Truthful Tefillah Through Torah

לעיל בפסוק כי מי גוי גדול כו' בכל קראנו אליו

Earlier, regarding the verse "For what great nation is there that has Hashem so close to it, as is Hashem our God whenever we call upon Him" (Devarim 4:7).

The Sfas Emes returns to the verse praising Bnei Yisrael for Hashem's closeness whenever they call upon Him, focusing on the phrase "whenever we call upon Him."

כבר כתבנו במ"א פי' אליו שהיא תפלה שנק' עבודה שהיא לשם שמים וז"ש ואני תפלתי לך ה' דייקא

We have already explained elsewhere the meaning of "to Him" — that this refers to tefillah, which is called avodah, for it is done purely for the sake of Heaven; and this is the meaning of "But as for me, my tefillah is to You, Hashem" (Tehillim 69:14) — "to You," precisely.

He cites his prior explanation that "to Him" denotes tefillah as avodah done purely for Heaven's sake, with the proof from "my tefillah is to You, Hashem" stressing the word "to You."

וזה הכח מיוחד לבנ"י שיכולין לכוון לבם לשמים כמ"ש תכין לבם כו'

This power is unique to Bnei Yisrael, that they are able to direct their hearts toward Heaven, as it is written, "You will direct their heart, You will incline Your ear" (Tehillim 10:17).

Bnei Yisrael uniquely possess the ability to aim their hearts toward Heaven, as the verse says Hashem prepares their heart.

וי"ל תכין כפשוטו כמו תקשיב אזניך שבכחו ית' יכולין בנ"י לכוון לבם אליו ית' וזה בכח התורה כמ"ש לכל אשר יקראוהו באמת

And one may say that "You will direct" is to be understood in its plain sense, just like "You will incline Your ear" — that it is through His power, may He be blessed, that Bnei Yisrael are able to direct their hearts toward Him, may He be blessed; and this is through the power of the Torah, as it is written, "to all who call upon Him in truth" (Tehillim 145:18).

He reads "You will direct" literally: it is Hashem's own power that enables Bnei Yisrael to direct their hearts to Him, and this enablement comes through the Torah, for they call upon Him in truth.

ואין אמת אלא תורה שבכח עסק התורה זוכין להיות איש אמת

And "truth" refers to nothing other than Torah, for through toiling in Torah one merits to become a man of truth.

Since "truth" means Torah, toiling in Torah is what transforms a person into a man of truth.

ובנ"י הם היפוך האומות דאתמר עלייהו מה דעבדין לגרמייהו עבדין אפי' כשעושין דבר טוב

And Bnei Yisrael are the opposite of the nations, concerning whom it is said that whatever they do, they do for themselves — even when they perform a good deed.

The nations, by contrast, act only for their own benefit, even when the deed itself appears good.

ובנ"י מהופכים שאפילו בבקשת צרכיהם כוונתם רק לש"ש וז"ש בכל קראנו אליו

But Bnei Yisrael are the reverse, for even when they request their own needs, their intention is solely for the sake of Heaven; and this is the meaning of "whenever we call upon Him."

Bnei Yisrael are the inverse: even when they ask for their own needs, their real aim is for Heaven, which is why the verse can say they call upon Him whenever they call.

וכן תפלתי הגם שהיא לצורכי

And so too "my tefillah" — even though it is for my own needs,

Even a tefillah that addresses one's personal needs

לך ה' ובאמת עוה"ז הוא עלמא דשיקרא

it is "to You, Hashem"; and in truth this world is a world of falsehood.

is still directed "to You, Hashem," even though this world is fundamentally a realm of falsehood.

רק לבנ"י כתיב תתן אמת ליעקב והוא בכח התורת אמת

Only concerning Bnei Yisrael is it written, "You shall grant truth to Yaakov" (Michah 7:20), and this is through the power of the Torah of truth.

Only Bnei Yisrael are granted truth, as in "You shall grant truth to Yaakov," and this gift flows from the Torah of truth.

ולכן צריכין לסמוך ק"ש שהיא תורה לתפלה וזהו יקראוהו באמת

Therefore one must join Krias Shema, which is Torah, to the tefillah, and this is the meaning of "who call upon Him in truth."

For this reason we attach Krias Shema, which is Torah, to tefillah, fulfilling the requirement to call upon Him in truth.

ובזה אלקים קרובים אליו שלכל דבר יש שורש בתורה דכולא באורייתא איברי

And through this, "Hashem is close to him" — for everything has its root in the Torah, since the entire world was created by means of the Torah.

Because everything has its source in the Torah through which the world was created, this connection makes Hashem close to the one who prays.

וע"י התורה מתקרב הכל להשורש

And by means of the Torah, everything is drawn close to its root.

The Torah is the channel through which every created thing is reconnected to its spiritual root.

וכתי' אשרי תבחר ותקרב

And it is written, "Fortunate is the one whom You choose and bring near" (Tehillim 65:5).

The verse confirms that the one Hashem chooses is the one He draws near.

וכן אשר בחרתנו מכל העמים ביצ"מ ואח"כ וקרבתנו מלכנו הוא בקבלת התורה שקרבנו לשמו הגדול

And so too, "who has chosen us from among all the nations" — this was at Yetzias Mitzrayim; and afterward, "and brought us close, our King" — this refers to the receiving of the Torah, through which He drew us close to His great Name.

Choosing us occurred at Yetzias Mitzrayim, while drawing us near occurred at Kabbalas HaTorah, which bound us to His great Name.

אבל האומות רחוקים מן האמת לכן איתא במד' שאין באין אליך בלב שלם שא"א להיות תפלת אמת לאמיתו רק לבנ"י עם קרובו:

But the nations are distant from the truth; therefore it is brought in the Midrash that they do not come to You with a whole heart — for true tefillah, in its full truth, is possible only for Bnei Yisrael, the people close to Him.

The nations remain far from truth and cannot pray with a whole heart, so wholly truthful tefillah belongs only to Bnei Yisrael, the people close to Hashem.

Summary: The Sfas Emes explains why the Torah praises Bnei Yisrael for Hashem's closeness "whenever we call upon Him": their tefillah is avodah aimed purely for the sake of Heaven, so that even when they request their own needs their real intention is directed to Hashem alone. This unique ability to direct the heart toward Heaven is itself a gift of Hashem's power, granted through the Torah, since "truth" means Torah and only one who toils in Torah becomes a man of truth. In contrast to the nations, who act only for themselves even when doing good, Bnei Yisrael are the reverse, and this is why "You shall grant truth to Yaakov" applies to them alone. Because the entire world was created through the Torah, everything has its root there, and joining Krias Shema to tefillah draws a person and all things back to that root and close to Hashem. Thus truly truthful tefillah, and genuine closeness to His great Name through Kabbalas HaTorah, belongs only to Bnei Yisrael, the people close to Him.