In this lesson, we examine two verses in the first chapter of Shir HaShirim, depicting a dialogue between Keneset Yisrael and the Ruach HaKodesh. Keneset Yisrael poses a painful question: Why has it been decreed upon her to wander to the doors of others in search of her livelihood? The response she receives seems, at first glance, to merely repeat the question itself. The sefer Zera Shimshon offers a wonderful insight here, grounding the entire discussion in a single fundamental question: What exactly remains for us of the gift of Eretz Yisrael, and what is the role of the Land toward its inhabitants?
הַגִּידָה לִּי שֶׁאָהֲבָה נַפְשִׁי אֵיכָה תִרְעֶה אֵיכָה תַּרְבִּיץ בַּצׇּהֳרָיִם שַׁלָּמָה אֶהְיֶה כְּעֹטְיָה עַל עֶדְרֵי חֲבֵרֶיךָ׃ (א, ז) - Tell me, you whom my soul loves: Where do you pasture? Where do you rest your flock at noon? For why should I be like one veiled beside the flocks of your companions?
Keneset Yisrael argues that it is unjust for her to have to wander and beg for her sustenance from one to another. She points to a familiar reality: the people of Eretz Yisrael who lack sufficient sustenance of their own and must be supported by others. There were rabbinic emissaries (shadarim), such as the Chida and others, who traveled throughout the world to collect charity and sustain the kolelim in Jerusalem. Here is a reality where servants of Hashem and Torah scholars have no livelihood and nothing to eat. And this is the cry: "Why should I be like one veiled beside the flocks of your companions?" - why must I wander among the flocks of others and seek my livelihood from them?
אִם־לֹא תֵדְעִי לָךְ הַיָּפָה בַּנָּשִׁים צְאִי־לָךְ בְּעִקְבֵי הַצֹּאן וּרְעִי אֶת־גְּדִיֹּתַיִךְ עַל מִשְׁכְּנוֹת הָרֹעִים׃ (א, ח) - If you do not know, fairest of women, go follow the footsteps of the sheep, and graze your kids beside the shepherds' tents.
The Ruach HaKodesh answers her: "Go follow the footsteps of the sheep, and graze your kids beside the shepherds' tents" - go and take from others. The difficulty immediately arises: What kind of answer is this? On the contrary, that was her very complaint! She asked why she must go take from others, and she is told in response: Yes, go and take from others. It is astonishing.
There is also a second difficulty: What is the relevance of "fairest of women" here? What does calling her "fairest of women" add? What does she care whether she is beautiful or not if she has no bread to eat? Keneset Yisrael laments that she has no livelihood, and she is told, "but you are beautiful" - will that satisfy her hunger? It appears, however, that the words "fairest of women" are the very resolution that the Ruach HaKodesh provides to Keneset Yisrael regarding the inhabitants of Eretz Yisrael, answering her question, "Why should I be like one veiled?"
It is stated in the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 187:3) that if one did not mention Brit (covenant) and Torah in Birkat HaAretz (the blessing for the Land in Birkat HaMazon), he must repeat it. The reason, as the commentators explain, is that the Land was given for the sake of circumcision and the Torah. You express gratitude "for the land and for the food" - but you possess a land only in the merit of Brit Milah, and you possess a land only in the merit of the Torah. If you mentioned neither covenant nor Torah, on what basis do you mention the Land? You have no claim to it. (As for the practical halachah, those interested may hear this discussed in the lessons on the Shulchan Aruch, where this matter was addressed.)
Incidentally, this aligns closely with what the holy Zohar states: when the Jewish people return to inherit their Land, the descendants of Yishmael will await them here and will not allow them to take possession of it. They will wage great wars against them, and it will be a time of distress for Israel, until the Jewish people cry out and Hashem hears their plea. The Zohar describes the exact reality of our region today. And how long will they hinder Israel? Until the merit of circumcision runs out, for the descendants of Yishmael are circumcised as well. However, their merit is only temporary, specifically "when the Land of Israel is empty" - during the period when Eretz Yisrael is barren. Arab farmers settled here for hundreds of years while the land lay desolate, and even today it is still relatively empty, as the majority of the Jewish people remain in the diaspora. The reason, says the Zohar, is that their covenant itself is "empty," since they do not perform periah, and one who circumcises without periah is considered as though uncircumcised. Just as their covenant is empty, so too their claim to the Land exists only while it is empty. But once Eretz Yisrael is filled with its inhabitants, their claim is lost. From this we learn that in order to merit the Land, the covenant of Milah is required.
