Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may live and possess the land the Lord, your God, is giving you.
The Torah clearly delineates that when the Jewish people will follow a path of righteousness, they will surely live and inherit the Land of Israel. The use of the word "צדק" - “righteousness” in a double form is unusual. Why must the posuk spell out "צדק צדק" - an extra degree of righteousness in conjunction with the future existence of Klal Yisroel and their inheritance of Eretz Yisroel?
The Sefas Emes, R’ Yehudah Leib Alter zt”l, explains that even justice must be pursued with justice. Many times a person goes out to fight for a just matter, but he does not choose the proper means for his fight and turns from the victim into the merciless pursuer. This is a perversion of justice, rather than a performance of justice.
We, as Jews who have felt the wrath of the nations of the world and are often oppressed because of our allegiance to Hashem and His Torah, must never forget that although we may eventually have an opportunity to avenge those who oppress us, we must only do so within the framework of justice. Feelings of self-empowerment can only bring about destruction from within for a person’s conscience must remain clean and pure when he is doing a service for his family, his community and his Nation. This concept ensures our survival as His “Chosen Nation” and only through our path of “extra” righteousness - an amalgamation of mercy, modesty and - can we survive.
It is said that the great Baal Mussar, R’ Yisroel Salanter zt”l once commented to one who wanted to go to war for a just cause: “Remember, if you are correct, see that you remain correct!”
