1. "Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth" (Devarim 32:1). Rabbi Yehuda opened with, "I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had turned away, and was gone...I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer" (Shir Hashirim 5:6). Before that it is written, "I sleep, but my heart wakes..." (Ibid. 2). "I sleep," says the Congregation of Yisrael, "I sleep" away from the commandments of the Torah when I traveled the wilderness; "but my heart wakes" to bring them to the land of Yisrael to legislate laws for them. For all the commandments of the Torah are present in the land of Yisrael. "hark, my beloved is knocking" (Ibid.) refers to Moses, who reproved Yisrael with many arguments and quarrels, as it is written, "These are the words..." (Devarim 1:1), "You have been rebellious" (Devarim 9:24), and, "Also in Horeb you provoked..." (Ibid. 8). This is the meaning of, "knocking."

2. Though Moses reproved Yisrael, all his words were with love, as it is written, "For you are a holy people to Hashem your Elohim. Hashem your Elohim has chosen you to be a special people to Himself..." (Devarim 7:6), "You are the children of Hashem your Elohim" (Devarim 14:1), "But you that did cleave" (Devarim 4:4). Therefore, "obey the voice of Hashem your Elohim" (Devarim 27:10), "because Hashem loved you" (Devarim 7:8). This is the meaning of, "Open to me, my sister, my love" (Shir Hashirim 5:2), SPOKEN AFFECTIONATELY.

3. It is written, "I rose up to open to my beloved" (Ibid. 4). Yisrael said, while we were ready to enter the land of Yisrael and accept the commandments of the Torah through Moses, it is written, "but my beloved had turned away, and was gone," as it is written, "So Moses the servant of Hashem died there" (Devarim 34:5). "I sought him, but I could not find him," as it is written, "And there arose not a prophet since in Yisrael like Moses" (Ibid. 10). "I called him, but he gave me no answer," since there was no generation like the generation of Moses that the Holy One, blessed be He, obeyed their voices and performed miracles and made laws for them, as He did through him.

4. Rabbi Yitzchak said, "I rose up to open to my beloved" refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, during the life of Moses, who refused all his days to be guided by an angel or messenger, as it is written, "If Your presence go not with me..." (Shemot 33:15). Blessed is the portion of Moses that the Holy One, blessed be He, approved of his desire. "But my beloved had turned away, and was gone," during the life of Joshua, as it is written, "No, but I am captain of the host of Hashem" (Yehoshua 5:14).

5. Come and see, Moses used to hear the holy sound of the supernal King yet did not tremble, nor did he tremble before an angel, whom he did not wish TO ACCEPT. After he died, it is written, "And he said, No, but I am captain of the host of Hashem...And Joshua fell on his face to the earth." "I am now come" (Ibid.), during the days of Moses your master, yet I was not accepted. At that time, Yisrael recognized the value of Moses. At that time Yisrael sought the Holy One, blessed be He, but He was not as available as during Moses' lifetime. This is the meaning of, "I sought him, but I could not find him..."