And you shall keep and do them [plural]...and He will love you and bless you [singular] (Deut. 7:12-13)
"And you shall keep and do them" is in the plural, as it refers to keeping the Torah's commandments, which all Jews must do equally. "And He will love you and bless you" is in the singular, as it refers to the reward a Jew receives for his observance, which is entirely individual. Although all Jews keep the same mitzvot, they do so with different levels of enthusiasm, devotion and motivation; thus they are given varying degrees of reward. (Kli Chemda)
Now Israel, what does the L-rd your G-d ask of you except to fear G-d (Deut. 10:12)
"People are strange," Rabbi Chanoch of Alexander used to say. "They beg and plead that G-d should give them 'fear of heaven,' when this is something that is entirely in the individual's control. Yet when it comes to livelihood, they imagine that they are in charge."
And you shall eat and be sated. (Deut. 8:10)
The Maggid of Mezritch once asked a wealthy man what he eats every day. "Bread and salt, Rebbe, like a poor man," was his reply. The Maggid rebuked him and told him to eat meat and drink wine every day as wealthy men were accustomed to do. Later, when the Maggid's disciples asked for an explanation, he said: "If a rich man eats meat and drinks wine every day, then he will realize that a poor person needs at least bread and salt. If, however, he eats bread and salt, he will think that his poor neighbor can make do with stones!"
And to serve Him with all your heart (Deut. 11:13)
Rashi explains that this verse refers to the service of the heart, namely prayer. Reb Yisroel of Ruzhin used to take a long time over his prayers; Reb Shalom of Belz would recite his prayers hastily. On this, one of their contemporaries commented that both of them cherished every word of the prayers: the former loved them so much that he could not bring himself to part with them, while the latter-for the same reason-could not restrain his eagerness to make them his. (A Treasury of Chasidic Tales)
Reprinted from the Parshat Eikev 5762/2002 edition of L’Chaim
GEMS FROM whY I Matter
And it will be if you forget the Almighty, your G-d (8:14) We find in the Midrash that the word "vehayah" refers to joy. What joy could there possibly be in forgetting Hashem? The Kotzker Rebbe said that this verse can be understood by dividing the words differently: "If you forget to be in a state of joy," that is, if you forget the vehayah which refers to joy, this will cause you to forget Hashem. If someone lacks joy, he will find it difficult to appreciate Hashem. Hence joy is one of the forty-eight tools for acquiring Torah. Lack of joy leads to many faults and difficulties. When in a state of joy, you have a greater appreciation for Hashem and all that He has given you. (Growth Through Torah)
