The Radak explains that Hashem's implements in His war against the nations will be of two types. There are implements of tzedakah, which are really salvation, to save the people of Israel, and on the other side there are garments of vengeance, and these garments of vengeance are meant to exact retribution from the enemies, from those who oppressed us and afflicted us. The implements of salvation, which are really meant to save us from the nations, He compares to a shield, armor and a helmet. For really we need to be protected from the nations. And what is a shield, armor and a helmet if not protection for the warrior? As it were, with this Hashem protects us. He clothed Himself with tzedakah as with armor, and a helmet of salvation upon His head, all in order to save us. Yes, an umbrella to protect us from the nations. In contrast, perhaps before this the Radak here says something astounding. The Radak says that the armor and the helmet are not garments worn all the time, but only temporarily, at the time of war. When does a person put on armor? Only at the time of war, he does not go out to work wearing armor. Right? Only at the time of war. On this the Radak says that the salvation will extend from its beginning until Israel are in their land and until the time of the war of Gog and Magog. The Radak says something wondrous. The salvation will begin but it will take time. We see this being fulfilled before our very eyes. This prophecy is being fulfilled, that the salvation did not begin and end in a single day. We see that this is a long and complete process. It is clear to us that the process has begun, it is clear to us that we are in the midst of it, but the Radak says the salvation will extend from its beginning. For it will not be immediate, it will take time, it will extend over a period. The implements of vengeance He compares to garments and a cloak. Notice how wondrous this is. This is how to take vengeance on the nations. How will Hashem take vengeance on them? He will put on garments of vengeance as clothing, and wrap Himself in zeal as in a cloak. Notice? The garments of vengeance on the nations are like a cloak and clothing. Why? The Radak says it is simple. For garments you wear all the time. Armor is not worn all the time. To protect us, that is the armor, that is temporary. It is only needed to protect us now from the enemies. Now Hashem has begun to take vengeance on the enemies. How much will He take vengeance on them? This is permanent. The vengeance against the nations will be permanent, like a garment that is permanent. In contrast, our protection from the nations is needed only at the beginning. Only at the time of the redemption does the Holy One, blessed be He, need to protect us. But afterward armor is no longer needed, for the nations will be servants to Israel, 'and they will rule over those who hated them,' and foreigners will be their plowmen and their vinedressers. And this vengeance and zeal, for having enslaved us throughout the entire period of exile, will continue over the years. Since this reality will continue over the years, He compares it to a permanent garment. In contrast, our protection is only temporary, only to bring us out of the exile, when we need protection from the enemies, but afterward the enemies will be placed beneath our feet. 'And kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers,' and so on. This means that the important ones among them will be the lowly among us. Obama will mop your floor. Condoleezza Rice will wash your dishes. And if she does not wash them well, you will tell her to wash them again. They, the kings, the ministers, will be your foster fathers, your nursing mothers. So if that is the case, we no longer need salvation. The salvation was only for its time. What remains? The vengeance will continue, it is like a garment. Like a garment that a person wears all the time, it will continue onward.
And notice, it is written 'He put on garments of vengeance as clothing.' What is 'clothing' (tilboshet)? First of all, the Radak explains that the word tilboshet is like a noun. There is an action, as we have discussed several times in the past, and that is 'to wear' (lilbosh). And there is the noun, called 'wearing' (levishah). Levishah does not express an action. Levishah expresses the description. Just as, for example, I say 'running' (ritzah), and I say 'to run' (larutz). You need to run, run, they will run, these are actions. Ritzah is the noun. So in fact tilboshet is the noun. And why, after saying 'He put on,' does it say again 'clothing'? The Radak states a rule. Wherever you see that after describing an action he switches to the noun, it means that this thing will be with strength and force. He brings an example. 'And David fasted a fast.' 'Fasted' is the action, 'a fast' is the noun. Why? To tell you that the matter was done with intensity. 'Hashem was greatly angry at our fathers.' 'Anger' is the noun, 'was angry' is the action. Why did he state the noun at the end? To strengthen the matter. 'And he committed a trespass in it.' 'Trespass' is the noun, 'committed' is the action. He tells you: she committed a trespass, this was very grave. 'In order to slaughter a slaughter.' And all these examples come to express that when the noun appears afterward, it indicates that the thing was done with force and strength.
The Malbim says: 'He put on tzedakah as armor, and a helmet of salvation upon His head, He put on garments of vengeance as clothing, and wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak.' The Malbim says that in order to understand this verse correctly, you need to have a basic knowledge of Lashon HaKodesh. For here there are several matters that require understanding. What is armor and what is a helmet of salvation? What is tzedakah and what is salvation? What is vengeance and what is zeal? What is 'wearing' and what is 'clothing'? And why is it written once 'cloak' and once 'garments'? All these are repetitions that require us to understand what the prophet intends to say through these words, and really, if we understand these matters correctly, we will also understand the nature of the salvation and redemption that is destined to come.
