Renewed Opportunities – Rabbi Dovid Katz on Parshas Mishpatim

Transcribed by Matis Glenn

The pasuk in this week’s Parshah (Shemos 24:7) of na’aseh ve’nishma, We will do and we will hear, was a declaration of faith that Klal Yisroel made to Hashem, stating that they would do the mitzvos that He will command them without understanding them, and wait for the clarity to come later on.

The meforshim say that this pasuk belongs in Parshas Yisro, when the Torah was given, and I’d like to present a new interpretation as to why it is written here in Parshas Mishpatim.

The Gemara (Shabbos 88) quotes Rebbe Simai as saying that when Klal Yisroel put na’aseh first, they merited two crowns, which refers to the ziv hashechina, the splendor of Hashem’s presence; one for na’aseh and the other for nishma.

It always bothered me; why did Klal Yisroel need two crowns; why isn’t one enough? A king only wears one crown; it’s the highest honor a person can have.

The Gemara (Makos 23) says that Hashem wanted to give Klal Yisoel zchuyos, merits, therefore he gave them more Torah and mitzvos; and my question always was, what was the increase? If Hashem wanted to give 613 mitzvos, that was the number– we know we cant add or subtract from the Torah. What does the Gemara mean?

It could be that there’s two measures: quality and quantity. In quantity, Hashem gave 613 mitzvos, and 7 that are from the Chachamim, which is the Gematria of keser, crown. Every Shabbos when we say, in Mussaf (according to nusach Sefard) keser yitnu lecha, they will give you a crown,” one who keeps Shabbos is as if he has kept the entire Torah, not only the mitzvos from the Torah but the 7 that are from the Chachamim.

Klal Yisroel and the angels give Hashem the crown – whats the crown? That we fulfill all of the mitzvos.

The quantity is fixed, but Hashem gave us additional quality. What does that mean? It means that if last year, someone wanted to be mekabel the Torah, every Shavuos we are mekabel the Torah again, but what happens if someone failed to do so on Shavuos? Hashem says, I’ll give you another chance – Parshas Va’eschanan and Parshas Yisro, which speak of kabalas hatorah, because the weekly laining carries with it the spiritual potential of what is being read.

Similarly, when a person sits by the Pesach Seder at night, he should feel the oros, spiritual lights of Pesach, as if he himself left Egypt; but Hashem gives him another chance in Parshas Bo and Beshalach, when we read about the Yidden leaving Egypt.

So when we say that Hashem increased the Torah, it means He gave us more chances to fulfill the mitzvos; the mitzvah comes back when we read about it during the week of its Parshah.

Hashem gave us opportunities that if we missed out, we can still get what we need.

And I think this is the gift Hashem gave us with the two crowns he bestowed on our heads; because Klal Yisroel said na’aseh first, Hashem said I’ll give you the two crowns; one is the mitzvos themselves, and the other is that we will have opportunities to do mitzvos even if we sometimes miss out. A Yid could always be zocheh, do more mitzvos.

When the pasuk of na’aseh v’nishma is read this Shabbos, we have a new opportunity to be mekabel the Torah if we missed out last week.

May we be zocheh to more and more opportunities to fulfill mitzvos for many years to come.