English translation — בלק ד

A.

The law¹

is that the haftarah of a parshah must be “me’inyan haparshah,”

and even more — “me’ein” of the <b>conclusion</b> of the parshah².

So too the connection of Parshas Balak with its haftarah is seemingly clear: in the haftarah³

it is told how the Almighty says to Jews: “Ami zechar na mah ya’atz Balak melech Moav umah anah oto Bilam ben Be’or min haShitim gilah” — which is the content of Parshas Balak.

It is however understood - and particularly according to the known⁴,

that originally the haftarah came in place of the entire reading of the Torah - that the connection between the haftarah and the weekly portion is not only in a single verse,

but in its general content; and according to the known⁵

that the content of a matter is hinted at in its beginning <b>and beginning,</b>

it is understandable,

that there is a connection between the beginning of the haftarah⁶

- "And the remnant of Jacob shall be among many peoples etc. who shall not hope for a man nor rely on sons of man" - with

(the conclusion)

the portion of Balak.

B.

The haftarah speaks about the time of the <b>beginning</b> of the redemption.

D.

H.

Not about the time when it will already be "Moshiach certainly",

after he will have completed all wars and "I will turn⁷

to the peoples etc. to serve Him⁸

with one accord"⁹

- because in the haftarah it is told how wars will be waged with the nations,

the nations of the world - "And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations etc. like a lion among beasts of the forest etc. and he shall trample and tear etc."¹⁰

Further: not only will there be in this time mentioned in the haftarah still evil from the outside - from the nations of the world,

but there is still evil from within - among Jews themselves,

as he says¹¹,

"And I will cut off sorceries from your hand etc. and I will cut off your idols etc. and I will uproot your asherahs etc."; and this evil is with such intensity,

that one must come to an assistance from above in order to be rid of it,

as the verse is precise: "And I will cut off",

"And I will uproot",

Because the haftarah speaks about the time of the beginning of the redemption,

when there will be the final preparations for the complete redemption.

So also the parshah,

Parshas Balak,

speaks about a similar time,

before entering the Land of Israel for the first time; Jews were then already "in the plains of Moav across the Yarden from Yericho"¹²,

ready to enter the Land of Israel,

in the pattern of the entry into the Land of Israel at the future redemption; and especially according to the known¹³

that were it not for the sin,

then at the first entry into the Land of Israel there would have been the complete redemption.

Gimel.

The preparation for the redemption is,

as he says at the beginning of the haftarah,

"who does not hope for man nor wait for sons of man": although it is still <b>before</b> the complete redemption,

nevertheless the order will be that one will not need to rely on nor need to turn to people — which includes also Jews,

as it says¹⁴

"Cursed is the man who trusts in man",

and "you are called 'man'"¹⁵

— rather one will rely only on the Most High,

and as it is written¹⁶

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord".

Since the verse speaks about the time of the beginning of the redemption,

it is understood,

that with that which it says "he will not hope for a man, G-d",

the verse negates not only a conduct that is <b>forbidden</b>,

a conduct <b>opposite</b> the Torah - about which it says "<b>Cursed</b> is the man who trusts in man" - but even a conduct of "he will hope for a man" which has a place according to the Torah,

will then also not be;

It says¹⁷

however "and the L-rd your G-d will bless you in <b>all that you do</b>",

and the Sifri¹⁸

interprets it: "One might think he should sit¹⁹

idle, therefore the verse says 'in all that you do'."

That

is

that according to the <b>Torah</b> one must make a vessel in the way of nature²⁰,

and "one does not rely on a miracle"²¹

; and since in the way of nature one must come to "a man" - and even to non-Jews, be it differentiated - there is therefore a place according to the Torah for the conduct of "he will hope for a man".