Mishpat: I help my fellow and so on, all according to the law. This is called mishpat. So too, with the mishpat that is stated regarding the Holy One, blessed be He, that the Holy One, blessed be He, performs mishpat, the meaning is that the Holy One, blessed be He, requites a person according to what is due to him as a person. And this is mishpat, from the aspect of the recompense that is due to you, according to law it is due to you, from the aspect of merits, from the aspect of deeds the Holy One, blessed be He, requites a person. For mishpat relates to a person. So this is a person performing mishpat, matters between one person and another. When the Holy One, blessed be He, performs mishpat, the meaning is in relation to a person, according to the measure of the person, what is due to a person. Tzedakah: when we speak of tzedakah among people, the Malbim always explains that this is between a person and Hashem. A tzaddik is defined by matters between a person and Hashem. When we say 'perform mishpat and tzedakah,' mishpat, as we said, is that a person helps his fellow, performs mishpat with his fellow, matters between one person and another. When I say 'perform tzedakah,' the meaning is to be righteous, matters between a person and Hashem. And this is always the expression: tzedakah is from the aspect that is between a person and the Almighty. The Malbim defines it as the deeds between a person and Hashem. And when I say that the Holy One, blessed be He, performs tzedakah, what is the meaning? Again, from the aspect that He is God. Just as tzedakah expresses the connection with God, I say he is a tzaddik, matters between a person and Hashem, so too when I say Hashem performs tzedakah with us, the meaning is from the aspect of God, not from the aspect of the person, not like matters between one person and another, but from the aspect of God Himself. The meaning is that we are not worthy, we are not fitting, we have no merits, but since the Holy One, blessed be He, does this out of His abundant kindness, therefore the Holy One, blessed be He, performs tzedakah with us. For tzedakah always comes to express matters between a person and Hashem. So too when the Holy One, blessed be He, performs tzedakah, the meaning is from the aspect of the Almighty, from the aspect of the Master of the World, from the aspect of His merits, not from our aspect. In contrast to mishpat, which speaks of matters between one person and another, so when the Holy One, blessed be He, performs mishpat with us, this is from our aspect, from the aspect of the person, from the aspect of what is due to him. So mishpat relates to a person: I help people, I perform mishpat, the Holy One, blessed be He, gives me according to what is due to me from the aspect of being a person, this is called mishpat. Tzedakah: when people perform tzedakah, this is in their service, matters between a person and Hashem, for it speaks in relation to the aspect that He is God, I serve God, this is called tzedakah, righteous acts, tzaddik. When the Holy One, blessed be He, performs tzedakah with me, again this is from the aspect of God, not from my aspect, it is not due to me. Rather Hashem performs tzedakah from the aspect of God, for tzedakah is always in relation to the conduct of God.
If it is written 'salvation,' tzedakah and salvation, the Malbim says the meaning refers to a general salvation reserved by Hashem to rectify the entire world, and this is what we explained refers to the aspect of the conduct of Unity. There is none besides Him, Hashem brings salvation to the worthy and the unworthy, this is tzedakah, as we said, first, from the aspect of the Master of the World, it does not depend on us. And there is the general salvation, which is meant to arrive in any case, from the aspect that the Holy One, blessed be He, decreed that there will be a time of the coming of the Mashiach, there will be a time of general salvation, worthy or unworthy, fitting or unfitting, there is a plan, there is a general salvation that is destined to come, and this is the expression 'salvation' when it is joined with the concept of tzedakah.
The Malbim says that when the prophets come to describe the actions of Hashem, since we cannot grasp the Holy One, blessed be He, it is impossible at all to grasp the Master of the World. So just as you see a person and you know he is a distinguished person, how do you know? By his clothing. He does not come with short pants without an undershirt and a Marlboro stuck in his pants. He comes, and you see him dressed in a suit with a tie, and you say this is a lawyer, this is an accountant, you understand that he is a person of stature. So too, when I want to describe the Master of the World, I cannot describe Him in His essence. How do I describe Him? By His 'garments,' in quotation marks. What is the definition of 'garments' regarding the Master of the World? These are levushim (garments). Levushim regarding the Master of the World are His modes of conduct, His actions. I can judge the Master of the World from the aspect of His actions. When the Holy One, blessed be He, performs an act of mercy, I say Hashem had mercy on us. When the Holy One, blessed be He, performs an act by which we were affected, for example judgment, then I say the Holy One, blessed be He, exacted retribution from us, and so on in this manner. This is called the category of levush, for I cannot express the Master of the World, the Holy One, blessed be He. We already discussed that I cannot speak of His essence, blessed be He. But what can I do? I can speak from the aspect of what we received, and this is how He reveals Himself to us. How He reveals Himself to us is called levush. For the person, I do not know him, what do I know about him? I only see that he is dressed respectably, and I know he is a respectable person. So too the Holy One, blessed be He, I do not know Him, but when I see that Hashem performs a particular action, from this I understand what that mode of conduct is.
The Malbim says that the mishpat that the Holy One, blessed be He, will perform against the nations is described as a war. The Holy One, blessed be He, will wage war against the nations. And how does the prophet describe this war? Like a warrior going out to battle dressed. The clothing, again, of the warrior going out to battle, the warrior being a man of war, here it is Hashem as a man of war, the clothing of this man of war will teach us the nature of the war. The Malbim says, notice here how the war garment of the Master of the World is described: 'He put on tzedakah as armor, and a helmet of salvation upon His head, He put on garments of vengeance as clothing, and wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak.' Did you notice? It is all wardrobe here, everything here speaks of a wardrobe. It speaks of armor, a helmet of salvation, garments of vengeance, clothing, a cloak. And all these things require understanding of which garment the Holy One, blessed be He, is revealed to us in, so that through this we understand how the Holy One, blessed be He, performs His actions.
