Let's approach the explanation of these questions and from them, B’ezrat Hashem, connect to Tu B’Shvat. In Parshat Shelach, the Torah juxtaposes the Parsha of Tzitzit to the Parsha of the wood gatherer (); a man whose name is not mentioned in the Torah went and gathered wood on Shabbat – despite being warned, he did not listen, and therefore he was put to death. After that, the Parsha of Tzitzit appears.
Chazal ask – why is the Parsha of Tzitzit juxtaposed to the Parsha of the wood gatherer? The Tanna debei Eliyahu writes (26), Hakadosh Baruch Hu asked Moshe Rabbeinu why this man desecrated the Shabbat, and Moshe replied that he did not know the reason. Hakadosh Baruch Hu then said to Moshe, “I will tell you why. During the six weekdays, he has Tefillin on his head and arm, and he sees them and refrains from his actions; but now on Shabbat, when he does not wear Tefillin, the man desecrated Shabbat.” Hakadosh Baruch then instructed Moshe Rabbeinu to establish a Mitzvah that will also be observed on Shabbat and Yom Tov – the Mitzvah of Tzitzit. It too would serve as another reminder of all the Mitzvot, and therefore, these two chapters are juxtaposed. The Yalkut Reuveni writes (130), Hakadosh Baruch Hu dressed Adam in Tzitzit – 'And they sewed fig leaves together.' If so, it turns out that after the sin of Adam HaRishon, Hakadosh Baruch Hu gave him Tzitzit on his garment, just like after the sin of the wood gatherer, He gave the Mitzvah of Tzitzit to all of Bnei Yisrael.
What is the significance of this idea? Within the Mitzvah of Tzitzit we find the words 'for their generations' – we are instructed to make Tzitzit throughout their generations. The Midrash says (Yalkut Shimoni, Shelach 750), 'for their generations' means 'for the generation of Tam' – referring to Yaakov Avinu: 'And Yaakov was a pure man.' Yaacov Avinu was pure from theft, pure from immorality, pure from bloodshed. To understand the significance here, we need to learn a Gemara.
The Gemara says (Menachot 43b), the punishment for neglecting the white threads is greater than the punishment for neglecting the Techelet. Hakadosh Baruch Hu commanded to wear seven white threads and one Techelet thread, and a person who wore only white, without Techelet, will receive a lesser punishment than a person who did not wear Tzitzit at all. Why is that? To what can this be compared? To an earthly king who instructed one servant to bring him a seal of clay and instructed another to bring him a seal of gold. Both failed to deliver – whose punishment is greater? The Gemara says, the one who failed to bring a seal of clay. Rashi explains, clay is readily available, yet he still didn’t bring it to the king, and therefore, his punishment is greater.
Why did the Gemara find it appropriate to compare Tzitzit to a seal of clay? Tosafot explains, it is compared to a seal of clay because clay is made for servants – as a sign of proof of their servitude – and Tzitzit testifies that Bnei Yisrael are servants of Hakadosh Baruch Hu. Sefer Lemachar Aatir explains that Hakadosh Baruch Hu demanded from us to place His seal on our garment – and what is that seal? Tzitzit! With it we affirm, "We are Your servants!" The Parsha of Tzitzit ends with the word 'emet' because Tzitzit is the seal of Hakadosh Baruch Hu, and the seal of Hakadosh Baruch Hu is 'emet' – Truth (Shabbat 55a), because truth is the only thing that cannot be falsified. There is only one truth! L'havdil, a person who works for Coca-Cola wears a Coca-Cola shirt; a person who works for Tadiran wears a Tadiran shirt; and a person who works for Egged wears an Egged shirt. If you come to that person and ask him why he’s wearing such a shirt, he’ll likely reply, “What do you mean why? So that people know where I work!" Similarly, a person who wears Tzitzit declares, “I am a servant of Hakadosh Baruch Hu!"
