This is Elul - time of focusing on Teshuvah - repentance, righting our relationship with God, and with others (to the extent possible). Are there reasons God may not forgive us?
(יח) וְהָיָ֡ה בְּשׇׁמְעוֹ֩ אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֨י הָאָלָ֜ה הַזֹּ֗את וְהִתְבָּרֵ֨ךְ בִּלְבָב֤וֹ לֵאמֹר֙ שָׁל֣וֹם יִֽהְיֶה־לִּ֔י כִּ֛י בִּשְׁרִר֥וּת לִבִּ֖י אֵלֵ֑ךְ לְמַ֛עַן סְפ֥וֹת הָרָוָ֖ה אֶת־הַצְּמֵאָֽה׃ (יט) לֹא־יֹאבֶ֣ה יהוה סְלֹ֣חַֽ לוֹ֒ כִּ֣י אָ֠ז יֶעְשַׁ֨ן אַף־יהוה וְקִנְאָתוֹ֙ בָּאִ֣ישׁ הַה֔וּא וְרָ֤בְצָה בּוֹ֙ כׇּל־הָ֣אָלָ֔ה הַכְּתוּבָ֖ה בַּסֵּ֣פֶר הַזֶּ֑ה וּמָחָ֤ה יהוה אֶת־שְׁמ֔וֹ מִתַּ֖חַת הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃
(18) When hearing the words of these sanctions, they may imagine a special immunity, thinking, “I shall be safe, though I follow my own willful heart”—to the utter ruin of moist and dry alike. (19)יהוה will never forgive that party. Rather, יהוה’s anger and passion will rage against them, till every sanction recorded in this book comes down upon them, and יהוה blots out their name from under heaven.
(א)והתברך בלבבו. לְשׁוֹן בְּרָכָה, יַחֲשֹׁב בְּלִבּוֹ בִּרְכַּת שָׁלוֹם לְעַצְמוֹ לֵאמֹר, לֹא יְבוֹאוּנִי קְלָלוֹת הַלָּלוּ, אַך שלום יהיה לי: (ב)והתברך. בנדי"רא שו"יא בְּלַעַז, כְּמוֹ וְהִתְגַּלָּח, וְהִתְפַּלֵּל: (ג)בשררות לבי אלך. בְּמַרְאִית לִבִּי, כְּמוֹ (במדבר כ"ד) "אֲשׁוּרֶנּוּ וְלֹא קָרוֹב", כְּלוֹמַר, מַה שֶּׁלִּבִּי רוֹאֶה לַעֲשׂוֹת: (ד)למען ספות הרוה. לְפִי שֶׁאוֹסִיף לוֹ פֻּרְעָנוּת עַל מַה שֶּׁעָשָׂה עַד הֵנָּה בְשׁוֹגֵג, וְהָיִיתִי מַעֲבִיר עֲלֵיהֶם, וְגוֹרֵם עַתָּה שֶׁאֲצָרְפֵם עִם הַמֵּזִיד וְאֶפָּרַע מִמֶּנּוּ הַכֹּל, וְכֵן תִּרְגֵּם אֻנְקְלוֹס "בְּדִיל לְאוֹסָפָא לֵהּ חֶטְאֵי שָׁלוּתָא עַל זְדָנוּתָא" — שֶׁאוֹסִיף לוֹ אֲנִי הַשְּׁגָגוֹת עַל הַזְּדוֹנוֹת: (ה)הרוה. שׁוֹגֵג, שֶׁהוּא עוֹשֶׂה כְאָדָם שִׁכּוֹר שֶׁהוּא עוֹשֶׂה שֶׁלֹּא מִדַּעַת: (ו)הצמאה. שֶׁהוּא עוֹשֶׂה מִדַּעַת וּבְתַאֲוָה:
(1) והתברך בלבבו AND HE BLESS HIMSELF IN HIS HEART — The word והתברך has the meaning of “blessing”. In his heart he will imagine for himself a blessing of peace, saying, “These curses will not come upon me, I shall have peace”. (2) והתברך is benoir soi in old French, i.e. the verb is reflexive like והתגלח, “he shall shave himself”, והתפלל, he shall pray lit., he shall make himself the object of intercession. (3) בשררות לבי אלך means IN THE VIEWS OF MY HEART WILL I WALK, שררות being of a root which means to look, to see, as (Numbers 25:17): “I shall see him (אשרנו), but not now”; it is as much as to say, I will follow what my heart sees good to do. (4) למען ספות הרוה TO ADD DRUNKENNESS [TO THE THIRST] — In order that I may add punishment for him even for the sins he has committed until now inadvertently (for which the figurative expression in this sentence is הרוה, drunkenness: cf. the following passage in Rashi), and which I used to overlook; — but now he causes Me to combine them with those committed with premeditation and to exact punishment from him for everything. Onkelos, too, rendered it in a similar sense: “in order to add for him the sins of inadvertence to those of premeditation”, which can only mean. “In order that “I” may add sins of inadvertence to those of presumption”.
