It was the first day of Rosh Hashana in the synagogue of the famous Berditchever Rebbe, Reb Levi Yitzchak.
The shul was crowded. Reb Levi Yitzchak himself was leading the congregation.
Reb Levi Yitzchak's soft, vibrant voice touched the heartstrings of every worshipper. As Reb Levi Yitzchak pronounced the words, his voice broke, and everyone's heart was filled with remorse. Each pictured himself standing before the Judge of the Universe.
Reb Levi Yitzchak recited line after line of the solemn prayer, which the congregation repeated, until he came to the line:
"To Him, Who acquires His servants in judgment..."
Here Reb Levi Yitzchak suddenly paused, for the words died on his lips. His prayer shawl slid from his head, revealing his pale face; his eyes were shut, and he seemed to be in a trance.
A shudder passed through the worshippers. A critical situation must have arisen in the Heavenly Court; things were not going well for the petitioners.
A few moments later, the color returned to Reb Levi Yitzchak's face, which now became radiant with joy. His voice shook with ecstasy and triumph as he recited:
"To Him, who acquires His servants in judgment!"
After the service, Reb Levi Yitzchak explained:
"While we prayed, I felt myself lifted up to the gates of heaven, where I saw Satan carrying a heavy load. The sight filled me with anxiety, for I knew that he was carrying a bag full of sins to put onto the Scales of Justice before the Heavenly Court.
"For a moment the bag was left unattended, so I went up to it and began to examine its contents. The bag was crammed with all kinds of sins: evil gossip, hatred without reason, jealousies, wasted time which should have been spent in study of the Torah - ugly creatures of sins, big and small.
"I pushed my hand into the bag and began pulling out one sin after another, to look at them more closely. I saw that almost all the sins were committed unwillingly, without pleasure, downright carelessly, or in sheer ignorance. No Jew was really bad, but the circumstances of exile, poverty and hardship, sometimes hardened his heart, set his nerves on edge, brought about petty jealousies, and the like.
"And strangely enough, as I was examining all these sins, and thinking what was really behind them, they seemed to melt away, one by one, until hardly anything was left in the bag. The bag dropped back, limp and empty.
"The next moment, I heard a terrible cry. Satan had discovered what I had done. 'You thief!' he screamed. 'What did you do to my sins? All year I labored to gather these precious sins, and now you have stolen them! You shall pay double!'
" 'How can I pay you?' I pleaded. 'My sins may be many, but not so many.'
" 'Well you know the law,' Satan countered. 'He who steals must pay double, and if he is unable to pay, he shall be sold into servitude. You are my slave now! Come!'
"My captor brought me before the Supreme Judge of the Universe.
"After listening to Satan's complaint, the Holy One, blessed is He, said: 'I will buy him, for so I promised through my prophet Isaiah (46:4): "Even to his old age, I will be the same...I have made him, I will bear him, I will sustain and save him!" '
"At this point I returned to this earthly realm," concluded Reb Levi Yitzchak. "Now I understand the meaning of the words, 'To Him, who acquires His servants in judgment!' We are the servants of G-d, and if we are faithful servants, G-d protects us and is our Merciful Master. Let us remain faithful Servants to G-d, and we'll be spared from being servants of servants, and in the merit of this, the Al-mighty will surely inscribe us all in the Book of Life, for a happy New Year.
From The Complete Story of Tishrei, Kehot Publications
