Life, kingship, and the shofar on Rosh Hashanah

החיים שמבקשין בר"ה דכתיב אתה עשית את השמים כו' ואתה מחי' את כולם.

The life that we request on Rosh Hashanah, as it is written, "You made the heavens... and You give life to them all" (Nechemiah 9:6).

On Rosh Hashanah we ask for life — the life that flows from Hashem, who not only created all but continuously enlivens everything.

העולם נברא בטבעיות.

The world was created with a natural order.

Hashem created the world to operate through the laws of nature.

אבל עיקר הנהגת הטבע מאתו ית"ש נעלם.

But the essential conduct of nature, which comes from Him, may His Name be blessed, is concealed.

The truth that Hashem Himself is the One running nature at every moment is hidden behind the natural order.

ואין הכל זוכין לזה רק הצדיקים שנק' חיים.

And not everyone merits [to perceive] this, only the tzaddikim, who are called "living."

Only the tzaddikim see through nature to the hidden Divine hand within it — and that is why they are called "alive."

ובנ"י הוציאו זה מהכח אל הפועל בקבלת התורה אנכי ה' אלקיך, וזהו בחי' התחדשות שנאמר החודש הזה לכם.

And Bnei Yisrael brought this from potential into actuality at the giving of the Torah — "I am Hashem your God" — and this is the aspect of renewal (hischadshus), as it says, "This month shall be for you" (Shemos 12:2).

At Sinai, with "Anochi Hashem," Bnei Yisrael actualized this awareness of Hashem within nature; this is the power of renewal, expressed in the mitzvah of sanctifying the new month.

דאין כל חדש תחת השמש שהטבע מסתיר התחדשות שהקב"ה מחדש תמיד מעשה בראשית.

For "there is nothing new under the sun" (Koheles 1:9) — for nature conceals the renewal whereby Hashem constantly renews the work of creation.

"Under the sun," within nature, nothing seems new; but that very sameness hides the constant renewal by which Hashem re-creates the world at every moment.

ולכן ניסן נקרא שנה שיש עמה חדשים.

Therefore Nissan is called the [head of the] year that has months with it.

Nissan is the month of open renewal — the springtime when Hashem's renewing power is revealed.

ותשרי בחי' זו הוא בכסה.

And in Tishrei this aspect is "concealed" (ba-keseh).

In Tishrei — Rosh Hashanah — the same renewing power is present but hidden, as the pasuk hints with "ba-keseh" (concealed) on the festival day.

ולכן צריכין לעורר זה ההתחדשות ע"י השופר.

Therefore we need to awaken this renewal by means of the shofar.

Because the renewal is concealed in Tishrei, the shofar is needed to arouse and draw it forth.

ואיתא שהיא חכמה ואינה מלאכה.

And it is brought that [blowing the shofar] is "wisdom (chochmah) and not labor (melachah)."

Chazal classify shofar-blowing as an act of wisdom rather than forbidden labor — a point the Sefas Emes will now mine for meaning.

חכמה כח מה.

Chochmah is "koach mah" (the power of "what").

The word chochmah is read as "koach mah" — the faculty of asking "what is this?", probing into the essence of things.

פי' שהחכם מעיין על מהות הדברים.

The explanation: that the wise one contemplates the essence (mahus) of things.

True wisdom is gazing past surfaces to perceive the inner essence and Divine reality within all things.

כענין שנאמר באברהם אע"ה שאמר תאמר שעוה"ז בלי מנהיג ולכן זכה שנגלה אליו הקב"ה ואמר אני בעל הבירה שמלכות שמים אינו מתגלה רק למי שמוסר נפשו לדעת את המלך.

As in what is said of Avraham Avinu, who said, "Can it be that this world has no Guide?" — and therefore he merited that Hashem revealed Himself to him and said, "I am the Master of the palace" — for the kingship of Heaven is revealed only to one who gives himself over to knowing the King.

Avraham searched for the world's "Master" and so merited revelation; malchus shamayim is disclosed only to the one who devotes himself, even at the cost of self, to knowing Hashem.

וז"ש אמרו לפני מלכיות שתמליכוני עליכם.

