Torah Inheritance Uniting Yisrael

אתם נצבים כו' שכינסם משה בברית קודם מיתתו

"You are standing this day, all of you" (Devarim 29:9) and so on — Moshe Rabbeinu gathered Bnei Yisrael together into a covenant before his passing.

The parsha opens by describing how Moshe Rabbeinu assembled all of Bnei Yisrael into a single covenant right before he passed away.

זש"ה תורה צוה לנו משה מורשה קהלת יעקב שהשאיר לנו ירושה זה הכח שיכולין בנ"י להיכנס להיות אגודה אחת

This is the meaning of the verse, "The Torah that Moshe commanded us is the inheritance of the congregation of Yaakov" (Devarim 33:4) — that he left over for us as an inheritance this power by which Bnei Yisrael are able to enter into becoming one single bound assembly.

The Sfas Emes connects this to the verse about the Torah being an inheritance: what Moshe left over for us is the very power that enables Bnei Yisrael to unite as one cohesive assembly.

והוא באמת ע"י התורה תורה מורשה קהלת יעקב מורשה

And this is, in truth, through the Torah, for the Torah is "the inheritance of the congregation of Yaakov" — an inheritance.

He stresses that this unifying power flows specifically through the Torah, which is described as the inheritance of the congregation of Yaakov.

והם בחי' תורה שבכתב ותורה שבע"פ כי לכל ישראל יש חלק מיוחד בתורה לא ראי זה כראי זה הצד השוה שביניהם שהם בני תורה ובכח כללות כל בנ"י הכללים והפרטים התורה נדרשת בהם

And these are the aspects of the Written Torah and the Oral Torah, for every Jew in Klal Yisrael has his own particular portion in the Torah — "the appearance of this one is not like the appearance of that one," yet the common factor between them is that they are all bnei Torah, and through the totality of all Bnei Yisrael, both in their general principles and their particulars, the Torah is expounded through them.

Each Jew possesses a unique, individual portion in the Torah; though every portion looks different, all Jews share that they are people of Torah, and only through the whole of Bnei Yisrael — generalities and details together — is the Torah fully expounded.

ויש בנין אב מכתוב א' ויש מב' כתובים כפי השרשים שיש לבנ"י בתורה גדולים וקטנים

And there is a binyan av (a paradigm derived) from a single verse, and there is one from two verses, in accordance with the roots that Bnei Yisrael have in the Torah, the great ones and the small ones.

Just as in the rules of Torah exposition a paradigm (binyan av) can be built from one verse or from two, so too the depth of each Jew's root in the Torah varies, with greater and lesser souls.

וכ"ב אתוון דאורייתא נבנין בכללות בנ"י ונק' בנין אב

And the twenty-two letters of the Torah are built up within the totality of Bnei Yisrael, and this is called a binyan av (a foundational structure).

The twenty-two letters of the Torah are constructed within the collective body of Bnei Yisrael, and this collective itself functions as a binyan av, a foundational structure.

וע"ז כ' ה' עוז לעמו יתן עי"ז יברך אותם בשלום

And concerning this it is written, "Hashem will give strength to His people" (Tehillim 29:11) — through this He will then "bless His people with peace" (Tehillim 29:11).

This explains the verse that Hashem gives strength (the Torah) to His people, and through that He then blesses them with peace.

שהיא המלבוש שנעשה בכח צרופי התורה:

For this peace is the garment that is fashioned through the power of the combinations of the letters of the Torah.

That peace is like a protective garment, woven from the power of the letter-combinations of the Torah that emerge when Bnei Yisrael are united.

Summary: The Sfas Emes opens on the covenant of "Atem Nitzavim," through which Moshe Rabbeinu bound all of Bnei Yisrael into a single assembly before his passing. He explains that the power to become one unified body is precisely the inheritance Moshe left us through the Torah, the "morashah kehillas Yaakov." Since every Jew holds his own distinct portion in the Torah — the Written and the Oral — and these portions differ like the differing faces of men, the full Torah can only be expounded through the totality of Bnei Yisrael, generalities and particulars alike. Just as a binyan av is built from one verse or two according to the varying roots of great and small souls, so the twenty-two letters of the Torah are constructed within the collective of Bnei Yisrael, which itself becomes a foundational structure. From this unity Hashem gives strength to His people and blesses them with peace — a protective garment woven from the very letter-combinations of the Torah.