Three Pillars Sustaining The World

ונסמכה פ' זו לשלש רגלים בסוף פ' הקודמת

This parsha was placed adjacent to the three Regalim (festivals) mentioned at the end of the preceding parsha.

The Torah positioned this parsha right after the section on the three festivals to hint at a connection between them.

דכמו דג' רגלים מעמידין הזמן כמו כן הג' הנ"ל אמת דין ושלום מעמידין העולם כי עולם שנה נפש הוא ענין א'

For just as the three Regalim establish and uphold time, so too the three matters mentioned here — emes (truth), din (justice), and shalom (peace) — uphold the world; for 'world, year, and soul' are all one underlying concept.

Just as the festivals anchor the cycle of time, the trio of truth, justice, and peace anchors the world — and the Sfas Emes notes that world, year, and soul are really a single integrated reality.

צדק צדק תרדוף הוא בחי' אמת ואח"כ

'Justice, justice shall you pursue' (Devarim 16:20) corresponds to the dimension of emes (truth), and afterward,

The command to pursue justice relentlessly expresses the attribute of emes, truth.

ודרשת

'You shall inquire' (Devarim 13:15),

The directive to inquire begins the process belonging to the attribute of din, justice.

וחקרת

'and investigate' (Devarim 13:15),

Investigating the matter thoroughly is part of that same attribute of justice.

ובערת הרע

'and you shall burn out the evil' (Devarim 13:6) —

Burning out the evil completes the work of din, removing what corrupts the world.

הוא הדין

this is din (justice).

Taken together, these inquiry-and-investigation steps embody the attribute of justice.

אח"כ כי יפלא ממך כו' דברי ריבות כו' וקמת ועלית הוא השלום ואלה הג' מקיימין העולם

Afterward, 'When a matter of judgment is hidden from you... matters of dispute... and you shall arise and ascend' (Devarim 17:8) — this is shalom (peace); and these three sustain the world.

The law of bringing a difficult dispute up to the higher court, where the ruling is established and accepted, embodies shalom — and truth, justice, and peace together keep the world standing.

[ויתכן שגם הג' רגלים בזמן

[And it may well be that the three Regalim that fall within time itself,

The Sfas Emes adds a further insight: perhaps the three festivals set within the yearly cycle of time also map onto this same trio.

הם בחי' ג' הנ"ל

are also the dimension of these three mentioned above,

Each Regel may correspond to one of the three pillars of truth, justice, and peace.

כי פסח בחי' דין ביד חזקה

for Pesach is the dimension of din (justice), as it came about 'with a strong hand' (Shemos 13:9),

Pesach reflects din, justice, since the redemption came through Hashem's strong hand of judgment upon Mitzrayim.

וקבלת התורה הוא אמת

and Kabbalas HaTorah (the receiving of the Torah, Shavuos) is emes (truth),

Shavuos, the receiving of the Torah, reflects emes, since the Torah is the very truth of Hashem.

וסוכות השלום]:

and Sukkos is shalom (peace).]

Sukkos reflects shalom, peace, the encompassing shelter of Hashem's protection.

Summary: The Sfas Emes opens by noting that this parsha follows directly upon the section dealing with the three Regalim, teaching that just as the festivals uphold the dimension of time, so the three pillars of emes, din, and shalom uphold the world itself — for world, year, and soul are one unified reality. He then maps the verses of the parsha onto these three pillars: 'Justice, justice shall you pursue' expresses emes; the commands to inquire, investigate, and burn out evil express din; and the procedure of bringing a hidden dispute up to the higher court for resolution expresses shalom. He concludes with a striking suggestion that the three Regalim themselves embody this same trio: Pesach, redeemed with a strong hand, is din; Kabbalas HaTorah on Shavuos is emes; and Sukkos is shalom. In this way the festivals of time and the foundations of the world are revealed to be one and the same threefold structure through which Hashem sustains all of creation.