And this is the meaning of "Recite before Me [verses of] Malchuyos — that you crown Me over yourselves."

Hashem asks Bnei Yisrael to declare His kingship over themselves through the Malchuyos verses of Rosh Hashanah.

פי' שעל ידכם יהי' נגלה מלכותי בעולם.

The explanation: that through you My kingship will be revealed in the world.

Bnei Yisrael are the means through which Hashem's malchus becomes manifest to all of creation.

כל העולם ומלואו אינו כדאי שיתגלה מלכותו ית"ש עליהם.

All the world and its fullness is not worthy that His kingship, may His Name be blessed, should be revealed upon them.

The world on its own does not merit a direct revelation of Hashem's kingship.

רק באמצעיות בנ"י בכח האבות ובכח התורה שמלמדת לנו החכמה לעמוד על מהות ופנימיות הבריאה.

Only through the agency of Bnei Yisrael — by the power of the Avos and the power of the Torah, which teaches us the wisdom to grasp the essence and inner dimension (penimiyus) of creation.

Hashem's kingship reaches the world only via Bnei Yisrael, who, through the merit of the Avos and the Torah's wisdom, perceive the inner essence of creation.

ולכן נסמך תורה צוה לנו משה כו' ויהי בישורון מלך.

Therefore "The Torah that Moshe commanded us" (Devarim 33:4) is juxtaposed to "and He was King in Yeshurun" (Devarim 33:5).

The Torah and the kingship of Hashem in Yeshurun (Yisrael) stand side by side, because it is through the Torah that His malchus is revealed.

וכן כתי' ותרועת מלך בו.

And so it is written, "and the trumpet-blast of the King is in him" (Bamidbar 23:21).

The pasuk describes Bnei Yisrael as bearing within them "the teruah of the King" — the proclamation of Hashem's kingship.

פי' עיקר רצון המלוכה על בנ"י.

The explanation: the essential desire of [Hashem's] kingship is over Bnei Yisrael.

Hashem's "wish to reign" is directed primarily at being King over Bnei Yisrael.

וגם הפי' תרועת מלך בו שבנ"י כל תשוקתם ורצונם לקבל עליהם עול מלכותו ושיתגלה כבוד מלכותו עלינו וממילא יקבלו כולם עול מלכותו.

And also the explanation of "the trumpet-blast of the King is in him" is that all the longing and will of Bnei Yisrael is to accept upon themselves the yoke of His kingship, and that the glory of His kingship be revealed upon us — and thereby all will [eventually] accept the yoke of His kingship.

"Teruas Melech bo" also means that Bnei Yisrael themselves yearn to crown Hashem; when His glory is revealed through them, the whole world will come to accept His reign.

וכ"כ ה' אלקי ישראל מלך ומלכותו בכל משלה.

And so it is written, "Hashem, the God of Yisrael, is King, and His kingship rules over all."

Hashem reigns as King of Yisrael, and from there His rule extends over everything.

ממשלה הוא בע"כ.

"Rule" (memshalah) is by compulsion (against one's will).

The word memshalah denotes a forced dominion imposed even upon the unwilling.

ובנ"י ברצון קבלו מלכותך זהו תרועת מלך בו.

But Bnei Yisrael accepted Your kingship willingly — this is "the trumpet-blast of the King is in him."

Unlike the compelled "rule" over the world at large, Bnei Yisrael embrace Hashem's malchus by their own free choice, and that is the inner "teruah of the King" within them.

ואיתא בספרי בפסוק ה' אלקיך דורש אותה תמיד.

And it is brought in the Sifrei on the pasuk, "Hashem your God seeks it out (doresh) continually" (Devarim 11:12) [regarding Eretz Yisrael].

The Sifrei comments on the verse that Hashem constantly "seeks out" the Land of Israel.

וכי ארץ ישראל בלבד הוא דורש והכתיב להמטיר על ארץ כו' אלא כביכול אינו דורש אלא אותה ובשכר זה דורש כל הארצות.

"Does He seek out only Eretz Yisrael? Is it not written, 'to bring rain upon the land [where there is no man]' (Iyov 38:26)? Rather, as it were, He seeks out only it, and in the merit of this He seeks out all the lands."