According to the opinion of the Levush, women should not mention the covenant (brit), because they are not subject to circumcision. However, they should mention the Torah, since they are obligated in many mitzvot and must know the laws applicable to them. In practice, our halachah is that women should also mention the brit, for two reasons: First, the Gemara states, "A woman is considered as if circumcised" - a man is born uncircumcised and requires the rectification of circumcision, whereas a woman is born perfected. Second, a woman does not express thanks for herself alone, but for all of Am Yisrael, who were privileged to receive the mitzvah of circumcision. This is also why, according to Rabbeinu Tam, women recite the blessing "...Who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us..." upon taking the lulav - who commanded you? Hashem commanded all of Am Yisrael. Here too, Hashem commanded all of Am Yisrael concerning the covenant.
Yet regarding the Torah, even the Levush agrees that she should mention it. Now, you might ask: a man is obligated in the toil of Torah study, while a woman is not obligated! True, in the ongoing engagement of Torah of "and you shall meditate upon it day and night," a woman is not obligated, but she is certainly obligated to study the halachot that apply to her. Once she is completely proficient in all the laws of family purity, the kashrut of the kitchen, and everything relevant to her, she is free from then on to read recipes. But a man, even if he were to claim, "I am proficient in the entire Torah," has no excuses: he must come to the beit midrash and engage in Torah, for "you shall meditate upon it day and night" leaves not a single free moment. This is also why women recite the morning blessings over the Torah, even though some authorities suggested they should not recite them because they are not obligated to study. While it is true they are not obligated in the constant study of Torah, Torah study does apply to them regarding the laws entrusted to them.
The reason why two such weighty mitzvot were required to merit the Land of Israel, rather than just one, is explained by the author of Sefer Kevod Chachamim (Berachot, chapter 1, section 21): it is because there are two distinct gifts. The first is the gift of the Land through the excellence of its produce. The second gift, far greater than the first, is that there is a holy place uniquely designated there for elevating all of our prayers, good deeds, and Torah study, and our souls also ascend through there; from that place, divine abundance flows to the entire world.
The first gift is the extraordinary fruit of the Land. The second gift is the Beit HaMikdash - a sanctified place within the Land of Israel toward which we pray, Jerusalem the Holy City, the Holy of Holies, which is the gateway to Heaven, where the Shechinah rests between the two cherubim. From there, abundance flows to the entire world, as we have mentioned more than once based on the holy Or HaChaim: if the nations of the world only knew the greatness of the Beit HaMikdash and how much abundance it channeled to them, they would have dispatched legions to guard it so that it would never be destroyed.
Now, the gift of the fruits comes in the merit of circumcision (milah), as the Gemara teaches: From where do we know that circumcision is performed on that organ? Just as there [with a tree] it refers to the place that produces fruit, so too here, it refers to the place that produces fruit. The Torah says, "And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin," and from the plain meaning of the verses we would have no way of knowing where circumcision should take place. One might have thought to circumcise a piece of the ear, as it is written, "their ear is uncircumcised," or from the heart, as it is written, "and circumcise the foreskin of your heart." The Gemara presents several possibilities and derives it via a gezeirah shavah (textual analogy) linking the word "orlato" to the fruit tree: just as there it refers to the place that produces fruit, so too here it refers to the place that produces fruit - the organ of reproduction that brings forth offspring.
Correspondingly, when the Jewish people were righteous, the Land of Israel produced an abundance of exquisite fruit, immense in both quantity and quality, as our Sages recounted in Tractate Ketubot regarding the extraordinary size of the fruits in the Land of Israel. But through our many sins, when they failed to preserve their covenant in purity, the fruits suffered and lost their preeminence. Thus, physical bounty depends directly upon the holiness of the covenant.
Yet the sanctity remains in place forever, for "their sanctity remains even when they are desolate." The resting of the Shechinah was never diminished: it is forbidden to ascend the Temple Mount even today, the Temple Mount still retains its full sanctity, the Shechinah has never departed from the site of the Beit HaMikdash, and this remains the gateway to Heaven. Although the excellence of the fruits diminished, the second excellence - the dimension of holiness - did not diminish. This is because this gift comes in the merit of the Torah, and Torah is still studied here, and "there is no Torah like the Torah of the Land of Israel." It is widely known that the greatest Torah luminaries developed specifically here in the Land of Israel, for "out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of Hashem from Jerusalem."
Consequently, even the inhabitants of the Land of Israel now possess only the gift that corresponds to the Torah, making them comparable to women, who according to that view do not mention the brit in the blessing of the Land. Consider what remains of the gift of the Land of Israel: the fruits, which correspond to the brit, no longer possess their former glory; yet the dimension of sanctity remains, for the Shechinah never departed from the site of the Beit HaMikdash, which exists in the merit of the Torah. Thus, we are left without the fruit of the brit and remain only with the Torah - placing us in the position of women.
