Two modes of teshuvah, fear and love

בפסוק השיבנו ה' אליך ונשובה.

On the verse, "Bring us back to You, Hashem, and we shall return."

The Sefas Emes examines the seeming redundancy: we ask Hashem to return us, and then we say "and we shall return."

והם ב' מיני תשובה מיראה ואהבה.

And these are two kinds of teshuvah: out of fear (yirah) and out of love (ahavah).

The double language hints at two distinct modes of return — one driven by fear, the other by love.

ובהיות האדם מלוכלך בחטא א"א לשוב מתוך אהבה רק מיראה.

And when a person is soiled with sin, it is impossible to return out of love, only out of fear.

So long as a person is still stained by his aveiros, he cannot yet rise to teshuvah from love; he can only begin from fear.

ואז צריכין סיוע משמים כמ"ש הקדמונים כי השי"ת מסייע לבעל תשובה.

And then one needs help from Heaven, as the early authorities said, that Hashem assists the baal teshuvah.

Teshuvah from fear cannot be accomplished alone; it requires siyata diShmaya, Heavenly assistance.

וזה השיבנו.

And this is "Bring us back."

The plea "bring us back" is the request for that Heavenly help in the teshuvah of fear.

אבל השב מאהבה מתקרב בעצמו מתוך אהבת הבורא ית' שבוער בו וא"צ עזר.

But one who returns out of love draws himself near on his own, out of the love of the Creator, may He be blessed, that burns within him, and he needs no help.

Teshuvah from ahavah is self-propelled — the burning love for Hashem itself carries the person back, with no external assistance needed.

והרמז נח הי' צריך סעד לתומכו ואברהם אבינו לא הי' צריך סעד כי זה מיראה וזה מאהבה.

And the hint is: Noach needed support to uphold him, while Avraham Avinu needed no support — for this one served from fear and that one from love.

Chazal contrast Noach, who needed support to walk "with" Hashem, with Avraham, who walked "before" Hashem on his own; this mirrors fear-based versus love-based avodah.

וענין ב' התשובות כמו שמתחילה יש סור מרע ועשה טוב.

And the matter of the two teshuvos is like the order in which there is first "turn from evil" and then "do good."

The two returns parallel the two stages of avodah: first removing the bad, then actively doing good.

כן תשובה מיראה בחי' סור מרע שמבקש להתנקות מלכלוך העונות.

So too, teshuvah from fear is the aspect of "turn from evil," in which one seeks to be cleansed of the filth of sins.

Fear-based teshuvah is purely cleansing — scrubbing away the stain of aveiros.

אבל מאהבה הוא בחי' עשה טוב ועל ידי שהעונות מעכבים האדם מלהתדבק בו ית' לכן מבקש התשובה כדי שיוכל לחזור לבחי' עשה טוב.

But from love it is the aspect of "do good"; and because the sins prevent a person from cleaving to Him, may He be blessed, he therefore seeks teshuvah in order to be able to return to the aspect of "do good."

Love-based teshuvah is not about cleansing for its own sake but about removing the barrier of sin so one can resume true dveikus and positive avodah.

וז"ש חדש ימינו כקדם הוא דביקות השורש שיש לבנ"י בו ית'.

And this is what is said, "Renew our days as of old" — this is the rootedness (dveikus of the source) that Bnei Yisrael have in Him, may He be blessed.

"As of old" points to the original, primal bond that every Jew has with Hashem at his root.

כדכ' חלק ה' עמו.

As it is written, "Hashem's portion is His people."

Bnei Yisrael are literally a portion of Hashem, which is the deep root of their connection.

ולכן בשבת קודש בנקל לשוב יותר.

And therefore on Shabbos Kodesh it is easier to return.

Teshuvah comes more readily on Shabbos than on weekdays.

כי מתעורר השורש של בנ"י כמ"ש וביום השבת יפתח וכמ"ש במ"א.

For the root of Bnei Yisrael is aroused, as it is written, "And on the day of Shabbos it shall be opened," and as explained elsewhere.

Shabbos awakens the inner root of the Jew, like a gate that is opened, making the return from love accessible.

וזה ענין נשמה יתירה שיש לבנ"י בשבת שהוא כח השורש שאינו תלוי בעבודת האדם.

And this is the matter of the extra soul (neshamah yeseirah) that Bnei Yisrael have on Shabbos, which is the power of the root that does not depend on a person's avodah.

The neshamah yeseirah is a gift from one's very root, granted independently of how much a person has earned through his own effort.

לכן נקראת יתירה שהיא יותר מכפי זכות ועבודת האדם וזה הכח אינו נאבד ע"י החטא לכן יכולין לשוב בשבת קודש.

Therefore it is called "extra," for it is more than what a person's merit and avodah warrant; and this power is not lost through sin, and therefore one is able to return on Shabbos Kodesh.

Because this rooted power is beyond earned merit, sin cannot destroy it; it remains intact and provides the foothold for teshuvah from love on Shabbos.

וכתיב ישובו יושבי בצלו הוא רמז על שבת דאיתא פורס סוכת שלום עלינו כו':

And it is written, "Those who dwell in His shade shall return" — this is a hint to Shabbos, as we say, "He spreads the sukkah of peace over us."

"Those who dwell in His shade shall return" alludes to Shabbos, the time of the sheltering sukkah of peace, when return to Hashem is at hand.

Summary: The doubled verse "Bring us back... and we shall return" reflects two modes of teshuvah — return from fear, which is cleansing from sin and needs Heavenly help, and return from love, which is self-propelled by burning love for Hashem and restores active avodah. The rooted bond of Bnei Yisrael ("Hashem's portion is His people") is most awakened on Shabbos through the neshamah yeseirah, a power untouched by sin, which makes teshuvah from love especially accessible under the sukkah of peace.