Hashem focuses His "seeking" upon Eretz Yisrael alone, and through that channel His providence reaches all the other lands.

פי' שאין כל הארצות זוכין לדרישה זו רק באמצעיות ארץ ישראל שבחר לו הקב"ה לחלקו.

The explanation: that the other lands do not merit this seeking-out except through the agency of Eretz Yisrael, which Hashem chose as His portion.

The rest of the world receives Hashem's special providence only by way of Eretz Yisrael, His chosen portion.

וכמו כן גילה הקב"ה מלכותו על בנ"י ביחוד אנכי ה' אלקיך.

And likewise Hashem revealed His kingship over Bnei Yisrael in particular — "I am Hashem your God."

Just as with Eretz Yisrael, Hashem disclosed His malchus specifically to Bnei Yisrael at Sinai.

ובשכר זה יתגלה מלכותו על כל.

And in the merit of this His kingship will [ultimately] be revealed over all.

Through the revelation of Hashem's reign over Bnei Yisrael, it will eventually extend to the whole world.

וכמו כן בזמן עצמו ר"ה הוא יום הזכרון כל באי עולם עוברין לפניו.

And likewise in time itself: Rosh Hashanah is the Day of Remembrance, [when] all who come into the world pass before Him.

The same principle applies to time: Rosh Hashanah is the chosen day when all creatures pass before Hashem in judgment.

הגם דאיתא אדם נידון בכל יום ובכל שעה.

Even though it is brought that a person is judged every day and every hour.

Although judgment is in fact ongoing at all times.

אך עיקר הזכרון בחר לו הקב"ה יום זה ובשכר דרישת יום זה יש דרישה בכל יום ושעה כמ"ש ימים יוצרו ולו אחד בהם.

But Hashem chose this day as the essential remembrance, and in the merit of the "seeking" of this day there is "seeking" on every day and hour, as it says, "days were formed, and to Him is one of them" (Tehillim 139:16).

Hashem singled out Rosh Hashanah as the primary day of remembrance; through it, the daily and hourly judgment flows — for among all the days, this "one" day is uniquely His.

שבחר לו הקב"ה חלק בעולם שנה ונפש להיות מיוחד אליו.

For Hashem chose for Himself a portion in [the dimensions of] world (olam), year (shanah), and soul (nefesh) to be uniquely His.

In each of the three realms — space (Eretz Yisrael / Bais Hamikdash), time (Shabbos / Rosh Hashanah), and soul (Bnei Yisrael) — Hashem set aside a special portion as His own.

וזה עיקר החיים כמ"ש ואתם הדבקים בה' אלקיכם חיים כולכם.

And this is the essence of life, as it says, "And you who cleave to Hashem your God are all alive today" (Devarim 4:4).

True life is attachment to Hashem; those who cleave to Him are the truly living.

כל איש לפי הדביקות שיש לו בהקב"ה זוכה לחיים.

Every person, according to the deveikus (attachment) he has to Hashem, merits life.

One's measure of life corresponds exactly to one's degree of clinging to Hashem.

דכ' ויפח באפיו נשמת חיים.

For it is written, "and He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life" (Bereishis 2:7).

Life itself is the Divine "breath" Hashem breathed into man — a direct connection to its source.

פי' שיהיה האדם כלי לנשום ולשאוב החיים מתי החיים.

The explanation: that a person should be a vessel to breathe in and draw life from the Living One (mei ha-chaim).

Man is meant to be a conduit that continually draws vitality from Hashem, the Source of all life.

וזהו עיקר החיים שאנו מבקשין כאשר זכינו לזה בקבלת התורה אשר ידבר אלקים את האדם וחי.

And this is the essence of the life we request — as we merited it at the giving of the Torah, "that Elokim speaks with man, and he lives" (Devarim 5:21).

The "life" we ask for on Rosh Hashanah is this direct connection to Hashem, first granted at Sinai when Bnei Yisrael heard Hashem speak and yet lived.

וזהו רמז תקיעת שופר שמשתוקקין לאותו הקול ששמענו בהר סיני כמ"ש ישקני מנשיקות פיהו.

