Yearning Removes The Heart's Orlah

ומל ה"א את לבבך

"And Hashem your God will circumcise your heart" (Devarim 30:6).

The Sfas Emes opens with the pasuk that promises Hashem Himself will one day circumcise the heart of Bnei Yisrael.

כמו שיש ערלת הגוף ואאע"ה ע"י אהבה רבה להתדבק בו ית' נתן לו עצה להסיר ערלת הגוף

Just as there is an orlah of the body, so too with Avraham Avinu, peace be upon him: through his great love to cleave to Him, may He be blessed, Hashem gave him the counsel to remove the orlah of the body.

He draws a parallel to physical orlah: it was Avraham Avinu's burning love and longing to cleave to Hashem that earned him the means to remove the bodily orlah through bris milah.

כמו כן לעתיד אחר שיתקן אדם קומת הנפש

So too in the future, after a person has perfected the full stature of his soul,

He applies the same pattern to the future, once a person has labored to perfect his neshamah to its full spiritual stature.

ורק שנמצא בו חסרון מצד ערלת הלב בטבע כמ"ש הגוים ערלים וכו' ישראל ערלי לב

and only a deficiency remains within him by reason of the orlah of the heart that is in his nature, as it is written that the nations are uncircumcised, while Bnei Yisrael are uncircumcised of heart,

At that stage the only thing holding a person back is the orlah of the heart, a dullness embedded in human nature, which Bnei Yisrael share even though they are physically circumcised, as opposed to the nations who are uncircumcised in body as well.

מ"מ ע"י התשוקה יתן הבורא ב"ה עצה להסיר ערלת הלב ג"כ:

even so, through that very yearning the Creator, blessed is He, will grant the counsel to remove the orlah of the heart as well.

Just as longing brought Avraham the remedy for physical orlah, so will a person's deep yearning move Hashem to provide the remedy that removes the orlah of the heart.

Summary: The Sfas Emes expounds the pasuk "And Hashem your God will circumcise your heart" by way of a parallel to the orlah of the body. It was Avraham Avinu's great love and longing to cleave to Hashem that earned him the counsel to remove the bodily orlah through bris milah. So too in the future, once a person has perfected the full stature of his neshamah, the only remaining barrier is the orlah of the heart, a natural dullness that Bnei Yisrael carry even though their bodies are circumcised. The lesson is that yearning is itself the catalyst: just as Avraham's longing brought the remedy for physical orlah, a person's deep desire to cleave to Hashem will move the Creator, blessed is He, to remove the orlah of the heart as well.