Torah as Source of Blessing

והנה כתי' הברכה אשר תשמעו ואמו"ז ז"ל אמר כי בשבת דכתי' ויברך כו' את יום השביעי בוודאי הוא שהש"ק מוכן לבנ"י לשמוע דבר ה' לכן הוא מבורך כו'

Now it is written, "the blessing, that you shall listen" (Devarim 11:27), and my saintly father-in-law, of blessed memory, said that regarding Shabbos, of which it is written, "And [Hashem] blessed... the seventh day" (Bereishis 2:3) — surely the reason it is blessed is that the holy Shabbos is prepared for Bnei Yisrael to hear the word of Hashem.

The Sfas Emes opens with the verse that calls listening to Hashem a "blessing," citing his father-in-law that Shabbos is called blessed precisely because it is the day prepared for Bnei Yisrael to receive Hashem's word.

והענין הוא כמ"ש בזוה"ק כיון דלא אשתכח בי' מנא מה ברכתא אשתכח בי' אלא כולא ברכאין בשביעאה תלי'

And the matter is as stated in the holy Zohar: since no manna was found on it, what blessing was found in it? Rather, all the blessings depend upon the seventh.

He brings the Zohar's question: since the manna did not fall on Shabbos, in what sense is it blessed? The Zohar answers that Shabbos is the wellspring from which all the week's blessings flow.

פי' שבשבת הוא מקור הברכות למעלה מהתפשטות הברכות בגשמיות

The explanation is that on Shabbos lies the source of the blessings, which is above the spreading out of the blessings into the physical realm.

Shabbos is the hidden source of blessing, standing above the level where blessing becomes visible in physical things.

וכן פי' הברכה אשר תשמעו שהוא שורש הברכות התורה שנק' ראשית שכל העולם נברא ומתקיים בכח התורה

And likewise is the meaning of "the blessing, that you shall listen" — that it is the root of the blessings, namely the Torah, which is called "reishis" (the beginning), for the entire world was created and is sustained through the power of the Torah.

Just as Shabbos is the source of blessing, so too the Torah is the root of all blessings; it is called "the beginning," since the whole world was created and is kept in existence through the Torah's power.

וכשבנ"י שומעין התורה ומצות הם מקבלין עיקר הברכה

And when Bnei Yisrael listen to the Torah and mitzvos, they receive the essential blessing.

When Bnei Yisrael listen to and keep the Torah and mitzvos, they tap into this root and receive the essential, primary blessing.

ולא זו הברכה רק גם הקללות אם לא תשמעו גם זה בכח התורה דכתי' כאשר ירד הגשם כו' כן כו' דברי אשר יצא מפי לא ישוב כו' עשה כו' אשר חפצתי כו'

And not only this blessing, but even the curses, "if you will not listen" (Devarim 11:28) — this too is through the power of the Torah, as it is written, "Just as the rain comes down... so... shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return... it shall accomplish... that which I desire" (Yeshayah 55:10-11).

Even the curses for not listening flow from the same power of the Torah, just as Hashem's word in the prophecy never returns empty but always accomplishes its purpose.

כן התורה ומצות שנתן לנו הקב"ה בע"כ יעשו את רצון הבורא ית' אם תשמעו יהי' בטובתן וא"ל יהי' שלא בטובתן והכל כדי לגמור רצונו ית' וזה אנכי נותן לפניכם היום

So too the Torah and mitzvos that the Holy One, Blessed is He, gave to us will perforce carry out the will of the Creator, may He be blessed: if you listen, it will be to their benefit, and if not, it will be not to their benefit — and all of it is in order to bring His will, may He be blessed, to completion; and this is "that I set before you today" (Devarim 11:26).

The Torah and mitzvos given by the Holy One, Blessed is He, will inevitably accomplish His will: obedience brings that fulfillment as a benefit, while disobedience accomplishes it not as a benefit — but either way His will is realized, which is the meaning of what is "set before you today."

ע"י נתינת התורה ממילא יהיו ברכות וקללות

Through the giving of the Torah, of itself there will be blessings and curses.

The very act of giving the Torah automatically generates both the blessings and the curses as its two outcomes.

ולבסוף יתקרבו בנ"י ויקיימו מצות ה' כמ"ש עשה כו' אשר חפצתי והצליח א' שלחתיו:

And in the end Bnei Yisrael will draw close and will fulfill the mitzvos of Hashem, as it is written, "it shall accomplish that which I desire and prosper in that for which I sent it" (Yeshayah 55:11).

Ultimately Bnei Yisrael will draw near and keep Hashem's mitzvos, fulfilling the prophecy that His word succeeds in the purpose for which it was sent.

Summary: The Sfas Emes teaches that the Torah's term "blessing" for listening to Hashem reflects a deeper truth about the source of all blessing. Citing his father-in-law and the holy Zohar, he explains that Shabbos is called blessed not because of physical bounty like the manna, but because it is the hidden wellspring above the physical from which all blessings flow, and it is the day prepared for Bnei Yisrael to hear Hashem's word. So too the Torah itself is the root of all blessing, called "the beginning," through whose power the world was created and is sustained; when Bnei Yisrael listen to the Torah and mitzvos they receive the essential blessing. Drawing on the prophecy of Yeshayah, he shows that even the curses stem from the power of the Torah, for Hashem's word never returns empty and must accomplish His will — obedience fulfilling it as a benefit and disobedience not as a benefit. In the end, Bnei Yisrael will draw close and keep Hashem's mitzvos, so that His word succeeds in the very purpose for which it was sent.