And this is the hint of the shofar-blowing — that we long for that voice we heard at Har Sinai, as it says, "Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth" (Shir HaShirim 1:2).

The shofar expresses our yearning to hear again the voice of Hashem from Sinai — the intimate "kiss" of direct revelation.

ובאמת כחן של ישראל בפה.

And in truth the strength of Yisrael is in the mouth.

The unique power of Bnei Yisrael lies in speech — in tefillah and the "voice of Yaakov."

כמ"ש ויפתוהו בפיהם.

As it is written, "and they enticed Him with their mouths" (Tehillim 78:36).

Even when imperfect, Bnei Yisrael have the power to "win over" Hashem through their words.

בוודאי לפתות את הבורא הוא דבר גדול.

Surely to "entice" the Creator is a great thing.

The very ability to sway the Creator through speech testifies to an extraordinary, essential bond.

שיש להם דביקות בעצם בקול קול יעקב.

For they have an essential attachment [to Hashem] through the "voice — the voice of Yaakov" (Bereishis 27:22).

This power comes from Bnei Yisrael's intrinsic deveikus expressed in the "kol Yaakov" — the voice of prayer and Torah.

וכמו כן דרשו חז"ל אשרי העם יודעי תרועה שיודעים לפתות את בוראם בתרועה שע"י השופר נתעורר כח הפה.

And likewise Chazal expounded, "Fortunate is the people who know the teruah" (Tehillim 89:16) — that they know how to "entice" their Creator with the teruah, for through the shofar the power of the mouth is aroused.

The shofar's teruah awakens the latent power of speech, enabling Bnei Yisrael to draw close to Hashem and "win Him over."

ובפה יש קנה וושט והם רמוזים לעץ החיים ועץ הדעת.

And in the mouth there are the windpipe (kaneh) and the gullet (veshet), and they allude to the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge.

The two passages in the throat — the windpipe (for breath/voice) and the gullet (for food) — correspond respectively to the Eitz HaChaim and the Eitz HaDaas.

וקודם החטא הי' לנו דעת טוב בלי תערובות.

And before the sin we had good knowledge (daas tov) without admixture.

Before Adam's sin, knowledge was wholly good, with no mixture of evil.

ואחר החטא צריכין לקול שופר שהוא מן הקנה בלבד דאין קטיגור נעשה סניגור.

And after the sin we need the sound of the shofar, which is from the windpipe (kaneh) alone — for "a prosecutor cannot become a defender."

Since the sin introduced evil into "knowledge" (the gullet/Eitz HaDaas), we use the shofar's voice, which comes only from the pure windpipe (the Eitz HaChaim) — for the very faculty implicated in sin cannot now serve as our advocate.

אכן איתא דעת גנוז בפומא שהגם שאינו יכול להתגלות ע"י התערובות פסולת מ"מ גנוז הוא.

However, it is brought that daas is hidden in the mouth — that although it cannot be revealed because of the admixture of waste (pesoles), nevertheless it is concealed [there].

The good "knowledge" still exists, hidden within, even though the admixture of evil prevents it from being openly revealed.

ולכן בשבת שנק' מתנה טובה בבית גנזי ואין בשבת תערובת פסולת אין צריכין לשופר.

Therefore on Shabbos, which is called "a good gift in My treasury," and on which there is no admixture of waste, we do not need the shofar.

On Shabbos the impure admixture is absent, so the hidden daas tov shines on its own and the shofar's arousal is unnecessary (hence we do not blow when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbos).

שהוא דעת טוב בלא רע.

For it is good knowledge without evil.

Shabbos restores the pre-sin state of pure, unmixed daas tov.

כמ"ש לדעת כי אני ה' מקדישכם.

As it says, "to know that I am Hashem who sanctifies you" (Shemos 31:13).

Shabbos itself grants direct knowledge of Hashem — the pasuk ties Shabbos to this pure "knowing."

וכתיב חק לישראל הוא משפט לאלקי יעקב.

And it is written, "It is a statute (chok) for Yisrael, a judgment (mishpat) for the God of Yaakov" (Tehillim 81:5).