The Malbim says: notice that among the implements of war there are offensive implements and defensive implements. For example, when I speak of armor and a helmet, I am really speaking of defensive implements. With armor you do not attack, with armor you defend yourself. When I speak of a helmet, the helmet is meant to protect him on the battlefield from an arrow, from a sword; really we are speaking here of implements whose purpose is to defend. The armor and the helmet help him not to be defeated; with the sword and the spear he defeats the enemies. When we speak of the Holy One, blessed be He, going out to fight and needing armor and a helmet, the Holy One, blessed be He, does not need defenses. So what is really being spoken of? It is that Hashem fights our wars. And if Hashem fights our wars, then when there is armor it means that we are not harmed. Hashem goes out to war with armor, with a helmet; there is protection here for us, for the Holy One, blessed be He, certainly cannot be harmed. Rather this comes to express that the Holy One, blessed be He, saves us and protects us so that we are not defeated and we are not harmed by the enemies. This is the tzedakah, this is the salvation.
This is what is written: 'His arm brought Him salvation, and His tzedakah sustained Him.' What does this verse come to say? The verse comes to say: by what merit are you worthy of the helmet and the armor? By what merit are you worthy of protection? We have already seen that there is no man, we have already seen that there is no intercessor. It says, by what merit? The continuation of the verse: 'There is no man, there is no intercessor, His arm brought Him salvation, and His tzedakah sustained Him.' As we explained, tzedakah is from the aspect that He is God, not from the aspect of the person that it is due to us. From the aspect of the person that it is due to us, about that we said this is called mishpat, it is due to us by mishpat, but Hashem does not perform mishpat, for it is not due to us, and there is no man. So what does He do? Hashem performs tzedakah. By the merit of His arm, and His tzedakah sustained Him. The tzedakah that Hashem performs is like armor that protects the body, and the salvation is the helmet that protects the head.
Why is both tzedakah and salvation needed? He explains that the beginning of thought is in the head, and corresponding to this there is the helmet, for the helmet is really protection for the head. Whereas the armor is protection for the body, which is the protection in practice, to protect the body from a sword penetrating it. What does this come to say? It is clear to all of us that the future redemption is not something that the Holy One, blessed be He, will plan only when it comes. We see from the prophets that this matter has already arisen in thought, and that this matter is already from Him, blessed be He, and promises about this were stated by the prophets. Everything is already prepared in advance. Prepared in advance from where do we plan things? In the head. Therefore he describes the salvation. The salvation, as we explained, is the conduct of Unity, there is none besides Him, the Holy One, blessed be He, does not look at merits, does not look at debts, does not look at anything, He redeems the people of Israel, protects the people of Israel, this is the definition of salvation. Therefore 'a helmet of salvation upon His head,' the Holy One, blessed be He, already planned in advance a process of the conduct of Unity, which is the helmet of salvation, and this is upon His head. First, it is planned in advance; second, thought is symbolized by the head. And afterward He tells you that through this we will have the category of tzedakah. Tzedakah means that the Holy One, blessed be He, will act with us according to His righteousness, not according to what is fitting for us, but according to the conduct of God. All this until here is modes of conduct in which the people of Israel will not be harmed by the enemies. Therefore they are modes of protection, this is armor, this is a helmet, this is an expression of tzedakah according to the exaltedness of Hashem, blessed be He, and according to the original plan of Hashem, blessed be He, which is the salvation that will be the conduct of Unity. All this, as we said, is protection for the people of Israel.
But afterward the stage begins in which the Holy One, blessed be He, performs mishpat on the nations, exacts retribution from the nations. Two stages: the first stage to bring us out from under their trampling boot, the second stage that they begin to pay the price. This has already begun in Syria; we hope it will continue onward to the rest of the nations as well, that they will pay the price for what they did to the people of Israel. The Malbim says that corresponding to this the Holy One, blessed be He, puts on 'garments of vengeance as clothing, and wraps Himself in zeal as in a cloak.' These garments, the Malbim says, come to signal to us, to teach us, that the Holy One, blessed be He, does not come only to save, for to save, a cloak and armor are enough, as we explained, a helmet, armor and a cloak are enough. But the Holy One, blessed be He, also comes to take vengeance. The Malbim says: it is the way of warriors, when they come to fight, that if he comes only to rescue they have a special marking so that it be known they came only to rescue, so that they not be harmed. As it is written: 'Who is this coming from Edom, with crimson garments from Botzrah,' and so on. So it is known that he comes only to rescue; you do not fight against a medical force. Among the Palestinians everything is fine and proper, but naturally in war you do not go and bomb ambulances, for you know it is a medical force, you bomb armor. That is to say, it was known among warriors who comes only to defend and who comes to actually fight.
