The eternal covenant of the tribes

בפסוק וזכרתי להם ברית ראשונים.

On the pasuk: "And I will remember for them the covenant of the ancestors (bris rishonim)" (Vayikra 26:45).

The Sefas Emes opens with Hashem's promise to recall the "covenant of the first ones," and proceeds to explain whose covenant this is.

אחז"ל זו ברית השבטים.

Chazal said: this is the covenant of the Shevatim (the tribes).

The "rishonim" here refers not to the Avos but to the twelve Shevatim, the sons of Yaakov.

וכ' שבועות מטות אומר סלה.

And it is written, "the oaths of the tribes (matos), an utterance, selah" (cf. Chavakuk 3:9).

A supporting verse alludes to a binding oath connected to the "matos," the tribes — an eternal covenant marked by "selah."

פי' שברית השבטים לעולם נשאר בבנ"י כמ"ש ואף גם זאת כו' לא מאסתים כו' דכ' וזאת אשר דיבר להם אביהם.

This means that the covenant of the Shevatim remains forever within Bnei Yisrael, as it is written, "and yet even this… I will not despise them" (Vayikra 26:44); and as it is written, "and this (v'zos) is what their father spoke to them" (Bereishis 49:28).

The bond of the Shevatim is permanent and indestructible. The word "zos" ("this") links the promise that Hashem will never reject them to the blessings Yaakov gave each tribe — that enduring tribal identity is "this" which is never despised.

כי הנה ברית האבות הוא בשורש האחדות למעלה למעלה כמ"ש ז"ל האבות הן הן המרכבה.

For behold, the covenant of the Avos is at the root of unity (achdus), high above, as Chazal said, "the Avos — they themselves are the Merkavah (the Divine Chariot)" (Bereishis Rabbah 47:6).

The covenant of the Avos belongs to the highest level, the root of oneness; they were so wholly nullified to Hashem that they themselves became His "chariot," a vehicle for the Shechinah.

ולכן כתי' בריתי אברהם בריתי יצחק בריתי יעקב שהם עצמם הברית.

Therefore it is written, "My covenant with Avraham, My covenant with Yitzchak, My covenant with Yaakov" (cf. Vayikra 26:42) — for they themselves are the covenant.

The Avos do not merely possess a covenant; their very beings are the bris, since they were entirely bound up at the root of unity with Hashem.

ומדרגות השבטים אחר האבות שהם המקבלים בראשונה ולכן נק' ברית ראשונים והלא האבות היו ראשונים מהם.

And the level of the Shevatim is after the Avos, for they are the first to receive; therefore they are called "the covenant of the rishonim (first ones)" — yet were not the Avos earlier than they?

The Shevatim stand one rung below the Avos as the first recipients of what the Avos established. The Sefas Emes raises the obvious question: if "rishonim" means "first," surely the Avos preceded the tribes.

אך כי הם בחי' ראשון.

Rather, they (the Shevatim) are the aspect of "rishon" (first/beginning).

The answer: "rishon" here is a technical term for a particular level — that of beginning or "head" — and the Shevatim embody specifically this aspect, as distinct from the Avos' higher aspect.

ולכן הי"ב ראשי חדשים בחי' הי"ב שבטים.

Therefore the twelve Rashei Chodashim (New Moons) correspond to the aspect of the twelve Shevatim.

The twelve months and their Rosh Chodesh "beginnings" parallel the twelve tribes, for both belong to the dimension of "rishon," of fresh beginnings within time.

אבל בחי' אחד הוא למעלה מראשון כי ראש הוא התחלה.

But the aspect of "echad" (one) is above "rishon," for "rosh/rishon" denotes a beginning.

"First" implies a starting point within a sequence, but "one" transcends sequence entirely; the level of true oneness is higher than the level of mere beginning.

אבל אחד הוא אין סוף ואין תכלית.

But "echad" is without end and without limit.

Oneness (the level of the Avos) is infinite and boundless, beyond the realm of beginnings and time.

ולכן השבת מיוחד לג' אבות שהוא בחי' אחדות למעלה מהזמן.

Therefore Shabbos is associated with the three Avos, for it is the aspect of unity that is above time.

Shabbos corresponds to the Avos because, like them, it belongs to the level of "echad" — a unity that stands above the flow of zman.

וי"ב חדשי השנה יש בהם בחי' ראשי חדשים בחי' השבטים כנ"ל.

And the twelve months of the year contain the aspect of Rashei Chodashim, the aspect of the Shevatim, as above.

Within time, the twelve months and their new-moon beginnings carry the dimension of the Shevatim — the level of "rishon" operating inside the yearly cycle.

ובחי' זאת נשאר לעולם לבנ"י.

And this aspect of "zos" remains forever to Bnei Yisrael.

The enduring tribal covenant — "v'zos asher diber lahem avihem" — is a permanent inheritance that stays with Bnei Yisrael for all time.

ולכן בברית אבות נחלקו חז"ל עד כמה נמשך שהיו דורות שנמשכו אחר ברית האבות הנ"ל:

Therefore, regarding the covenant of the Avos, Chazal disagreed as to how far it extends — for there were generations that were drawn after the aforementioned covenant of the Avos.

Because the covenant of the Avos is of a higher, "echad" level, there is a question of how many generations continued to draw directly upon it; the covenant of the Shevatim, by contrast, the "bris rishonim," endures within Bnei Yisrael forever.

Summary: The "bris rishonim" that Hashem promises to remember is the covenant of the Shevatim, which remains within Bnei Yisrael forever ("v'zos"). The Avos belong to the supreme level of "echad" — boundless unity above time, "the Merkavah," so that they themselves are the covenant; this corresponds to Shabbos. The Shevatim belong to the level of "rishon," beginnings within time, corresponding to the twelve months and Rashei Chodashim. Because the tribal covenant is the enduring "zos" planted in time, it stays with Bnei Yisrael eternally, whereas the higher covenant of the Avos extends only as far as Chazal debate.