The pasuk distinguishes two levels — "Yisrael" (chok) and "Yaakov" (mishpat) — which the Sefas Emes now explains.

בחי' ישראל כח הנשמה עלמא דחירות ושם אין מגע נכרי ופסולת והיא חקיקה רשומה שא"א להמחק.

The aspect of "Yisrael" is the power of the soul, the world of freedom (alma d'cheirus), where there is no foreign contact or waste, and it is an engraving (chakikah) inscribed which cannot be erased.

The name "Yisrael" represents the neshamah, the realm of freedom untouched by any impurity — an indelible inscription, the unbreakable inner bond with Hashem.

רק בבחי' הגוף משפט לאלקי יעקב להמשיך חיות ואלקות גם בבחי' הגוף.

Only in the aspect of the body is it "a judgment for the God of Yaakov" — to draw vitality and Godliness also into the dimension of the body.

The "Yaakov" level is the avodah of the body — the struggle (mishpat) to bring Divine life even into the physical, lower self.

ובזה נלחם יעקב עם עשו ולבן.

And in this Yaakov battled with Esav and Lavan.

Yaakov's struggles against Esav and Lavan represent this battle to sanctify the bodily, lower realm.

ובזה צריכין שופר כמ"ש וכי תבואו מלחמה כו' על הצר הצורר כו' והרעותם בחצוצרות.

And for this we need the shofar, as it says, "And when you go to war... against the foe who oppresses you... you shall sound the trumpets" (Bamidbar 10:9).

The shofar belongs to this "Yaakov" level of struggle — it is sounded in the battle to draw holiness into the contested, lower realm.

וכמ"ש זה בזוה"ק על תרועת ר"ה.

And as the holy Zohar states this regarding the teruah of Rosh Hashanah.

The Zohar similarly connects the Rosh Hashanah teruah to this theme of spiritual warfare.

אבל בשבת מתגלה בחי' ישראל.

But on Shabbos the aspect of "Yisrael" is revealed.

On Shabbos the higher, soul-level of "Yisrael" — beyond struggle — shines forth, so no shofar is needed.

נחלה בלי מצרים.

An inheritance without boundaries (nachalah b'li metzarim).

The "Yisrael" level of Shabbos is the unbounded portion, free of all limitation and conflict.

זה נחלת יעקב פי' מה שזכה יעקב אח"כ לשם ישראל הוא נחלה בלי מצרים.

This is "the inheritance of Yaakov" — meaning that what Yaakov later merited, the name "Yisrael," is the inheritance without boundaries.

Yaakov's elevation to the name "Yisrael" is precisely this unbounded inheritance, the realm of freedom revealed on Shabbos.

והוא יום מנוחה.

And it is a day of rest (menuchah).

Shabbos is the day of true rest, the cessation of the body's struggle.

ומה שנתגלה ע"י השופר כח הפנימיות כמ"ש באור פניך יהלכון כן מתגלה בשבת בעצם היום:

And that which is revealed through the shofar — the inner power (koach hapenimiyus) — as it says, "in the light of Your countenance they walk" (Tehillim 89:16) — so it is revealed on Shabbos by the very essence of the day.

What the shofar must arouse with effort on Rosh Hashanah — the inner penimiyus, the light of Hashem's "countenance" — is revealed naturally on Shabbos through the day itself, without any need for the shofar.

Summary: The "life" we beg for on Rosh Hashanah is direct connection to Hashem, the hidden Divine power that continuously renews nature — perceived only by the tzaddikim, the truly "living," and actualized by Bnei Yisrael at Sinai. Just as Hashem chose Eretz Yisrael as His portion in space, He chose Rosh Hashanah in time and Bnei Yisrael in soul, and through these chosen portions His kingship and providence flow to all. The shofar arouses the inner power of speech — the "voice of Yaakov" — and draws from the pure "windpipe" (Eitz HaChaim) the good knowledge hidden since Adam's sin, fueling Yaakov's battle to sanctify the body. On Shabbos, however, that same inner light shines on its own — the unbounded "inheritance of Yaakov," the freedom of "Yisrael" with no admixture of evil — so no shofar is needed.