Goodness as Essential Nature

בברכה כתי' אשר תשמעו ולהיפוך כ' אם

Regarding the blessing it is written, "that you shall hearken" (Devarim 11:27), whereas regarding the opposite it is written "if" (Devarim 11:28).

The Torah phrases the blessing as a certainty ("that you shall hearken") but the curse with the conditional word "if," hinting that obedience is the natural state of Bnei Yisrael.

כי הטוב בבנ"י בעצם

For the good in Bnei Yisrael is part of their very essence,

Goodness belongs to the essential nature of Bnei Yisrael, baked into who they truly are.

והחטא במקרה

while the sin is only incidental.

Sin, by contrast, is not essential to them but merely an accidental occurrence.

לכן בישראל מחשבה טובה מצרפין ולא לרעה

Therefore, with regard to Bnei Yisrael a good intention is joined to the deed and reckoned as though it were carried out, but a bad intention is not.

Because the good is essential, Hashem attaches a good intention to a person's account as if the mitzvah were done, yet does not attach a bad intention in the same way.

כי בכלל בוודאי שמעו וקיבלו בנ"י

For in a general sense Bnei Yisrael certainly hearkened and accepted the Torah.

At Har Sinai Bnei Yisrael as a whole heard and accepted the Torah, and that acceptance remains rooted in them.

לכן גם אם כי נפלו אח"כ מזה

Therefore, even though afterward they fell from this level,

Even when later generations or moments slip and fall from that high level of acceptance,

יש להם בכל יום בחירה חדשה כמ"ש אנכי נותן לפניכם היום

they have a fresh choice each and every day, as it is written, "Behold, I set before you this day" (Devarim 11:26).

they are granted a renewed power of choice every single day, drawn from the verse "Behold, I set before you this day."

אנכי מצד קבלת התורה נתחדש לבנ"י בכל יום אלה ב' הדרכים

"Behold (Anochi)" — from the perspective of the receiving of the Torah, these two paths are renewed for Bnei Yisrael each and every day.

The word "Anochi," rooted in the giving of the Torah, means the two paths of blessing and curse, good and its opposite, are placed before Bnei Yisrael fresh each day.

וכך צריך להיות קבלת מלכות שמים בק"ש בכל יום היינו אשר תשמעו

And so must the acceptance of the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven be in Krias Shema each and every day, namely "that you shall hearken."

This is also how one must accept the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven through Krias Shema daily, fulfilling "that you shall hearken."

ולכן אף שנמצא איזה חטא כי גם בצדיק כתי' אין צדיק כו' א"י טוב ולא יחטא

And therefore, even though some sin is to be found in a person, for even regarding the tzaddik it is written, "there is no tzaddik in the land who does good and does not sin" (Koheles 7:20),

Even though every person, including the tzaddik, will be found to have some sin, as Koheles testifies,

רק שהוא בדרך עראי:

it is only in a passing, incidental manner.

that sin is never part of his essence but only a temporary, incidental lapse.

Summary: The Sfas Emes notes that the Torah states the blessing with certainty ("that you shall hearken") yet introduces the curse with the conditional "if," teaching that good is the essential nature of Bnei Yisrael while sin is only incidental. Because the good is essential, Hashem joins a good intention to the deed as though it were performed, but does not do so with a bad intention. Although Bnei Yisrael accepted the Torah in full at Har Sinai and may afterward fall from that level, they are given a renewed power of choice each day, drawn from "Behold, I set before you this day," and this daily renewal is itself the acceptance of the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven in Krias Shema. Thus, even though every person, including the tzaddik, is found to have some sin, that sin is never part of his essence but only a passing, incidental matter.