Following G-d’s promise not to destroy the Jewish people after the sin of the Golden Calf, Moses requested that G-d make known to him the qualities of Divine Mercy. In response, G-d showed Moses a prophetic vision, in which He was wrapped in a tallit as a communal prayer leader, while reciting the Thirteen Attributes of Divine Mercy (Rosh Hashana 17b). G-d informed Moses that whenever the Jewish people sin in the future, they should recite the Thirteen Attributes, and He will forgive them. Moses subsequently employed the Thirteen Attributes during the second and third 40-day periods on Mount Sinai, which culminated with the atonement on Yom Kippur.
Rabbi Yehudah, in the Talmud, adds that a covenant exists concerning these Thirteen Attributes, guaranteeing their effectiveness forever.
The Brisker Rav explains that all the mercy that the Jewish people would require until the final redemption was, as it were, deposited into an account at that time, to be withdrawn when necessary. Today, writes Rabbeinu Bachaye, we are without the Holy Temple, without a High Priest, and without the sacrifices to aid in atoning for our sins. All that is left is the ability to invoke these Thirteen Attributes of Divine Mercy in our prayers. Though we do not understand the true nature of these terms, and we lack the perception of how they affect the Heavenly realms, still, they remain the key with which to open the gates of mercy in every generation for both the community and the individual.
There is a dispute as to how the Thirteen Attributes work. According to some commentators (Tzror Hamor, Reishis Chochmah, and Alshich), the mere recitation of these attributes is not enough. One must accompany their recitation with action by emulating these attributes in their relationships with their fellow man. (Rabbi Moses Cordevero, in the first chapter of Tomer Devorah, gives guidance as to how to integrate these attributes into one’s interpersonal relationships.) For this reason, says the Ma’or Vashemesh, these Divine attributes are only recited in a minyan. It is difficult for any one individual to embody and apply all of these attributes in their personal life. However, among a congregation, all of the attributes can be found.
The prophetic vision of G-d wrapped in a tallit relates to this need to emulate His Attributes by reminding us of our obligation to perform all the mitzvot. The tallit hints at the fact that one must clothe oneself in these attributes and not merely recite them.
Ibn Ezra asks why we wear a large tallit only during prayer (while otherwise, we wear a small fringed garment underneath our shirt). Would it not be more logical to wear a reminder of G-d’s mitzvot when engaged in our mundane pursuits? The wearing of a tallit addresses the danger that one will mistakenly think that the words of prayer are enough to effect Divine Mercy. The tallit reminds us that lip service alone is not effective. One must live and fulfill that which his prayers represent.