And at the end of Masechet Ta'anit we say that the beautiful among them would say: "A woman is only for beauty." And similarly in the second chapter of Shabbat: "A beautiful wife for a talmid chacham." The Maharsha explained that even beauty in a woman is for the sake of Heaven, meaning that someone who has a beautiful wife is certainly free and saved from all improper thoughts. And concerning a beautiful wife it was said: "It is enough for us that they raise our children and save us from sin."
We see many times that the Torah mentions "and she was beautiful of form"; thus the Torah attributes importance to beauty. This importance stems from the fact that one of a wife's purposes, beyond procreation, is to save a person from sin, so that a man does not set his eyes on another woman. And so it is with the captive woman of beautiful form (eshet yefat to'ar): she does not have the virtue of raising our children for Torah study, but she does save a person from sin. Through this, the Sages' statement is explained - "The Torah spoke only against the yetzer hara": a wife possesses two virtues, one against the yetzer hara and the second that she raises our children for Torah. With a captive woman, from whom a wayward and rebellious son may emerge, the virtue of raising sons for Torah is absent - so what remains? "The Torah spoke only against the yetzer hara": take her, for at least she will save you from the yetzer hara.
However, this must be stated with caution: in the Malbim's words it was "certainly", but for us, unfortunately, reality is not always like that. Even if a person has a wife, and even a beautiful wife, if he does not fence himself in, he will still continue looking outside. The "bread in his basket" will not soothe him, for one driven by desire grows accustomed to the bread in his basket and seeks what he is not used to. There is no automatic guarantee here; there is inner work. Nevertheless, when he has bread in his basket, he at least has a chance to be guarded and saved through it.
And indeed, regarding Eretz Yisrael it is written, "and His land shall atone for His people," and "the people who dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity." For the Land is like a wife with her husband, whose role was to save her inhabitants from all sin and transgression. The Land, as it were, atones for the sins of its dwellers. Rabbi Yitzchak said in the Midrash: Dwelling in Eretz Yisrael is great before the Holy One, blessed be He, for its ground is holy and its dust is holy, and it abounds in mitzvot - terumot and ma'asrot, Shemittah and bikkurim - and whoever observes its mitzvot properly, it atones for his sins, as it is written, "and His land shall atone for His people."
Notice the condition: "whoever observes its mitzvot properly." There was a certain scholar in the 1940s who, when waves of immigrants arrived who unfortunately cast off the yoke of Torah, expounded the verse "And you came and defiled My land" to mean "Come, even though you defile My land." Immediately, another sage arose and objected: How could one distort the text this way? In the prophet this is stated as a rebuke and an indictment, not permission! Furthermore, it is written that when you defile the Land, the Land will vomit you out; what purpose is there in coming and defiling it, only for the Land to vomit you out? Certainly it is not as he claimed. So too here, regarding "and His land shall atone for His people" - do not think that you can bring transgressors here and that is all, that one simply walks in Eretz Yisrael and all his sins are atoned for. That is clearly a distortion and inconceivable, for the Midrash emphasizes: "and whoever observes its mitzvot properly."
Thus we find that the Land and a wife share the same purpose: a wife saves a person from sin, and the Land atones for iniquity. Incidentally, it is fascinating that both the woman and the Land correspond to the aspect of Malchut, and there is a deep connection between them. As we find, "a woman is passive ground (karka olam)" - there is an aspect of ground, of land, and of woman, and we see parallels between them in Kabbalah.
And the Land is like a wife with her husband, whose role was to save her inhabitants from all sin and transgression. Since she did not save them, and they sinned, she lacks the strength to sustain her inhabitants and children. They must go into exile among their brethren who sinned and were exiled on account of the Land, which was supposed to be the "fairest among women" and save them from all sin - but did not do so. And because iniquity caused this, they are forced to go and wander among the nations to obtain sustenance: "and graze your kids beside the shepherds' tents."
And it is written, "And I will scatter you among the nations, and your land shall be desolate." What is the meaning of "and your land shall be desolate"? As it were, the Land itself suffers harm. Rashi likewise explained on the verse "Cursed is the ground because of you" - a parable of one who went astray, and people curse the breasts that nursed him. Why do they curse the ground? Who raised you! And so too here: when her children are exiled from the Land, the Land as it were receives a curse - what kind of land raised such people, what kind of land produced such sinners? Especially since the role of the Land, like the role of a wife, is to save from sin and atone for it - and when she failed to do so, the claim is leveled against her.