The Malbim says: notice that there is a difference between a garment and a cloak. The cloak is worn over all the garments, from above, whereas the garment is the inner one. Here too two things are written, here 'zeal' is written and here 'vengeance' is written. The Malbim says: you need to know that in Lashon HaKodesh there is also a difference between zeal (kinah) and vengeance (nekamah). Hashem is zealous with His zeal and takes vengeance. What is the difference if I say He is zealous with His zeal and exacts retribution from them, or He takes vengeance and exacts retribution from them? Seemingly it is the same thing. The Malbim says no, there is a difference. Vengeance is always for something you did to me in the past. You did not give me, I will not give you; 'do not take vengeance and do not bear a grudge.' Vengeance is for something that happened in the past. In contrast, to be zealous with the zeal of Hashem, notice, this is also in expressions we use today. When I now see something that is a disgrace, I am zealous with the zeal of Hashem and I rise and act. To be zealous with the zeal of Hashem is not for something that happened two years ago; to be zealous with the zeal of Hashem is really at the time, at the very moment of the act. How did Moshe say to Yehoshua? 'Are you zealous for my sake?' What happened there? My master Moshe, imprison them, they are prophesying now, stop them now, it is a desecration of Hashem's name, etc. He says to him, are you zealous for my sake? This is a type of zeal. To be zealous means to perform the act at the time when the trouble exists, or when the bad situation exists. In contrast to vengeance, which is to exact retribution for something that happened in the past, to pay a price, to demand a price for something that happened in the past.
The Malbim says: for the one who takes vengeance it is enough if he pays you evil for evil, even if the vengeance is in private. Even if he exacts retribution from you, so to speak, below the belt, without anyone knowing, without it being enough that only you and he know, you did this to me, I paid the price. The person already has the satisfaction in the vengeance even if it was not in public, even if there was no publicity. What is the goal? To take vengeance on you; I took vengeance on you, so that you will know next time not to mess with me. That is vengeance. In contrast, the Malbim says, one who is zealous for his honor does it openly, for that is the whole goal. The honor of Hashem, let us say we speak of zeal for the honor of Hashem, the honor of Hashem was profaned, I am zealous for the honor of Hashem. What does it mean to be zealous for the honor of Hashem? He rises and does something in public, like Pinchas, he goes, takes a spear, stabs, and walks around with it through the entire camp. If not by an act, no; I took vengeance, I was zealous for the honor of Hashem in secret. What does it mean to be zealous for the honor of Hashem in secret? Zeal is always in the open, to exact retribution openly in order to thereby vindicate the honor of Hashem.
The Malbim says: according to this you will understand what he says here. He tells you 'He put on garments of vengeance.' What are garments of vengeance? For what the oppressors did evil to Him. And these garments will be in the category of 'clothing.' What is 'clothing'? Not something temporary, it is something permanent. Permanent clothing, as it were, for what? To take vengeance against the enemies for how they oppressed us. And besides this, for the disgrace of His honor and His glory, for the desecration of Hashem's name in the world, 'and He wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak.' Zeal, as we explained, is to be zealous for His honor that was profaned. For the fact that they profane His honor, Hashem wrapped Himself in zeal. But we said, how is one always zealous? Openly. Therefore it is like a cloak. What did we say the cloak is? External. The cloak is open. When we speak of zeal it must be in the open, it must be in public, and therefore 'He wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak,' so that through this His profaned name will be sanctified among the nations, and through this He will defeat the enemies.
Where will this find expression in zeal and vengeance? How will this affect the nations? For this the next verse comes. Verse 18: 'According to their deeds, accordingly He will repay, fury to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies; to the islands He will render recompense.' 'According to their deeds' the Holy One, blessed be He, will requite them, this is the plain meaning of the text. The Radak says: just as He put on zeal, according to deeds, where? That He requited Pharaoh and Sancheriv and all the oppressors of Israel, this is 'according to their deeds.' Just as you remember deeds in history, you remember how the Holy One, blessed be He, exacted retribution from them, so Hashem will put on zeal also in the future. This is 'according to their deeds,' 'according to their deeds' means like the example of the deeds that were then. 'Accordingly He will repay,' just as He repaid those deeds to our enemies, so He will now repay the enemies who exist now. And how will the payment be? 'Fury to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies.' The Radak says the recompense is corresponding to the evil recompense they did to the people of Israel; the Holy One, blessed be He, will repay them. And not only that, but also 'to the islands He will render recompense,' meaning the islands of the nations. What is the meaning of this? Since the people of Israel are scattered among all the islands of the lands, He tells you that the recompense will be for all. So that you not think anyone will be forgotten, so that you not think some nation that oppressed us, afflicted us, harmed us, will be forgotten; ultimately everyone will pay the price.
Let us continue with the Malbim's explanation, for the Malbim's explanation of this verse constitutes a completion of what we saw in the previous verse. And the Malbim, as is his way, says that here the statements are parallel. The meaning is that part of what was stated in the previous verse has its continuation in our verse, and this is in two parallel statements. Let us explain. We saw above 'He put on garments of vengeance as clothing'; the continuation of this in our verse is 'accordingly He will repay fury to His adversaries.' We saw above 'and He wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak'; its continuation in our verse is 'according to deeds, recompense to His enemies.' In order to understand what is really stated here, the Malbim says you need to understand in Lashon HaKodesh the difference between recompense (gemul) and payment (tashlumim). For it is written here 'He will repay' and it is written here 'recompense.' What is the difference between if I say he paid him or he requited him?
