה מתוך אהבה וח"ו כשלא נזכה לזה ונתחייב עונשין אבל הקב"ה יקרב אותנו בכל אופן שיהי':

for we accept upon ourselves to draw close to Him; if we merit, it is out of love, and chas v'shalom when we do not merit this and become liable to punishments — but the Holy One, Blessed is He, will bring us close in whatever manner it may be.

We commit to drawing close to Hashem; ideally we do so through love, but even if we fail and deserve punishment, the Holy One, Blessed is He, will bring us close one way or another.

Summary: The Sfas Emes builds on the pasuk that beis din compels a person to fulfill his verbal commitments, and on Chazal's principle that we coerce a person "until he says, I want to." He explains that the true compelling is not chiefly the dayan's job but each person's own avodah: through toiling in Torah and tefillah, which issue from the heart, one subdues his own body — which is why we verbally accept the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven and of mitzvos every day. Yet "and you shall do" is also a promise that these daily resolutions will bear fruit, for Hashem Himself subdues the yetzer of one who truly desires to turn his heart toward Him, just as Bnei Yisrael accepted His Kingship at Har Sinai with Naaseh v'nishma. Even after we sin, the pasuk "With a strong hand I will reign over you" assures us that Hashem will never abandon the relationship. All of this is hinted at in Krias Shema: we accept to draw close to Him out of love, and even chas v'shalom when we do not merit it, the Holy One, Blessed is He, will draw us close in whatever way He must.