385. "I am Hashem your Elohim who have brought you out..." (Shemot 20:2). Rabbi Elazar opened the discussion with the verse, "My son, hear the instruction of your father and do not forsake the Torah of your mother" (Mishlei 1:8). "My son, hear the instruction of your father," refers to the Holy One, blessed be He, MEANING, ZEIR ANPIN; "do not forsake the Torah of your mother" refers to the Congregation of Yisrael, which is Binah, as it is written, "To perceive the words of understanding (Heb. Binah)" (Mishlei 1:1).
386. According to Rabbi Yehuda, "the instruction of your father" is Chochmah CALLED ABA (ENG. 'FATHER'), and "do not forsake the Torah of your mother," is Binah. Rabbi Yitzchak said that both of the interpretations mean the same thing, for as we have learned, the Torah emanated from the supernal Chochmah, AND CHOCHMAH (LIT. 'WISDOM') IS DIVIDED INTO THE RIGHT, CALLED 'ABA,' AND THE LEFT, CALLED 'IMA.' Rabbi Yosi said that THE TORAH emanated from Binah, for it is written, "To perceive the words of understanding," and also, "Do not forsake the Torah of your mother," AND BINAH IS CALLED 'IMA' (ENG. 'MOTHER').
387. Rabbi Yehuda said, The Torah includes both Chochmah and Binah, as it is written, "My son, hear the instruction of your father and do not forsake the Torah of your mother." Rabbi Aba said that the Torah contains all THE SFIROT, since once it combines both CHOCHMAH AND BINAH, it combines all THE SFIROT, FOR CHOCHMAH AND BINAH INCLUDE ALL THE SFIROT: Chesed, Judgment and Mercy - BEING CHESED, GVURAH AND TIFERET - in all required perfection. When the King and the Queen are joined WITH IT, all the others are joined WITH IT, for wherever CHOCHMAH AND BINAH are found, all the others are found as well.
388. Rabbi Yosi said, "I" (Shemot 20:2) is the Shechinah, as it is written, "I will go down with you into Egypt" (Beresheet 46:4). Rabbi Yitzchak said that "I," which is the Shechinah, is separated by a trope; AFTER THE WORD "I" THERE IS A TONAL PAUSE BETWEEN IT AND THE NEXT WORDS, "HASHEM YOUR ELOHIM," THE SAME as in "I am Esau your firstborn" (Beresheet 27:19), WHICH MEANS, I AM WHO I AM; ESAU IS YOUR FIRSTBORN. THEREFORE, "Hashem your Elohim" is the Holy One, blessed be He, THAT IS, ZEIR ANPIN, as it is said, "Out of heaven He made you hear His voice" (Devarim 4:36), AND 'HEAVEN' IS ZEIR ANPIN. It is also written, "You have seen that I have talked with you from heaven" (Shemot 20:19): "From heaven" indeed, for this is the Holy One, blessed be He, NAMELY ZEIR ANPIN.
389. "...Who (Heb. asher) have brought you out of the land of Egypt." (Shemot 20:2). Asher MEANS a place which everyone calls happy (Heb. osher), WHICH IS BINAH. "...Brought you out of Egypt..." designates Jubilee WHICH IS BINAH, CALLED 'ASHER,' "WHO HAVE BROUGHT YOU OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT," for as we have learned, the aspect of Jubilee WHICH IS BINAH, was the cause of Yisrael's exodus from Egypt. Therefore, this event is mentioned fifty times in the Torah. Fifty days passed from the exodus to the receiving of the Torah, and fifty years had to pass for the liberation of the slaves, FOR ALL THESE EVENTS CORRESPOND TO THE FIFTY GATES OF BINAH.
390. "...Out of the house of bondage..." as it is written, "Hashem smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt" (Shemot 12:29). We have learned that this signifies the lower crowns in which the Egyptians had faith. As there is a house above, there is one below, a holy House above as it is said, "through wisdom a house is built" (Mishlei 24:3) and an unholy house below, IN THE KLIPOT, as it is written, "Out of the house of bondage."
391. We have learned that when the "I" was proclaimed, all those commandments of the Torah which were united with the Supernal Holy King, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, were comprised in this word "I."
392. As we have already learned, all the commandments of the Torah clung to the body of the King, WHICH IS ZEIR ANPIN, some of them to His head, some to His hands and some to His feet, and none of them ever step out and become separate from the body of the King. Therefore, he who transgresses even one of the commandments of the Torah is as though he transgresses against the body of the King, as it is written, "And they shall go forth and look upon the carcasses of the men that have rebelled against Me" (Yeshayah 66:24) - "against Me," literally. Woe to the wicked who break the words of the Torah, and do not know what they do.
393. Thus said Rabbi Shimon, The very place against which a sinner has committed a sin, reveals the sin. When a sin has been committed against the Holy One, blessed be He, AS MENTIONED ABOVE, the Holy One, blessed be He, reveals his sin, as it is written, "The heaven shall reveal his iniquity and the earth shall rise up against him" (Iyov 20:27). "The heaven shall reveal his iniquity," signifies the Holy One, blessed be He, MEANING, ZEIR ANPIN CALLED 'HEAVEN,' and "the earth shall rise up against him," signifies the Congregation of Yisrael, NAMELY MALCHUT WHICH IS CALLED 'EARTH.'
394. We have learned that "the heaven," ZEIR ANPIN, reveals a man's sin and at that time "the earth," WHICH IS MALCHUT, executes Judgment on the sinner, as it is written, "And the earth shall rise up against him," to punish him. Rabbi Yosi said in the name of Rabbi Shimon that when the Torah was given, the Mother, WHICH IS BINAH, and the Children, WHICH ARE MALE AND FEMALE, were in perfect harmony, as it is written, "And be a joyful mother of children" (Tehilim 113:9).