Purity versus the impurity of nature

במד' מה כתיב למעלה אוב או ידעוני כו'.

In the Midrash: what is written just before? "A medium or a necromancer (ov o yidoni)…"

The Sefas Emes notes that the Midrash connects our parsha to the preceding verses about forbidden forms of sorcery and divination.

הה"ד והיית כו' למעלה ול"ת למטה כו'.

This is the meaning of the verse: "and you shall be… above, and not below…" (Devarim 28:13).

The contrast with sorcery sets up the theme of being "above" — connected to the higher, supernatural source — rather than "below," entangled in the lower forces of nature.

הענין הוא כי הנהגתו ית' עם בנ"י הוא שלא כדרך הטבע.

The matter is that His conduct (hanhagah) with Bnei Yisrael is not by way of nature.

Hashem relates to Bnei Yisrael through a supernatural mode of guidance, above the ordinary laws of nature.

וכדכתי' הגוים כו' אל מעוננים כו' קוסמים ישמעו ואתה לא כן נתן כו'.

As it is written: "the nations… listen to soothsayers… and diviners; but as for you, Hashem has not given you so…" (Devarim 18:14).

The nations seek knowledge through soothsaying and divination, but Bnei Yisrael were given a different, higher path that does not rely on such means.

פי' כי יש בטבע חכמות וידיעות הטומאה ולפי רוב התדבקם במתים וטמאים יודעין אלה הידיעות.

The explanation: there exist within nature wisdoms and knowledge of impurity (tumah), and according to the extent of their cleaving to the dead and the impure, they come to know these forms of knowledge.

The forbidden "wisdoms" of the nations are real but rooted in tumah; one accesses them by attaching oneself to death and impurity — the deeper one sinks into them, the more such knowledge one gains.

אבל בנ"י אדרבא כפי טהרת הכהנים מכל טומאה בזה יודעין דעת עליון.

But Bnei Yisrael — on the contrary — according to the purity (taharah) of the Kohanim from all impurity, through this they come to know supernal knowledge (da'as elyon).

For Bnei Yisrael the relationship is inverted: it is precisely through purity and distance from tumah — exemplified by the Kohanim — that one attains higher, holy knowledge.

וז"ש לא כן נתן כו'.

And this is the meaning of "Hashem has not given you so…"

Bnei Yisrael were not given the impure path of divination, but rather the opposite path of taharah leading to da'as elyon.

דאיתא שהי' העולם מרחיב והולך עד שאמר הקב"ה די.

For it is brought that the world was continuously expanding until the Holy One, blessed be He, said "Enough! (dai)."

The Sefas Emes recalls the teaching that creation kept spreading and materializing until Hashem commanded it to stop.

והיינו שהי' מתגשם הטבע ביותר מדאי [ולכן המזיקין הם היו סוף הבריאה] עד שאמר די.

That is, nature was becoming overly materialized [and therefore the harmful spirits (mazikin) were the very end of creation] until He said "Enough."

This expansion was a process of increasing physicality; the most materialized, lowest products of creation were the destructive forces, at which point Hashem halted the process.

נמצא לפי רוב התגשמות נדבקין בטבעיות.

It emerges that according to the degree of materialization, one becomes attached to the natural/physical realm.

The more one is drawn into gross physicality, the more one becomes bound to mere nature and its lower forces.

אבל לבנ"י ניתן השורש והרוחניות.

But to Bnei Yisrael was given the root and the spirituality (ruchniyus).

Bnei Yisrael, by contrast, were granted access to the spiritual root that lies above the materialized natural order.

וז"ש אמור ואמרת כי באמת הכל נעשה ע"י העשרה מאמרות.

And this is the meaning of "Speak (emor) and you shall say (v'amarta)" — for in truth everything was made through the Ten Utterances (asarah ma'amaros).

The doubled language "emor… v'amarta" hints at the creative "utterances": all of existence was brought into being through Hashem's ten ma'amaros.

אבל לבנ"י ניתן שורש המאמרות שעליהם נאמר אמרות ה' אמרות טהורות.

But to Bnei Yisrael was given the root of the utterances, of which it is said "the utterances of Hashem are pure utterances (imros Hashem imros tehoros)" (Tehillim 12:7).

While the world emerged from the ma'amaros, Bnei Yisrael were given the pure root of those very utterances — the spiritual source itself, described as "pure."

אבל הטבע נעשה אחר כמה מדרגות וצימצומים:

But nature came into being only after several gradations and contractions (tzimtzumim).

The natural world is a far-removed product of multiple stages of concealment and contraction, whereas Bnei Yisrael connect to the pure source before those contractions — which is why their path is purity, not the impurity of nature's lowest forces.

Summary: Hashem guides Bnei Yisrael by a supernatural conduct, the opposite of the nations. The nations gain their "wisdom" of divination by cleaving to death and impurity — the lowest, most materialized end of creation — whereas Bnei Yisrael attain supernal knowledge specifically through purity, exemplified by the Kohanim. Creation expanded into ever-grosser physicality until Hashem said "Enough," and nature is a distant product of many contractions; but Bnei Yisrael were given the pure root of the divine utterances that lies above all that materialization.