"Yah is my strength and song"

230. "Yah is my strength and song" (Shemot 15:2). Rabbi Chiya opened the discussion, saying: "You have beset me behind and before, and You placed Your hand on me" (Tehilim 139:5). How much must a person honor the Holy One, blessed be He, because when He created the world, He saw that man would dominate everything, and he was similar to those above and those below. He lowered him to the world in a glorious form and the creatures saw him, gathered, and bowed before him. And a fear and terror fell upon them because of the fear of him. This is the meaning of, "And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the air" (Beresheet 9:2).

231. He brought him into the garden that He planted to guard it, and so that he should have joy upon joy, and delight in it. He made for him a canopy covered with precious stones, and the supernal angels used to rejoice before him. Afterwards, He commanded him not to eat of one tree, but he did not heed the commandment of his Master.

232. I found in the Book of Enoch that, after the Holy One, blessed be He, elevated ENOCH and showed him all the treasures of the King, those above and those below, He showed him the Tree of Life and the tree that Adam was cautioned against. And He showed him the place of Adam in the Garden of Eden. And he saw that if Adam had observed this commandment, OF THE TREE OF KNOWLEDGE OF GOOD AND EVIL, he could have lived forever and always been there. He did not observe the commandment of his Master, so he was judged and punished.

233. Rabbi Yitzchak said, Adam was created with two faces, and this was the way they explained it: "And He took one of his sides" (Beresheet 2:21). The Holy One, blessed be He, has sown it and it became two, from the east and from the west, ADAM FROM THE EAST AND EVE FROM THE WEST. This is what is written, "You have beset me behind and before." "Behind" is west and "before" is east.

234. Rabbi Chiya said, What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He prepared that female, perfected her beauty, and brought her to Adam. This is what is written, "And of the side, which Hashem Elohim has taken from the man, He made a woman" (Ibid. 22). Come and behold, it is written above, "And He took one of his sides." What is "one?" It is as in, "My dove, My undefiled is but one; she is the only one of her mother" (Shir Hashirim 6:9), WHICH IS MALCHUT. "Of his sides," MEANING from his sides, as it is written, "And for the second side of the tabernacle" (Shemot 26:20), BECAUSE SHE WAS TAKEN FROM THE LEFT SIDE.

235. Rabbi Yehuda said, The Holy One, blessed be He, placed a supernal soul in Adam and included in it wisdom and understanding to know everything. HE ASKS, From which place did He give him a soul? Rabbi Yitzchak said, From the place the other souls come from, NAMELY BINAH, FOR THE LIGHT OF BINAH IS CALLED 'NESHAMAH.'

236. Rabbi Yehuda said, We understand it from here, as it is written, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures (lit. 'Nefesh')" (Beresheet 1:24). HE ASKS, From which place in the earth? HE ANSWERS, From the place where the Temple is located, BECAUSE EARTH IS MALCHUT, AND THE PLACE OF THE TEMPLE IS BINAH, THAT IS IN IT. "Living soul" (Heb. Nefesh) is simply written, "living soul," WITHOUT EXPLAINING WHOSE SOUL. AND HE SAYS, This is the Nefesh of Adam who was first of all.

237. Rabbi Chiya said, Adam knew supernal Wisdom more than the supernal angels, and he gazed into everything and knew and recognized his Master more than all the inhabitants of the world. After he sinned, the wellsprings of Wisdom became stopped for him. It is written, "And Hashem Elohim sent him out of the Garden of Eden to till the ground" (Beresheet 3:23).

238. Rabbi Aba said, Adam emerged from Male and Female, NAMELY ZEIR ANPIN AND NUKVA. This is what is written, "And Elohim said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness'" (Beresheet 1:26). Therefore, EVEN BY MAN male and female were made united, and were separated FROM EACH OTHER afterwards. You may question why it says, "The earth from where he was taken," AND NOT FROM THE SUPERNAL MALE AND FEMALE. HE ANSWERS, It is certainly so, THAT HE WAS TAKEN FROM THE EARTH, but this refers to the Nukva OF ZEIR ANPIN. And the Holy One, blessed be He, MEANING ZEIR ANPIN, was Her partner. These are the Male and Female THAT WE MENTIONED. And it is all one thing.

239. Rabbi Yosi said, "Yah is my strength and song," REFERS TO those that are included one with the other and do not separate one from the other. They are always in love with one desire, FOR THEY ARE ABA AND IMA THAT ARE CALLED YUD-HEI. From them spring the currents of the rivers and springs to supply everyone and to bless everything, and the waters of these springs do not fail. This is the meaning of, "And like a spring of water, whose waters fail not" (Yeshayah 58:11). Therefore, "He is become my salvation" (Shemot 15:2). For this reason does the Holy King draw and cause to inherit below, and the right becomes aroused to perform miracles.

240. "He is my El, and I will glorify Him." This is the righteous, NAMELY YESOD, from whom emerge blessings in unity. "And I will glorify Him," in that place where there is love, which is the Temple. "Elohim of my father and I will exalt Him" (Ibid.). Moses said this to the place, from which the Levites come, NAMELY THE LEFT SIDE. Therefore, ONCE MOSES SAID ABOUT THAT SIDE, "AND I WILL EXALT HIM" there is complete perfection in it, BECAUSE, "AND I WILL EXALT HIM," MEANS THAT HE CAUSES IT TO BE COMPRISED IN THE RIGHT SIDE, THIS BEING THE ENTIRE PERFECTION.