The Malbim says that payments are according to the deed. According to what he did, so he pays. Without emotion, without thought; he did, he pays. You did for me, you drove me in a taxi, I pay you money. This is called payment. I do not say I requited you. Where do we use the expression 'requite' (gamal)? The Malbim says: when there is some emotional stirring in the very payment on the part of the one paying, whether of love, or of hatred, or of anger, this is expressed by the term 'recompense.' And we see this also in the spoken language today. He requited him, what does 'requited him' mean? He helped me a great deal, he helped me a great deal, and I, as a token of love, requited him and gave to him in return. This is 'requited.' 'Requite' always expresses requiting with some emotional stirring. In contrast to payment, which is always something emotionally detached. The grocer gave me milk, I paid him money, I left. I did not requite him, there is nothing emotional here. He gave me, I received. This is called payment. Payment is always without the stirring of love, hatred, desire or anger. He paid, it is done. But recompense always expresses that it comes from love, I requited him; and if it is an act of recompense, then it comes from hatred, you did this to me, so it aroused hatred in me and I requited him as he deserved. Recompense always expresses some emotion from which that action stems.
Notice, the Malbim says, there is a difference between an adversary (tzar) and an enemy (oyev). And the Malbim also explains this in several places; we learned this also in Megillat Esther, whoever wishes can hear it on the disc of Megillat Esther, that there is a difference between an adversary and an enemy, 'a man who is an adversary and an enemy, this wicked Haman.' What is the difference between an adversary and an enemy? The Malbim says an adversary is always one who causes us distress. He actually distresses us. This is called an adversary. In contrast, an enemy is a person who harbors enmity; oyev is from the word eivah (enmity), in his heart. That is to say, not necessarily that he causes distress, but he hates. In his heart he has hatred toward us. This is called an enemy. An adversary, in contrast, I am in distress because of him, I am in straits because of him, he distresses me, he actually causes me trouble. In contrast, the enemy does not actually cause me trouble, but deep inside he stores up hatred toward me. The Malbim says there is an adversary who is not an enemy. He distresses me not because he is my enemy but only for his own business, for his own pleasure, because he benefits from it. He does not care that I suffer, he has nothing personal against me, but he benefits from it. This person is called an adversary and not an enemy. In contrast, there is an enemy who is not an adversary. What is this? If he harbors and bears severe enmity toward me in his heart but he has not harmed me, then he is an enemy who is not an adversary. But if he both harbors enmity toward me and also goes and actually harms me, this is an adversary and an enemy. He both distresses me, and this also stems from the fact that he hates me, not just for fun but because he hates me.
The Malbim says: regarding Hashem, when we speak of people who rebel against the word of Hashem, who transgress, there are those who are in the category of adversaries to Hashem, and there are those in the category of enemies to Hashem. The Malbim says: whom do we call an adversary and whom do we call an enemy? One who actually commits transgressions is an adversary to Hashem. As we said, an adversary is one who causes actual distress. And when a person commits transgressions, he adds power to impurity, he takes from holiness and gives to the forces of impurity, he increases the power of the sitra achra, this gives, as it were, weakness to the Holy One, blessed be He. The opposite of one who fulfills mitzvot, who gives strength to God; one who transgresses actually causes distress, creates defilement in all the upper worlds, as we discussed regarding Nefesh HaChaim, whoever wishes can hear it on the disc about Nefesh HaChaim. In contrast, one who denies Hashem, who lowers the honor of Heaven, this person is an enemy, for he did not actually sin. He did not commit some transgression in practice, he did not go and worship idols, he did not go and steal, he did not go and eat pork, but within himself he denies Hashem. This person we call an enemy. Why an enemy? For he has enmity toward the Holy One, blessed be He, but he is not an actual adversary, he has not yet committed transgressions in practice.
The Malbim says: come and see that the Holy One, blessed be He, 'put on garments of vengeance as clothing, accordingly He will repay fury to His adversaries.' Did you notice? Now we need to make a connection. To the adversaries, what does the Holy One, blessed be He, give them? He repays. Afterward we will see what the Holy One, blessed be He, requites their enemies. And we want to understand why to the enemies Hashem requites and to the adversaries Hashem pays. Since we already have the dictionary to understand the difference between an adversary and an enemy, and between 'He will repay' and 'recompense,' let us now understand what is written here. His adversaries, we explained, are those who actually sin. This is not in order to provoke but rather, as it is called, for his own pleasure. An adversary, we said, is a person who distresses, not necessarily out of a desire to provoke; he comes to the transgression, he distresses. This is called an adversary. Toward him zeal is not applicable. For we explained that to be zealous is always against one who is presently disgracing the name of Heaven. He is not disgracing the name of Heaven; this person, out of his desires, commits transgressions. In practice he distresses, he causes distress, as it were, to the Holy One, blessed be He, but there is no place here to be zealous with the zeal of Hashem, for it is not that he desecrated Hashem's name; he transgresses for himself, he eats pork at home. Why? Because he feels like it, because he is hungry, because he enjoys it. He is a transgressor for himself, he is called an adversary, there is no place here to be zealous with the zeal of Hashem, for he did not desecrate the name of Heaven. Therefore he says: see, here recompense is also not applicable. For recompense, as we said, is always out of emotion, hatred, love. Here, what emotion is there? There is no emotion here, for here we do not speak of someone who is an enemy to the Holy One, blessed be He, who has some feeling of hatred toward Hashem, so that Hashem acts toward him with recompense; he did not perform some act of hatred. So what is applicable? Vengeance is applicable here. For in practice this person, who is an adversary to Hashem, created a corruption, and now it needs to be rectified, and now retribution needs to be exacted from him. So we already said vengeance is for something you harmed me with in the past. The Holy One, blessed be He, will take vengeance on them. For what? For how they oppressed, for they caused harm. And the Holy One, blessed be He, through this vengeance will exact retribution from them for what they did. The vengeance, notice, is payments. This vengeance is not in the category of recompense but rather, as we said, it is payments; according to what you did, you will pay. Without stirring, without emotion, without that, according to everything that is a fixed rate, every transgression you committed you will pay for accordingly. On this he says that Hashem will put on garments of vengeance for the evils they did to Him in the past, and the vengeance is 'accordingly He will repay' according to the value of the deed. 'Accordingly He will repay,' according to what, to whom is this? 'To His adversaries.' To those who actually distressed Him, as we explained.