The only reason he had mouthed acceptance of the covenant was to become at one and the same time a beneficiary of the overwhelming number of people for whose sake G’d was going to bestow so many blessings on His people. This is the meaning of the words שלום יהיה לי כי בשרירות לבי אלך למען ספות הרוה את הצמאה; he knows full well that the holy community of the Jewish people, his brethren, have attained that status by resisting the lures of the evil urge instead of succumbing to it. This is why they will benefit from G’d’s largesse in such abundant manner. He therefore decided to have the best of both worlds by at least paying lip service to a covenant he knows he will not live by. - Seforno
In other words, the one who blesses himself wants to nullify the words of the righteous, who are metaphorically called “the watered,” with the words of “the dry.” - Ibn Ezra
In other words, the one who blesses himself wants to nullify the words of the righteous, who are metaphorically called “the watered,” with the words of “the dry.” - Ibn Ezra
(יט) לֹא־יֹאבֶ֣ה יהוה סְלֹ֣חַֽ לוֹ֒ כִּ֣י אָ֠ז יֶעְשַׁ֨ן אַף־יהוה וְקִנְאָתוֹ֙ בָּאִ֣ישׁ הַה֔וּא וְרָ֤בְצָה בּוֹ֙ כׇּל־הָ֣אָלָ֔ה הַכְּתוּבָ֖ה בַּסֵּ֣פֶר הַזֶּ֑ה וּמָחָ֤ה יהוה אֶת־שְׁמ֔וֹ מִתַּ֖חַת הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃
(19)יהוהwill never forgive that party. Rather, יהוה’s anger and passion will rage against them, till every sanction recorded in this book comes down upon them, and יהוה blots out their name from under heaven.
God will never forgive that party when he will violate the covenant which he accepted as a sacred oath with his lips, although he had mentally had his reservations at the very time when he confirmed the covenant with his mouth. - Sforno
תָּנָא אוֹתוֹ הַיּוֹם, סִלְּקוּהוּ לְשׁוֹמֵר הַפֶּתַח וְנִתְּנָה לָהֶם רְשׁוּת לַתַּלְמִידִים לִיכָּנֵס. שֶׁהָיָה רַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל מַכְרִיז וְאוֹמֵר: כׇּל תַּלְמִיד שֶׁאֵין תּוֹכוֹ כְּבָרוֹ, לֹא יִכָּנֵס לְבֵית הַמִּדְרָשׁ.
It was taught: On that day that they removed Rabban Gamliel from his position and appointed Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya in his place, there was also a fundamental change in the general approach of the study hall as they dismissed the guard at the door and permission was granted to the students to enter. Instead of Rabban Gamliel’s selective approach that asserted that the students must be screened before accepting them into the study hall, the new approach asserted that anyone who seeks to study should be given opportunity to do so. As Rabban Gamliel would proclaim and say: Any student whose inside, his thoughts and feelings, are not like his outside, i.e., his conduct and his character traits are lacking, will not enter the study hall.
A person is forbidden to act in a smooth-tongued and luring manner. He should not speak one thing outwardly and think otherwise in his heart. Rather, his inner self should be like the self which he shows to the world. What he feels in his heart should be the same as the words on his lips. - Rambam, Mishneh Torah, Human Dispositions 2:6
״מִבַּיִת וּמִחוּץ תְּצַפֶּנּוּ״. אָמַר רָבָא: כׇּל תַּלְמִיד חָכָם שֶׁאֵין תּוֹכוֹ כְּבָרוֹ — אֵינוֹ תַּלְמִיד חָכָם.
The verse states concerning the Ark: “From within and from without you shall cover it” (Exodus 25:11). Rava said: This alludes to the idea that any Torah scholar whose inside is not like his outside, i.e., whose outward expression of righteousness is insincere, is not to be considered a Torah scholar.
On the other hand, one whose inner [being] is not consistent with his outer [life] is condemned by Scripture, as written: "his heart was not whole with the L-ord, his G-d" (Kings 11:4), and "but they flatter Him with their mouths and lied with their tongues. For their heart was not steadfast with Him" (Ps. 78:36). - Bahya Ibn Pakudah, Duties of the Heart, Intro #71
(ג) אָמַר רַבִּי חֲנִינָא דְצִפֳּרִין, שָׁלֹש תֵּבוֹת עָשָׂה בְּצַלְאֵל אֶת הָאָרוֹן, שְׁתַּיִם שֶׁל זָהָב וְאַחַת שֶׁל עֵץ. שִׁקַּע שֶׁל עֵץ בְּתוֹךְ שֶׁל זָהָב וְשֶׁל זָהָב בְּתוֹךְ שֶׁל עֵץ, וְאַחַר כָּךְ צִפָּה שִׂפְתוֹתֵיהֶן זָהָב, לְקַיֵּם מִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיְצַפֵּהוּ זָהָב טָהוֹר מִבַּיִת וּמִחוּץ, וְאַחַר כָּךְ וַיַּעַשׂ לוֹ זֵר זָהָב סָבִיב. מִכָּאן, שֶׁיְּהֵא תַלְמִיד חָכָם תּוֹכוֹ כְּבָרוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: מִבַּיִת וּמִחוּץ תְּצַפֶּנּוּ.
(3) R. Hanina of Sepphoris said that Bezalel made three chests for the ark, two of gold and one of wood. He inserted the wooden chest into one golden one, and then the other golden one into the wooden one. After that he covered the edges with gold in order to fulfill what is written: And he overlaid it with gold within and without (Exod. 37:2), and it is written elsewhere; And shalt make upon it a crown of gold roundabout (ibid. 25:11). From here we learn that a scholar’s “inside” should be as his exterior (i.e., he should not be a hypocrite), since it is said: Thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, within and without shalt thou overlay it (ibid.).