Providing Light for those who Feel Far:
Rav Henoch of Alexander zy”a (quoted in Sefer Chashbah L’Tova) explains this pasuk by saying if a person considers himself to be on a lofty spiritual level and thinks that he already serves Hashem perfectly, there is no way for him to improve himself and reach higher levels. He already thinks he is great and won’t even try to get better.
Only when one doesn’t think highly of himself and recognizes that he needs much improvement in his avodas Hashem can he really improve and reach a higher level. Accordingly, the pasuk is saying that one can only “lift up the neiros” and raise himself to a loftier level of avodas Hashem if he knows that he is “facing the Menorah”, i.e., that he is still at a distance from a truly high level of ruchnius and can only see kedusha from far away.
He uses this idea to explain the pasuk in Yeshaya (57:19): “Peace, peace to those who are far and those who are near, says Hashem and I will heal him.” The pasuk can be read to be saying: ‘Peace, peace to those who are far.” If a person knows that he is far from being on an ideal level of serving Hashem, peace will be with him and he will be able to improve. However, if he thinks that he is “close”, then Hashem says that He will heal him. This too is a good thing, but it is much better to recognize that one is far and is in need of improvement.