- It is not a contradiction from this to the statement "Cursed is the man who trusts in man" - because when one makes a natural vessel,

one does not trust in the ways of nature

("he hopes for man")

&lt;b&gt;in themselves,&lt;/b&gt;

rather one trusts in the &lt;b&gt;Above,&lt;/b&gt;

that &lt;b&gt;He &lt;/b&gt;will help him &lt;b&gt;through &lt;/b&gt;the vessel and garment that he has prepared in the way of nature&lt;sup&gt;22&lt;/sup&gt;.

And in this consists the task of the time of the Redemption: then it will be "&lt;b&gt;the lot from the L-rd &lt;/b&gt;etc." - "that nothing comes into the world through man, and men will not seek it, so too Israel will not hope for the help of a person, but only for the L-rd"&lt;sup&gt;23&lt;/sup&gt;.

In the manner of Chassidus

interprets the verse

"It is good to take refuge in the Lord rather than trust in man" - from the language "It is good to take refuge in the Lord rather than trust in man" it is understood,

that also "trust in man" is permitted and a way of conduct,

only "to take refuge in the Lord" is better -

that "trust in man" means in the Supernal Man,

the aspect of the One who fills all worlds,

that from the perspective of the level of the One who fills all worlds a person must exert himself to make a vessel and garment in the ways of nature in which the blessing of God should dwell

; and therefore "it is good to take refuge in the Lord",

the aspect of the One who transcends all worlds,

that from that level there need not be exertion in the ways of nature,

rather "and He will sustain you",

the Almighty also makes the vessel

4.

The ultimate intention is not that the conduct of nature should become <b>nullified</b>,

but on the contrary,

to clarify and elevate the conduct of nature²⁸,

until it should be revealed to all eyes that also nature is unified with the Most High.

From this it is understood in our matter,

that the plain meaning of "he will not hope for a man" is not that the help of the "man" will be nullified,

but that then nature itself will be in the ultimate unity with His G‑dliness,

until one will see in it

(not the help of a man,

but)

<b>only</b> the help of G‑d:

In this matter of "which you shall do" there can be two modes:

a)

Although he knows that nature in and of itself has no existence,

it is only "like an axe in the hand of the hewer"²²,

nevertheless,

since the Almighty commanded that it should be — "you shall do",

one should make a vessel in the way of nature,

nature occupies a place for him; indeed not from the perspective of nature itself — but from the perspective of the command of the Holy One, blessed be He, nature receives a <b>significance</b> in his eyes²⁹.

b)

He does [it] in nature only because the Above has so commanded,

but it occupies no place by him,

because he sees in it <b>only </b>a means to carry out the ratzon haBoreh³⁰.

Which is the explanation³¹

in the maamar of our sages, may their memory be blessed,³²

on the verse³³

"And the faithfulness of your times [shall be] etc.,"

that "faithfulness — this is the Order of Seeds — 'he believes in the Life of the worlds and sows'":

Although this is a natural matter that when one sows, one causes growth,

and there is no difference who is sowing—whether a Jew or, to distinguish, a non-Jew,

or even if it comes through a kernel that falls into the ground by itself

(not through human action)

— it is <b>in the nature</b> of the earth to cause growth;

And even more: the nature has become fixed in the earth in a manner,

as it is written³⁴,

"Seed and harvest etc. <b>shall not cease</b>" —

Nevertheless,

after all this,

nature does not receive any importance and place of grasp by a Jew; and when he sows he does this not because according to nature sowing will bring growth,

but &lt;b&gt;only &lt;/b&gt;because he is „&lt;b&gt;believer in the Eternal Life&lt;/b&gt;” therefore „and he sows”.

H.

The difference between the two above-mentioned conducts is not only in the manner &lt;b&gt;and in the feeling &lt;/b&gt;of the attribute of trust,

but from this also becomes „drawn down” a difference in actual conduct in thought speech and deed:

During the "asher ta'aseh" is for him a reality by itself,

nature occupies for him a place,

then are for him the "ta'aseh" and Torah and mitzvos two &lt;b&gt;separate &lt;/b&gt;matters.

