זוהר ויקרא — דף נד ע”ב
Summary
Come and see, when judgment dwells in the world, how many hanging swords go forth from that supreme sword, and people raise their heads and see that this supreme sword is red, full of blood on every side, and then decrees are decreed, as it is said "every man his sword upon his thigh" and it is written "and his sword drawn in his hand." And all are present to execute judgment, and whoever encounters them is harmed, for in every place where judgment dwells, it dwells upon everything, whether in the city, in the wilderness, or around the city.<br />
<br />
He opened further with the verse "set me as a seal upon your heart," and explains that the Congregation of Israel says this to the Holy One, blessed be He: "as a seal upon your heart" is the seal of the tefillin that a person places upon his heart, and "as a seal upon your arm" is the weak hand that is destined for Isaac. And it says "as a seal" and not "a seal," like the tefillin of the head that bring praise to the whole body; therefore the tefillin are on the arm and on the heart, and through this a person is found whole, in the pattern above.<br />
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And it is explained regarding "for love is as strong as death" that there is no harshness in the world like the separation of the soul from the body, and so is the love of the Congregation of Israel for the Holy One, blessed be He, who never separate; therefore the prayer of the hand is bound to the arm, to fulfill what is written, "his left hand is under my head."<br />
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And regarding "jealousy is as cruel as the grave," it is explained that among all the levels of Gehinnom, none is as harsh as the grave, which descends lower than all of them except the level called Avadon, and so jealousy is as harsh as the grave, for there is no jealousy except through love, and whoever is jealous of the one he loves most finds it hard to separate from him, from that level called the grave.<br />
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And regarding "its flashes are flashes of fire, a flame of the Lord," it is explained that this is a fire that comes forth from the shofar, composed of spirit and water, and from that flame, when it blazes within the Congregation of Israel, it burns the world with the flame of the jealousy of the Holy One, blessed be He; and at the time when she is jealous for Him, woe to whoever encounters that flame, for he will be burned by it.<br />
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He opened further with "many waters cannot quench," and explains that "many waters" is the right arm, to which one must tie the knot of prayer upon the left arm, to fulfill "and his right hand embraces me"; alternatively, "many waters" is the supreme river from which rivers go forth to every side, and all flow and are drawn from it, as it is said "from the voices of many waters" and "the floods have lifted up."<br />
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And regarding "if a man gave all the wealth of his house for this love, he would be utterly despised," it is explained that "a man" refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, who gives out of love for the Congregation of Israel, and "all the wealth of his house" is as it is said "all precious and pleasant wealth."<br />
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In the Tosefta it is explained that "he would be despised" alludes to the second, sixth, and seventh days of Sukkot, on which the water and wine libations were poured, and that during the seven days of Sukkot Israel offered seventy bulls to atone for the seventy appointed princes, so that the world would not remain desolate because of them, as it is written "and on the fifteenth day... you shall offer a burnt offering by fire."<br />
<br />
And finally it is explained that regarding the love of the Congregation of Israel toward Him, and not to bind with her, "he would be utterly despised" — all those multitudes and camps above, for the sake of that precious wealth, for all of them desire nothing except the moment when the Congregation of Israel binds with the Holy One, blessed be He, and crowns herself with Him, and then all those multitudes, those camps, and all the worlds are in joy, in light, and in blessings, as it is written "his left hand is under my head and his right hand embraces me."<br />
<br />
He opened further with the verse "set me as a seal upon your heart," and explains that the Congregation of Israel says this to the Holy One, blessed be He: "as a seal upon your heart" is the seal of the tefillin that a person places upon his heart, and "as a seal upon your arm" is the weak hand that is destined for Isaac. And it says "as a seal" and not "a seal," like the tefillin of the head that bring praise to the whole body; therefore the tefillin are on the arm and on the heart, and through this a person is found whole, in the pattern above.<br />
<br />
And it is explained regarding "for love is as strong as death" that there is no harshness in the world like the separation of the soul from the body, and so is the love of the Congregation of Israel for the Holy One, blessed be He, who never separate; therefore the prayer of the hand is bound to the arm, to fulfill what is written, "his left hand is under my head."<br />
<br />
And regarding "jealousy is as cruel as the grave," it is explained that among all the levels of Gehinnom, none is as harsh as the grave, which descends lower than all of them except the level called Avadon, and so jealousy is as harsh as the grave, for there is no jealousy except through love, and whoever is jealous of the one he loves most finds it hard to separate from him, from that level called the grave.<br />
<br />
And regarding "its flashes are flashes of fire, a flame of the Lord," it is explained that this is a fire that comes forth from the shofar, composed of spirit and water, and from that flame, when it blazes within the Congregation of Israel, it burns the world with the flame of the jealousy of the Holy One, blessed be He; and at the time when she is jealous for Him, woe to whoever encounters that flame, for he will be burned by it.<br />
<br />
He opened further with "many waters cannot quench," and explains that "many waters" is the right arm, to which one must tie the knot of prayer upon the left arm, to fulfill "and his right hand embraces me"; alternatively, "many waters" is the supreme river from which rivers go forth to every side, and all flow and are drawn from it, as it is said "from the voices of many waters" and "the floods have lifted up."<br />
<br />
And regarding "if a man gave all the wealth of his house for this love, he would be utterly despised," it is explained that "a man" refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, who gives out of love for the Congregation of Israel, and "all the wealth of his house" is as it is said "all precious and pleasant wealth."<br />
<br />
In the Tosefta it is explained that "he would be despised" alludes to the second, sixth, and seventh days of Sukkot, on which the water and wine libations were poured, and that during the seven days of Sukkot Israel offered seventy bulls to atone for the seventy appointed princes, so that the world would not remain desolate because of them, as it is written "and on the fifteenth day... you shall offer a burnt offering by fire."<br />
<br />
And finally it is explained that regarding the love of the Congregation of Israel toward Him, and not to bind with her, "he would be utterly despised" — all those multitudes and camps above, for the sake of that precious wealth, for all of them desire nothing except the moment when the Congregation of Israel binds with the Holy One, blessed be He, and crowns herself with Him, and then all those multitudes, those camps, and all the worlds are in joy, in light, and in blessings, as it is written "his left hand is under my head and his right hand embraces me."<br />
Torat Emet / Rav Pinhas Reuven — CC BY-NC-SA 2.5
in Hebrew