Holiness with the Eyes and Mouth
It states (22:30) לִי ְיוּןִּהת ֶׁשקֹד ֵיַׁנְשוְא, "You shall be holy people to Me."
The Mechilta says that we should read the pasuk ֶׁשקֹד ֵיַׁנְשוְא, when you act with holiness, לִי ְיוּןִּהת, you are Mine. The Reishis Chachmah (ch.2) teaches that we learn a negative from the positive: "If you don't make yourselves holy, you aren't His."
The Yerushalmi (Brachos 1:8) states, "Hakadosh Baruch Hu says, ‘If you give Me your heart and your eyes, I know that you are Mine.'"
Guarding the Eyes
It states (21:24) ַיִןע ַתַּחת ַיִןע, "an eye for an eye." The literal translation is that if someone harms another person's eye, he must pay for the damage. The Tiferes Shlomo teaches that the pasuk is also teaching us that when a Yid guards his eyes from looking where he shouldn't, this arouses Hashem to watch him from above. He writes, "The pasuk reveals the greatness of a Yid. When he acts with kedushah, it creates an arousal above... Someone who guards his eyes from looking where he shouldn't, this arouses Hashem's eye from Above... This is hinted in the words ַיִןע ַתַּחת ַיִןע, 'an eye for an eye.'"
The Tiferes Shlomo writes there that מעין הבא עולם can be translated, "From guarding the eyes, one merits Olam HaBa."
Another hint is in the tefillah that is said on Shabbos morning when the Torah is taken out to be read. We say, בעין עין ונראהו. The Tiferes Shlomo translates it, "We will see the Shechinah according to the extent that we are cautious with our eyes."
Freedom from the Yetzer Hara
It states (21:26-27) ִׁיְשָפַחל ּ...ַבְדּוֹע ֵיןע ֶתא ִׁישא יַכֶּה וְכִי ִׁיְשָפַחל ִּיליַפ ָתוֲֹמא ֵןׁש אוֹ ַבְדּוֹע ֵןׁש ִםוְא ,ֵינוֹע ַתַּחת ֶנּוַּלְּחׁיְש ִׁנּוֹש ַתַּחת ֶנּוַּלְּחׁיְש, "If a man strikes the eye of his slave.... he shall set him free in return for his eye. And if he knocks out the tooth of his slave or the tooth of his maidservant, he shall set him free in return for his tooth."
The Pnei Menachem zt'l (5754) explains in the name of tzaddikim that ֵןׁש, tooth, represents the taavah for eating food and for speaking forbidden speech. If he causes his teeth to fall, which allegorically means that he fights and hits the yetzer hara regarding these matters, also ֵיןע ֶתא ִׁישא יַכֶּה וְכִי, if he will smite the eye, which means he guards his eyes, ֶנּוַּלְּחׁיְש ִׁיְשָפַחל, he goes free from the influence of the yetzer hara.
This will be understood better when we read the holy words of Rabbeinu b'Chayei, who explains the reason a slave goes free when his master knocks out his tooth or eye. "The reason is because he became a slave due to the eye and due to the tooth. As it states (Bereishis 9:22) וַיַּגֵּד ָבִיוא ֶרְוַתע ֵתא ַןכְנַע ֲבִיא ָםח וַיַּרְא בַּחוּץ ָיוֶחא ְׁנֵילִש, 'Cham, the father of Canaan, saw his father's ervah, and he told his two brothers outside.' He saw with his eyes, and he told his brothers with his mouth, and he was punished with slavery, as it states (ibid, pasuk 25) ָיוֶחלְא ְיֶהיִה ָדִיםֲבע ֶדֶבע ַןכְּנָע ָרוּרא, 'Cursed be Canaan; he shall be a slave among slaves to his brethren.' But now, since the slave was hit in the limbs that caused the slavery, he is exempt from the punishment of being a slave."
From the Rabbeinu b'Chayei we learn that the sin of the eyes and the teeth caused slavery. Therefore, when one is cautious with these limbs, he will merit leaving slavery and attaining genuine freedom.
Being Careful with What One Sees
Someone asked the Beis Yisrael zt'l for counsel for avodas Hashem, and he replied, אויפגהיטן זיי (be cautious from performing bad). The bachur asked, "How is one careful?' The Beis Yisrael replied that it states in this week's parashah (21:28) ִינָק ׁוֹרַּשה ַלַעוּב. An alternative translation of שור is to see (see Bamidbar 24:17 קרוב ולא אשורנו). When a person is ַלַעב ׁוֹרַּשה, a baalabus over what he sees, and he is careful with what he sees, this person will be ִינָק, which means he will be בדינו נקי, found innocent and clean in his judgment.
The Beis Yisrael added another pasuk (Devarim 21:7) ָאוּר לֹא ֵינֵינוּוְע ַזֶּהה ַדָּםה ֶתא ְ כוָּפׁש לֹא ֵינוּיָד, if a person can say ָאוּר לֹא ֵינֵינוּוְע, that he didn't see what he shouldn't see, he can say לֹא ֵינוּיָד ַזֶּהה ַדָּםה ֶתא ְ כוָּפׁש, "Our hands did not shed this blood."
The Importance of Moments
It states (Tehillim 30:6) בִּרְצוֹנוֹ ַיִּיםח ּוַֹפבְּא ֶגַער כִּי, "For His wrath lasts but a moment..." Sometimes a person can anger Hashem for a moment, ּוַֹפבְּא ֶגַער כִּי, and because of that moment, בִּרְצוֹנוֹ ַיִּיםח, his entire life he has to appease Hashem and ask for forgiveness. Therefore, one must be cautious not to fail in those critical moments.
Levels of Tzaddikim
Tana d'Bei Eliyahu (Rabba ch.9) discusses two levels of tzaddikim. One level comprises those who never sin but were also not tested so much. A higher level includes those who were tested and made themselves lazy and uninterested in the aveirah, which helped to hold back from performing the aveiros. Tana d'Bei Eliyahu teaches, "Fortunate is the person who never came to sin and never left the good path. Even if he is a Yisrael, he is fitting to bring a korban on the mizbeiach as if he were the kohen gadol. As it states (24:5) עֹלֹת ֲלוּוַיַּע ֵלָאְרׂיִש בְּנֵי ֵיֲרנַע ֶתא ַחְׁלוַיִּש, 'The youths of Bnei Yisrael offered korbanos...' But someone who makes himself lazy when it comes to performing aveiros, he reaches the level of the malachim in heaven. As it states (24:11) ֶלוְא וְּׁתוַיִּש וַיֹּאכְלוּ ִיםֱלֹקָאה ֶתא ֱזוּוַיֶּח ֹ...ֵלָאְרׂיִש בְּנֵי ֵיֲצִילא, 'The lazy of Bnei Yisrael.... they perceived Hashem, and they ate and drank.'"
Tana d'Bei Eliyahu interprets ֵיֲצִילא (nobles) as ֵיֲצִילע, those who are lazy from performing aveiros. They reach the level of ִיםֱלֹקָאה ֶתא ֱזוּוַיֶּח, kivayochol seeing Hashem. This is the level of malachim. It is higher than the tzaddikim who weren't tested and never performed aveiros. Those tzaddikim reach the level of a kohen gadol, whereas those who pass tests reach the level of the malachim.