And when it comes to a contradiction between Torah and mitzvos and the involvement in natural ways

- for example: if he will lengthen in prayer - he can lose acquaintances, his business, etc.; if he will be meticulous in giving charity in abundance - will him possibly lack money to invest in business,

and so forth -

Is this by him a matter of "and nation from nation will be strengthened"³⁵

: Even when he forgoes the involvement in the natural ways

(Knowing that "the blessing of the Lord it enriches"³⁶

and natural ways are only a vessel and garment for "the blessing of the Lord")

and does in innocence - is this all in a manner of war and overcoming the animal soul; and there always remains the possibility of "and nation from nation will be strengthened" conversely,

G-d forbid - that the opposing side should prevail.

But when the "you shall do" occupies by him no place,

He does it only in order to fulfill the will of the Creator - is by him this itself a matter of service of the Lord: by him is the "and all your deeds"³⁷

and "in all your ways"³⁸

Not a separate thing from "for the sake of Heaven"³⁷

and "know Him"³⁸,

Rather they are permeated with the "for the sake of Heaven" and "know Him",

Until it is all one.

And since by him there is no reality outside the supernal will,

it is understandable,

that one commandment cannot be in contradiction to another commandment,

but on the contrary: "one mitzvah brings another mitzvah"³⁹.

6.

The difference between the two conducts does not begin in an open "actual action" — that the evil inclination should from the outset come to persuade a Jew that he should, G-d forbid, transgress the supernal will — but from a "hair's breadth": "today" at the beginning the evil inclination is, so to speak, in agreement that involvement in the ways of nature must not be in contradiction to the fulfillment of Torah and mitzvot,

he only emphasizes that Torah gives a place and an importance to nature; but "tomorrow",

finally,

he makes the ways of nature into a main thing.

And as explained by the Rebbe, my father-in-law, the Admor

in the statement of our Sages

"Such is the nature of the evil inclination: today it says to him, do <b>such</b>": The evil inclination does not begin to persuade a Jew that he should do the <b>opposite</b> of his true will

(and transgress, heaven forbid, the supernal will),

on the contrary,

it says to him "do <b>such</b>": it <b>agrees</b> that the Jew should fulfill Torah and mitzvos,

explains to him how it is proper according to the intellect of the animal soul and the inclination; and through the fact that it mixes its own existence into the fulfillment of Torah and mitzvos and accustoms him that he needs to have in this its

(the evil inclination's)

consent,

it leads to that "and tomorrow it says, etc., until it says to him, serve idols."

And therefore the way to protect oneself properly from the schemes of the evil inclination,

is not through service according to reason and intellect - because reason and intellect give a place for the existence of nature; rather through self-nullification and submission of the soul to the supernal will,

above reason and intellect,

so that then there is for him no existence apart from the supernal will.

(the above section 3)

between "to take refuge in G-d" and "trust in man":

From the aspect of the level of "trust in man",

from of itself

(whose example in the service of man is a service according to reason and understanding),

must be the effort in natural ways,

because regarding &lt;b&gt;the &lt;/b&gt;level they have a grasp of place;

But not so from the aspect of "to take refuge &lt;b&gt;in Havayah&lt;/b&gt;",

the aspect of Sovev Kol Almin

(and in the service of man — self-nullification that is above intellect and comprehension),

the ways of nature have no place of grasp,

and therefore the order is — "and He will sustain you": there are indeed "vessels",

but they come from above.

&lt;b&gt;In a similar manner &lt;/b&gt;as discussed earlier,

that even when the person acts through natural means, they have no reality for him,

until it is not possible to say that there is "help of a man",

because the ways of nature are one with the Supernal One].

And this is that the preparation for the redemption is "he will not hope for a man etc.": then one will entirely remove the concealment and hiding of nature,

until one will see with physical flesh how nature itself is Elokus; and therefore then will be the order "like dew from Havayah etc. he will not hope for a man nor wait for the children of man"

7.

