The Principles of Punishment and Reward
Regarding the seder of Zichronos, the Sefer HaIkrim tells us that these pesukim are designed for us to internalize the principles of ועונש שכר, punishment and reward.
This is one of the greatest principles of Yiddishkeit that a Yid must live with: The Ribbono shel Olam rewards greatly—in This World and in the Next—those who are close to Him, and those who distance themselves from Him; in addition to the punishment found in the distance itself, they are also punished with suffering in This World as well as the Next.
Indeed, we begin this section with the acknowledgement that זוכר אתה תעלומות כל נגלו לפניך קדם יצורי כל ופוקד עולם מעשי, You remember the deeds of the world, and visit all the creatures of old. Before You all secrets are revealed. The Ribbono shel Olam knows and remembers every detail that every individual thought and did, and He conducts Himself with us accordingly. Hashem is our Shadow.
Hashem Is Interested in Us
But there’s an even deeper understanding that we learn from the seder of Zichronos. Punishment and reward aren’t simply an arrangement whereby good people are rewarded and people who behave badly are punished. It is a way of understanding the depth of our closeness to Hashem—knowing that the Ribbono shel Olam will never abandon a Yid, because He wants a relationship with him.
When the Ribbono shel Olam speaks with us—through events that happen to us—He is displaying interest in everything we’re doing.