And I saw another approach to this. The Maharsha explains the Sages' statement, "Jerusalem was destroyed on account of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza." Everyone asks: What was Kamtza's fault? Bar Kamtza, fine, he was a troublemaker, but what do you have against Kamtza? Why does it not say "Jerusalem was destroyed on account of Bar Kamtza"? The Maharsha answers simply: Kamtza and Bar Kamtza were father and son, and the claim against Kamtza is: How could you father and raise a son like Bar Kamtza? Such a corrupt son, who was capable of going and informing on his fellow Jews to the emperor and bringing an army to destroy the Beit HaMikdash? This is precisely as cited above: people curse the breasts that nursed him. You are his father - observe, "And the daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the harlot, she profanes her father" - from where did he acquire these base natures and flawed character traits?
And this is what the verse means by "If you do not know" - if you do not know why you must go out and sustain yourself from others, the reason is that you ought to have been like "the fairest among women," who protects her husband from sin. You ask why we are forced into exile, and why the Land is further cursed when her children are exiled from her? Because you were meant to be "the fairest among women" and protect your children from sin. And now that they have sinned and been exiled, you too must follow them and seek sustenance. Thus, when the inhabitants of the Land go into exile, it is as though the Land itself goes with them, for the inhabitants of the Land are considered the Land itself: when a person says, "I met people in such-and-such a land," he refers to its inhabitants, and when the inhabitants are exiled, it is as if the Land itself is exiled.
Therefore it says, "Go forth" - meaning, do not take from someone who is begrudging or gives reluctantly, but rather from those who give with a generous heart and gracious goodwill, who leave an imprint of that charity in holiness, like sheep that leave footprints wherever they walk. "The tracks of the sheep" (ikvei hatzon) are places where an imprint and mark remain, hinting at those people whose charity makes an impact in holiness. This does not mean they impress people, but rather that they make an impression in Heaven and produce spiritual effects on High: when you give in holiness, with good intention, not to aggrandize yourself or to impress others, it leaves its proper mark. It was toward such people, whose charity leaves tracks in Heaven - charity of the highest order - that the Holy Spirit directed her to go forth.
"And graze your kid goats beside the shepherds' dwellings" - this means that the shepherds themselves, namely the donors, will also be elevated and grow great. The charity they give to the poor is like shepherds feeding the flock, and "your kid goats" (gediyotayich) shares a root with growth and greatness (gedilah), indicating that they too will be elevated. "Beside the dwellings" (mishkenot) indicates that they will reside in magnificent and beautiful homes by merit of their charity. When they give with a generous heart and a good eye, in that merit those shepherds will be granted great dwellings.
And redemption comes solely in the merit of compassion, as it is written: "And with great compassion I will gather you." And in the merit of compassion means that through the inhabitants of the Diaspora having compassion on those who come to receive charity from them, they will merit redemption. We usually understand "and with great compassion I will gather you" as referring to the compassion of the Holy One, Blessed be He, and so it is; yet in order to merit the compassion of Hashem, may He be blessed, a person must first be compassionate oneself, for whoever has compassion on others is shown compassion from Heaven.
As it is written: "And He will grant you compassion and have compassion on you." How does one merit "and have compassion on you"? By being compassionate. There, the verse refers to one who went and executed judgment upon a subverted city (ir hanidachat), and as the holy Ohr HaChaim explains - as discussed in the lessons on that subject - executing the inhabitants of an ir hanidachat naturally engenders cruelty in the heart. How then will such a person merit Hashem's mercy? Hashem says: Since you fulfilled My commandment, I will place compassion in your heart, and through this I will have compassion on you, for I do not have compassion on the cruel. Therefore, I must first grant you compassion in your heart, and only then will I have compassion on you. So too here: "And with great compassion I will gather you" - Hashem activates the attribute of mercy to gather us, and therefore we must possess the attribute of compassion within ourselves; then we become worthy of the awakening of Hashem's compassion. And those who dwell there in the "shepherds' dwellings," who give, bestow, and act with compassion - they themselves will merit redemption and return to the Holy Land. How wondrous!
Kenesset Yisrael cries out, "Why should I be like one veiled beside the flocks of your companions?" and the Holy Spirit answers, "If you do not know, O fairest among women." The Land of Israel was given in the merit of two mitzvot - circumcision (brit milah) and Torah - corresponding to her two gifts: the excellence of her produce corresponds to circumcision, and the sanctity of the place of the Temple corresponds to Torah. The produce suffered when the covenant was not upheld, while the sanctity remains intact by merit of the Torah, leaving us akin to women [in Birkot HaMazon] who do not mention the covenant but mention Torah. The role of the Land mirrors that of the virtuous, beautiful wife - to protect her inhabitants from sin; and once they failed to be saved and were exiled, she too goes out with them. Therefore she is told: "Follow the tracks of the sheep" - receive specifically from those who give with a generous heart and goodwill, whose charity leaves an imprint of holiness; and the donors themselves will be elevated and granted dwellings, and in the merit of compassion the redemption will arrive, for whoever has compassion on others is shown compassion from Heaven.