According to the above, one will understand the connection of the haftorah to the conclusion of Parshas Balak,

where it tells about the sin of Baal Peor,

and how the &lt;b&gt;mesiras nefesh&lt;/b&gt;&lt;sup&gt;43&lt;/sup&gt;

of Pinchas rectified the sin

(and as it is written&lt;sup&gt;44&lt;/sup&gt;

"and he made atonement for the children of Israel")

It is explained in Chassidus&lt;sup&gt;45&lt;/sup&gt;,

that the root of the sin of Baal Peor — "they defecate etc. and bring out excrement and this is its service"&lt;sup&gt;46&lt;/sup&gt;

— is that one gives importance to physical pleasures,

which are only the waste of the pleasure from above.

How does it happen that one makes a main thing of

(physical pleasures)

waste?

This comes from the fact that the ways of nature occupy a place in him as mentioned above,

and this leads to him becoming, G-d forbid, immersed in physical matters.

With this is also understood the statement of our Sages of blessed memory⁴⁷

regarding the atonement for the sin of Baal Peor,

that "until now it has not moved, but stands and atones until the dead will be resurrected" - because the purification and atonement in completeness of this sin will only be in the future,

when there will be the completion of the clarification in nature and one will recognize that nature is absolutely unified with Divinity,

and consequently there will not be the possibility of making a main thing of physical matters.

And therefore the atonement comes through the self-sacrifice of Pinchas,

such a self-sacrifice about which the Torah itself says "we do not instruct [to do so]"⁴⁸,

and even from this Pinchas is not affected and sacrifices himself.

Which this is a self-sacrifice above nature and reason even of holiness.

And as discussed earlier,

that specifically through nullification above nature and reason

(even of holiness)

can one properly protect oneself not to separate between nature and G‑dliness,

although the Torah says "and the L‑rd your G‑d will bless you in all that you do."

8.

With this is also understood the connection of the above matter to the entry into the Land of Israel

(which very close to the time of the entry were the events of Parshat Balak,

as above section 2)

In the desert was the manna — a miraculous conduct where it was not possible to make a mistake that human action could accomplish something in it,

and as it is written⁴⁹

"And he who gathered much did not have more, and he who gathered little did not have less,"

and the manna was only for the day,

it required complete trust,

the matter of the day in its day⁵⁰,

in the L-rd;

But not so after the entry into the Land of Israel,

when there began⁵¹

the order of service of "a land <b>inhabited</b>"⁵²

— one needed first to secure the matter of "Baal Peor,"

that although an order according to nature begins,

then also must be "he shall not hope for a man, etc.": one should know that nature is not an independent entity,

and also then is required the <b>same</b> trust in the Most High,

as it was in the desert.

9.

This is also the instruction in the last days of the time of exile,

when one prepares oneself for the entry into the Land of Israel by means of Mashiach our righteousness:

Although one still stands in the darkness double and multiplied⁵³

of the time of <b>exile</b>,

<b>the opposite</b> of the beginning of redemption⁵⁴

- and as one sees tangibly - nevertheless,

since all matters of the future are "dependent on our deeds and service all the time of the duration of the exile"⁵⁵

- And specifically in our generation, when one makes the final preparations for the redemption through Mashiach our righteous one,

And as the saying of the Rebbe, my father-in-law, the Rebbe⁵⁶

that Mashiach is "standing behind our wall"⁵⁷,

and even more: the "walls" of the exile are already burning⁵⁸

there must be a kind

(at least)

of the service of "he shall not hope for a man, etc." in the service of each and every one,

that the ways of nature must not have any importance,

and the trust must be only in the One Above,

And through this, each one becomes "redeemed" from worries and matters that confuse — because when one does in this "in all that you do" only for the sake of carrying out the supernal will,

one is not troubled in this and it does not confuse etc. — he is only concerned with carrying out the supernal will;

And the private redemption⁵⁹

that is brought about by each and every one,

is also the preparation and vessel for the general redemption through our righteous Mashiach,

until the "day that is entirely Shabbat and rest for life everlasting"⁶⁰.

(From the talk of Shabbos Parshas Balak 5723)