Rashi tells us that the city of Timnah was built on the slope of a mountain. We thus find that whereas Yehudah is said to have gone up to Timnah, Shimshon went down to Timnah. As Rashi explains, “You go up to Timnah when coming from one direction, but you go down to it when coming from the other.”
Rashi’s words describe not only the topography of the region, but also a fundamental truth regarding the nature of Divine worship, which can be compared to ascending a mountain.
While we read of people who ascended or descended to Timnah, the Torah never mentions anyone being stationed in this mountainside city or simply going there. For on a slope, you are either ascending or descending; if you do not climb upward, you will inevitably slide in the opposite direction.
The same is true with regard to our devotion to G‑d and His service. We must constantly work toward greater heights in our spiritual climb, if only to maintain the degree of devotion to G‑d that we have already attained. For on a mountain, if you are not going up, you are almost certainly going down.
—Likkutei Sichos, vol. 10, pp. 127–128
5. Bereishis 38:13.
6. Shoftim 14:1.
7. Bereishis 38:13.
8. Tehillim 24:3.
