Four Redemptions and Speech

בענין ד' לשונות של גאולה.

Concerning the four expressions of redemption.

The Sefat Emet introduces his teaching by linking the Torah’s four expressions of redemption to deeper structures of speech and divine revelation.

פרשנו כי יש ה' מוצאות הפה.

We have explained that there are five outlets of the mouth.

Jewish tradition teaches that all articulated speech emerges from five distinct points of pronunciation.

ומול זה יש חמשה חומשי תורה.

And corresponding to these are the Five Books of the Torah.

The fivefold structure of speech reflects the fivefold structure of the Written Torah.

וכמו שנחלקו ה' ספרים לשבעה כמ"ש חז"ל ויהי בנסוע ס' בפ"ע.

And just as the Five Books are divided into seven, as the Sages taught that “Vayehi binso’a” forms its own separate book.

The mystical division of the Torah into seven parts reveals hidden sub‑structures of divine expression.

כמו כן שינים ושפתים כפולין והם שבעה.

So too the teeth and the lips are doubled, and together they number seven.

The seven parts of the mouth that form speech parallel the sevenfold structure of Torah.

ועמ"ש בפ' במדבר כי הג' ספרים ראשונים בחי' האבות וב' אחרונים משה ואהרן ע"ש.

And as I wrote in Parashat Bamidbar: the first three books correspond to the Patriarchs, and the last two to Moses and Aaron.

This mapping reflects the transition from primordial spiritual roots (the Patriarchs) to the instruments of articulated revelation (Moses and Aaron).

ובאמת החיך היא מדרגה גבוה ושם יש אחדות גמור.

In truth, the palate is a very elevated level, and there there is complete unity.

The palate represents a transcendent point in speech where all articulation is unified before differentiation.

והוא בן חורין שא"צ גאולה.

And it is a true free state, needing no redemption.

This level symbolizes innate freedom and purity, untouched by exile.

לכן התחיל הגלות ביצחק ס' שמות.

Therefore exile begins with Isaac, as taught in Sefer Shemot.

Isaac marks the first entry into the spiritual dynamics of exile and redemption.

והגם כי עיקר הבירור הוא בחי' שינים ושפתים.

And although the essential refinement takes place in the levels of teeth and lips.

The work of clarifying and elevating speech happens in its articulated forms.

לכן מבקשין א' שפתי תפתח.

Therefore we plead: “O Lord, open my lips.”

Human speech requires divine assistance to achieve purity.

וכן אמר משה רבינו ואני ערל שפתים קודם הגאולה.

And so Moses said: “I am of uncircumcised lips” before the redemption.

Moses acknowledges the need for rectification of speech prior to deliverance.

לכן היו משה ואהרן מיוחדים לגאולה לברר הדיבור בשלימות שב' בחי' הנ"ל הם תכלית הדיבור.

Therefore Moses and Aaron were designated for redemption, to refine speech completely, for these two levels are the perfection of speech.

Moses and Aaron embody the two highest aspects of expressed divine communication.

והם ב' ספרים במדבר דברים.

And these correspond to the two books, Bamidbar and Devarim.

These books represent the stages of perfected prophetic speech.

אבל האבות היו בני חורין.

But the Patriarchs were free men.

Their spiritual level required no redemption or refinement.

אך ביצחק ויעקב הי' תחילת הגלות כדי לסייע לבנ"י.

However, in Isaac and Jacob the beginning of exile occurred, to assist the Children of Israel.

The early Patriarchs experienced exile to pave the way for their descendants’ redemption.

כמ"ש גר יהי' זרעך.

As it is written: “Your seed shall be a stranger.”

This decree initiates the redemptive process.

ולכן נצרך ד' לשונות של גאולה מבחי' גרון ואילך.

Therefore the four expressions of redemption apply from the level of the throat and onward.

The articulated forms of speech—rooted in the throat and emerging outward—correspond to the four stages of redemption.

ועיין בזוה"ק שמות בפי' אתי מלבנון.

See in the Zohar on Shemot regarding the verse “Come with me from Lebanon.”

The Zohar expands on these symbolic structures of speech and redemption.

ותמצא ג"כ לשון רבים בשינים ושפתים ע"ש.

And you will also find plural forms used regarding the teeth and lips there.

This supports the idea of multiplicity and differentiation in the lower forms of speech expression.

והנה הדיבור נגמר אחר ימי הנקה.

Now, speech becomes complete after the days of nursing.

Only after early infancy does a child develop articulate speech.

אז נגמרין השינים ומוצא השפתים בשלימות.

At that time the teeth and the articulation of the lips are completed.

Physical development mirrors the spiritual maturation of speech.

וכמו כן היו צריכין בנ"י להיתקן מקודם להיות כלים לקבל התורה.

And so too the Children of Israel needed prior refinement to become vessels capable of receiving the Torah.

Their national development parallels the maturation of speech.

כענין שא' חז"ל משתינוק מתחיל לדבר. אביו מלמדו תורה.

As the Sages said: once a child begins to speak, his father teaches him Torah.

Torah is linked to the emergence of mature speech.

וע"י שני שדיך בחי' משה ואהרן נגאלו בנ"י ונעשו כלים לקבל התורה כנ"ל.

And through “your two breasts,” the aspects of Moses and Aaron, the Children of Israel were redeemed and became vessels to receive the Torah.

Moses and Aaron nurture Israel spiritually, preparing them for revelation.

Summary: The Sefat Emet links the four expressions of redemption to the five outlets of speech and the five books of Torah, showing how speech, exile, and redemption reflect stages of spiritual articulation. Moses and Aaron perfect the lower levels of speech, enabling Israel to mature and receive the Torah.