241. Rabbi Yitzchak said, "And He is become my salvation." This is the Holy King, WHO IS ZEIR ANPIN, and so He is. How do we know this? I have found this in another passage, in which it is written, "Yah is my strength and song, and He is become my salvation." It is understood from, "Hashem...is become my salvation," that it refers to the Holy King WHO IS CALLED 'YUD HEI VAV HEI,' NAMELY ZEIR ANPIN.

242. "Yah is my strength and my song." Rabbi Chizkiyah opened the discussion with the verse, "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity" (Mishlei 17:17). "A friend loves at all times," refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, of whom it is written, "Do not forsake your own friend, and your father's friend" (Mishlei 27:10).

243. "And a brother is born for adversity." At the time that your enemy oppresses you, what does the Holy One, blessed be He, say? "For the sake of my brethren and my comrades, I will now say, 'Peace be within you'" (Tehilim 122:8). Yisrael are called 'brothers' and 'comrades' of the Holy One, blessed be He. What is the meaning of "is born" - is he born now, in time of trouble? HE ANSWERS, During the trouble shall be born in the world one who will be a brother to you, to save you from all those who oppress you.

244. Rabbi Yehuda said, "is born" means that the Holy King will be aroused with this strength to take revenge on the nations because of you, and to nurture you from Ima, WHICH IS BINAH, on this LEFT side, as it is written, "Yah is my strength and song, and He is become my salvation." He will awaken powers against the idolatrous nations.

245. Rabbi Yisa opened the discussion, saying: How much must a person love the Holy One, blessed be He, for there is no service before the Holy One, blessed be He, except love. The Holy One, blessed be he, calls 'beloved' everyone who loves Him and serves Him with love. HE ASKS, If so, how is it possible to reconcile these two passages, "Do not forsake your own friend, and your father's friend" (Mishlei 27:10), and, "Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor's (also: 'friend's') house" (Mishlei 25:17).

246. HE ANSWERS, But the scholars have already explained that this passage, "DO NOT FORSAKE YOUR OWN FRIEND, AND YOUR FATHER'S FRIEND," is written in reference to burnt offerings, BUT IN REFERENCE TO SIN OFFERINGS AND GUILT OFFERINGS, IT IS SAID, "LET YOUR FOOT BE SELDOM IN YOUR NEIGHBOR'S HOUSE." Now WE WILL EXPLAIN, "Do not forsake your own friend, and your father's friend." DO NOT FORSAKE serving Him and cleaving unto Him and doing His commandments. "Do not forsake," indeed. And, "Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor's house" means, let your inclination be seldom there, so that it would not provoke you or dominate you, and so that no strange thought will rise "from your neighbor's house." What is "your neighbor's house?" It is the holy soul that your friend placed in you and put inside you.

247. Therefore, the service of the Holy One, blessed be He, is to love Him in everything HE MAY DO TO YOU, as it is written, "And you shall love Hashem your Elohim" (Devarim 6:5). "This is my El and I will glorify Him," for all of Yisrael saw at the sea what Ezekiel the prophet did not see. Even embryos in their mothers' womb saw and praised the Holy One, blessed be He, and they all said, "This is my El and I will glorify Him, Elohim of my father and I will exalt Him." "Elohim of my father," is as it is written, "Elohim of Abraham."

248. Rabbi Yosi said, If so, why does it say, "And I will exalt Him," seeing that Elohim of Abraham is above, AND THERE IS NO NEED TO EXALT HIM. IT MEANS THAT ELOHIM OF ISAAC, WHO IS THE LEFT COLUMN, NEEDS TO BE EXALTED, NOT THE RIGHT COLUMN. He said to him, Even so, it is needed TO EXALT HIM. And it all pertains to the same issue. "And I will exalt Him," on all SIDES. Also, one who knows how to proclaim the oneness of the Holy and Great Name, MUST EXALT HIM, for this is the loftiest service of the Holy One, blessed be He.

249. Rabbi Yehuda was sitting before Rabbi Shimon and reading, it is written, "The voice of your watchmen is heard, they lift up the voice, together shall they sing" (Yeshayah 52:8). "The voice of your watchmen." Who are the watchmen? HE ANSWERS, Those who are waiting for the time when the Holy One, blessed be He, will have Mercy to build His house. "They lift up the voice." HE ASKS, It should have said, 'They will lift up the voice;' what is the meaning of, "They lift up the voice?" HE ANSWERS, Every person who weeps and raises his voice for the destruction of the House of the Holy One, blessed be He, will merit what is written afterwards, "Together shall they sing," and merit to see it restored in joy.

250. "When Hashem returns Zion" (Ibid.). HE ASKS, Should it not have said, 'When Hashem returns to Zion?' What is the meaning of, "When Hashem returns Zion?" HE ANSWERS, "When Hashem returns Zion" is exact. Come and behold, at the time that the earthly Jerusalem was destroyed and the Congregation of Yisrael, WHICH IS MALCHUT, were exiled, the Holy King, WHO IS ZEIR ANPIN, ascended to Zion, THAT IS YESOD OF MALCHUT, and sighed before her because of the Congregation of Yisrael was exiled. When the Congregation of Yisrael return to her place, then the Holy King will return to His place, Zion, so one would unite with the other. And that is the reason for saying, "When Hashem returns Zion," AND NOT 'TO ZION' BECAUSE "HASHEM ZION" INDICATES THE UNION OF HASHEM WITH ZION. Then Yisrael will say, "This is my El and I will glorify Him," and, "This is Hashem; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation" (Yeshayah 25:9), in His salvation, assumedly NAMELY, IN THE REDEMPTION OF HASHEM WHEN HE RETURNS TO ZION.