In contrast, 'He wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak, according to deeds, recompense to His enemies.' Whom do we now speak of? We speak of the enemies. The enemies are the haters, as we said, those who desecrate the name of Heaven, meaning regarding them they rebel against Hashem, blessed be He, they do not accept His kingship, they do not actually sin but they deny the divinity of Hashem, blessed be He. Here it is not applicable to say that Hashem will take vengeance on them since they did not actually do evil. Nor are payments applicable, for they did not do evil by deed, for payments are always corresponding to a deed. But what is applicable? Here zeal is applicable. Zeal, we said, is always zeal over the profanation and disgrace of His honor and His name. It is applicable to be zealous, they profane His honor; Moshe: 'are you zealous for my sake?' They desecrate the name of Heaven, he rises and is zealous; Pinchas is zealous with the zeal of Hashem, 'when he was zealous with My zeal in their midst,' and this must be at the time of the act, and he rises and is zealous with the zeal of Hashem, the act that did not cause harm. But what? In practice there is here a desecration of Hashem's name. Over this one must be zealous. Therefore here vengeance is not written but rather 'He wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak,' against whom? Against the enemies. And notice, here 'recompense' is written. 'According to deeds, recompense to His enemies.' Why? Since here we speak of people who have hatred toward Hashem, they deny Hashem, they do not accept Hashem's kingship. And regarding this it is applicable to say recompense. For recompense, as we said, is always with emotion. It is always with emotion. Recompense, I will requite him with either good or evil, but recompense always comes together with emotion. So here it comes out of the hatred and anger that the Holy One, blessed be He, has. Why? Because they are enemies. What is an enemy? A hater. Ah, you hate the Holy One, blessed be He? So what is your payment? This is recompense, that the Holy One, blessed be He, will exact retribution from him by way of emotion, by way of hatred, measure for measure influence. The former do not hate Hashem but he actually distresses, he commits prohibitions. The Holy One, blessed be He, will give him payment. There is no emotional stirring here. But when you are in the category of an enemy, you have emotional hatred toward the Holy One, blessed be He, then the response to this is also recompense. As we explained, that recompense is always with emotional stirring. And here vengeance is not applicable since we said that vengeance is for something that happened in the past, for he did not do anything in the past, but rather what we speak of is that he has denial and inner hatred toward the Holy One, blessed be He, so regarding this zeal is applicable, Hashem is zealous for the honor of His great name, and Hashem will exact retribution from them by way of enmity, by way of recompense.
Notice, we said that this retribution, when you come to sanctify the name of Hashem, must be in public. How did Pinchas do it? He took them through the entire camp. For he is zealous with the zeal of Hashem. Vengeance, we said, you do in secret. Take vengeance on him in secret. But we said that zeal, to be zealous for the profaned honor of Hashem, must be in public. Notice what he says: 'He wrapped Himself in zeal as in a cloak.' Since here we speak of being zealous with the zeal of Hashem over the desecration of the honor of His great name, the zeal will be 'according to deeds.' What is 'according to deeds'? According to the stirring they had in their enmity toward the Holy One, blessed be He, measure for measure the Holy One, blessed be He, will apply enmity toward them. And what enmity will this be, and what retribution will this be? 'According to deeds, as a cloak.' What is 'as a cloak,' as we said? A cloak is an external garment. The meaning is that this will be a retribution that reverberates, this will be a retribution that everyone will see, that everyone will recognize, since they were in the category of His enemies, who, as we said, deny His divinity. And not only those who are near, who were His adversaries, meaning they destroyed the Beit HaMikdash, destroyed Yerushalayim, but also the distant islands, who were not actual adversaries, not through their fault they did not oppress us, they could not, it is simply hard for them to get here, one must understand them; but as it were He says: it does not matter, I will exact retribution from you for the hatred and enmity toward the people of Hashem that you nonetheless had; for this too the Holy One, blessed be He, will exact retribution from them.
Verse 19: 'And they will fear the name of Hashem from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun, for the adversary will come in like a river, the spirit of Hashem will drive him.' 'And they will fear from the west' - first of all, regarding the very reading here, there are two views brought by the Minchat Shai. There is the view of the Ibn Ezra that it is from the word 'fear' (yirah), and there is an additional explanation that the Ibn Ezra brings, that it is as its plain meaning, meaning the word 'seeing' (re'iyah). According to our tradition there is no question at all, for it is written with two yuds. Once it is written with two yuds, the meaning is certainly the word 'fear,' 'and they will fear' (veyir'u). In contrast, if it were written with one yud, then it would be the word 'seeing,' right? And this is as I said, two views; we read 'And they will fear the name of Hashem from the west.' The meaning is they will fear His name. After the Holy One, blessed be He, exacts retribution from the nations, then everyone will fear His name. 'The adversary will come in like a river.' What is 'the adversary will come in like a river, the spirit of Hashem will drive him'? The Radak brings: my father and master, of blessed memory, explained 'yavo' (come in) as the word 'setting' (shki'ah), like 'and the sun set (uva) and was purified.' The adversary, the adversaries and enemies of ours, will set. He will sink like a setting river; this is the meaning of 'the adversary will come in like a river,' like 'the sun set,' the sun sank; the adversary and enemy of the people of Israel will come in like a river, will sink like a river. And what is 'the spirit of Hashem will drive him'? 'Will drive him' (noseseh vo), the Radak explains, is from the word 'flee' (nisah). The spirit of Hashem will cause him to flee. 'Noseseh' from the verb 'nas,' from the word 'to flee' (lanus). In contrast, Rashi explains that 'noseseh' is the name of a worm. It eats it like a worm in a tree, like 'and it will be like the wasting away of a nosess,' where the meaning there is a type of worm; so too here the spirit of Hashem will consume him like a worm, this is the expression 'noseseh vo.' And then afterward comes the next verse: 'And a redeemer will come to Tzion, and to those who repent of transgression in Yaakov, says Hashem.'
This is what Chazal expound: if you have seen a generation upon which troubles are many, 'the adversary will come in like a river,' prepare yourself, know that 'a redeemer will come to Tzion.' The salvation is near, the redemption is near, and there is no generation like our generation, troubles from within and from without, and if so this means that the salvation is already near. Another explanation the Radak says: 'the adversary will come in like a river' is the reason for what we said earlier, 'and they will fear the name of Hashem from the west.' Why will they fear the name of Hashem? For the adversary will come in like a river, Gog and Magog will come, who is the adversary in the Land of Israel, like a river that comes rushing. What will happen to him? The spirit of Hashem will drive him, will destroy him from the world, as it is written in the prophecy of Yechezkel, from the prophecy of Zecharyah, whoever wishes can hear it in full detail how really the Holy One, blessed be He, will crush Gog and Magog, and then from this 'and they will fear the name of Hashem from the west.' This will cause that throughout the whole world they will fear the name of Hashem when they see the miracles that Hashem will perform for us against Gog and Magog. And the Radak says: notice, matters that are like prophecy. For even though Israel will be in Yerushalayim before Gog and Magog comes, once he comes they will say that no redeemer has come to them, since the gentiles come and fight against them. And when God judges him there with pestilence and blood and pouring rain and hailstones, as it is written there in the prophecies of Yechezkel and Zecharyah, then they will say that a redeemer has truly come to Tzion, and to those who repent of transgression in Yaakov, for then all of Israel will return in complete repentance. That is to say, the Radak here already expresses a view: whether we are in the beginning of the redemption or not the beginning of the redemption. The unresolved dispute, the Radak says: as long as Gog and Magog does not come here, and there is no victory over him, we will not yet feel that a redeemer has come to Tzion. When will 'a redeemer will come to Tzion' be? When the Holy One, blessed be He, exacts retribution from Gog and Magog, then they will know that a redeemer has come to Tzion, then they will know that we have truly merited the complete redemption.
'The spirit of Hashem will drive him' - the Radak has an additional explanation. 'Noseseh' is like 'raise a banner toward Tzion.' What is a 'nes' (banner)? The pole on which the flag is hung is called a 'nes.' 'Tziyonah' is from the word 'Tzion,' right? So here too the Radak says: it is the way of the world that the one who carries the banner, who raises the flag, goes before the camp. So he is the one who delivers the first blow to the enemies opposite him. 'The spirit of Hashem will drive him,' and he strikes at the army of Gog and Magog; this is the meaning, as it were, the banner, the first flag-bearer, is the one who will strike Gog and Magog. The Malbim says: 'And they will fear the name of Hashem from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun.' The name of Hashem is the name that is heard from afar. The glory of Hashem is what is seen from up close. The glory I can see when it is up close. Something from afar I cannot see His glory, but I heard His name. This is always the expression: His name went out to afar, but His glory you need to be in His palace, you need to be in the place where He is, in order to see His glory. The Malbim says the name of Hashem is what is heard from afar, the glory of Hashem is what is seen up close. So he notes for us that in the east, there the Ten Tribes were exiled, as it is written 'From the east I will bring your seed, and from the west I will gather you.' There the miracles and wonders were revealed at the beginning, for where will the redeemer be revealed? In the east: 'Who roused one from the east, righteousness called him to His foot.' Until in the east they will see the glory of Hashem and His wonders. And in the west, there Yehudah and Binyamin are, they are in the west of the world, there they are scattered, there they will only hear of the miracles from afar. They will fear the name of Hashem that comes from afar, for as it were the name of Hashem will come from where? From the east. When will it come? When the adversary comes in like a flooding river, this is the camp of Gog; the spirit of Hashem will drive this river so that the river, as it were, will raise up the pitchfork of its waves. This is the meaning of 'the spirit of Hashem will drive him,' the spirit of Hashem inflames this river. Then 'a redeemer will come to Tzion, and to those who repent of transgression in Yaakov, says Hashem.' A redeemer will come to Tzion. Rashi already brings that there are other books in which such a version appears in Rashi: as long as Tzion is in ruins, the redeemer has not yet come. Is Tzion built? Certainly Tzion is in ruins. But did they build the palace of the courthouse there? That is an addition of ruin upon its ruin. And the Knesset there? That is yet another additional ruin. Really, everything they built today in Tzion, it is all ruin upon ruin. What is the true building? That the Beit HaMikdash be built, that the palace of Hashem's Temple be built, and this is still in ruins. 'A redeemer will come to Tzion,' and this is the Mashiach, 'and to those who repent of transgression in Yaakov.' These too, see, there is already prophecy here that in that generation there will be those who repent of transgression, and they too will merit to be in the redemption. Do you hear? One who at the last moment jumps onto the wagon, he will be part of the wagon. Those who repent of transgression, he too will return in repentance, even one who left the fold, the Metzudat David says, they will return from their transgression; them too the Mashiach will redeem, and he will restore the crown of Tzion, the Mikdash, the Sanhedrin, to those who repent of transgression in Yaakov, to the children of the exile who will return in repentance.
How will the people of Israel survive until this period, until a redeemer comes to Tzion? 'And as for Me, this is My covenant with them, says Hashem: My spirit that is upon you, and My words that I have placed in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your seed, nor from the mouth of your seed's seed, says Hashem, from now and forever.' The Holy One, blessed be He, says: what will you have until the redemption? I have provided you with two things. One thing is prophecy, one thing is the sacred scriptures. Until the period of Ezra, Chaggai, Zecharyah, Malachi, prophecy accompanies us. This is what gives us oxygen to hold our head somehow, still above the water, when the flood of the exile washes over us. But when prophecy ceases, there is My covenant, 'My spirit that is upon you,' there are 'My words that I have placed in your mouth, they will not depart from your mouth nor from the mouth of your seed.' What sustained the people of Israel throughout all the years of the exile is the Oral Torah, which we study and which sustains us, which will not depart from your mouth nor from the mouth of your seed, from now and forever. This is a covenant of salt, that the people of Israel will not be lost, and their seed will not be lost, and their name will not cease forever. And indeed, on the very plain meaning of the text here, there is Rashi who says 'this covenant, this is My covenant with them.' Rashi says: I forged a covenant with them that even in their exile the Torah will not be forgotten. There is no need to worry that the Torah will be forgotten; there is a covenant, the Torah will never be forgotten. The Radak brings that the spirit of prophecy is what is stated, that this is the covenant that I forged with them, that they will have the spirit of prophecy, and according to the Radak this speaks of the future. Not as the Malbim explained, that until the redeemer comes, what will sustain us; according to the Radak it says 'and as for Me, this is My covenant with them,' I forged a covenant that they will have the spirit of prophecy, and as it is written, 'your prophets will see visions, your young men will dream dreams,' and so on. That is to say, I will pour out My spirit upon mankind, there will be an aspect of the spirit of prophecy for all of Israel, I will pour out My spirit upon all flesh, and this prophecy will be a prophecy that does not cease. 'Will not depart from your mouth nor from the mouth of your seed nor from the mouth of your seed's seed forever,' all will know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them. 'My spirit that is upon you,' this is a spirit of purity that the Holy One, blessed be He, will spread in the world; I will place My spirit within you, the Holy One, blessed be He, will crush all the idols, all the corrupted views, all the corrupted outlooks. Therefore I always say, do not be alarmed. Do not be alarmed. When a person walks with a million-dollar diamond in his pocket, he never worries that he has nothing to eat now for breakfast. I have a million-dollar diamond in my pocket, I am calm. Yes, but you have nothing to eat. It does not matter, I am calm, I have a million-dollar diamond in my pocket. We have a million-dollar diamond in our pocket. Let the High Court say what it wants, let Netanyahu do what he pleases, let that one do what he wants, we are not impressed by it, they are all fleeting. The holy Torah is eternal. Judaism is eternal, the word of Hashem is eternal, prophecy is eternal. So what does it matter that enemies have arisen against us? Where is Achashverosh, where is Pharaoh, where is Nevuchadnetzar? All of them, all of them are in the garbage bin of history. So why are people alarmed? This one said such and such, and that one will now impose criminal sanctions, economic sanctions. True, it makes things harder, it makes things harder, it requires more coping, but to be alarmed by them? The wind will carry them all away. When a person hears such prophecies and sees that the people of Israel survive beyond nature, then, if so, we fear nothing, we are alarmed by nothing, we know that ultimately 'My spirit that is upon you, and My words that I have placed in your mouth' are what will remain forever, and all the rest is fleeting. May Hashem so grant us merit and redeem us with a complete redemption speedily, amen and amen.