(6) The LORD passed before him and proclaimed: “The LORD! the LORD! a God compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness,
Kedushas Levi Exodus 34,6. “Hashem passed before him and proclaimed:” A look at Rashi’scommentary on these words shows us that G’d wrapped Himself in a tallit, prayer shawl, just like the Chazzan in the synagogue.
( significance of the Talit: is instead of G’d facing the repentant sinner without a לבוש, some garment, designed to tone down the enormity of having to face the Creator in His unadorned essence, פניו, “face,” He will display a more forgiving posture in recognition of the sinner having sought Him out to confess and to ask forgiveness, i.e. another chance to make a new beginning. We must remember however, that if we expect G’d to display the attribute of Mercy toward us, we must first show Him that we on our part have departed from our standards of demanding strict compliance with the demands of justice by having demonstrated that we too can forego something that we felt we were entitled to.)
Concerning the above, my late and revered teacher Rabbi Dov Baer said that the 13 attributes the Torah mentions here are the spiritual equivalent of the 13 principles of Rabbi Yishmael that are considered as legitimate tools of interpretation of the written Torah. For instance the principle known as גזרה שוה, replicas of the same word used for apparently divergent subjects, is the equivalent of the Divine attribute רחום.
When a wealthy person takes pity on a poor, destitute person, he automatically begins to understand the pain and near despair experienced by the poor so that he lowers himself mentally to that level. He experiences the pain endured by the poor and his feelings of being hemmed in from all sides. When this happens, the wealthy person, -parallel to G’d-, extends pity and mercy to the poor so that the poor and the rich have reached the same level. A similar process occurs when G’d looks with mercy on the Jewish people in distress. This is what Moses referred to when he said in psalms 91,15: עמו אנכי בצרה, “With him, I, in distress;” this is what is meant by “equating” the Divine attribute of mercy to the tool known as גזרה שוה, “establishing common ground.
(כב) כִּי֩ אִם־שָׁמֹ֨ר תִּשְׁמְר֜וּן אֶת־כָּל־הַמִּצְוָ֣ה הַזֹּ֗את אֲשֶׁ֧ר אָנֹכִ֛י מְצַוֶּ֥ה אֶתְכֶ֖ם לַעֲשֹׂתָ֑הּ לְאַהֲבָ֞ה אֶת־יְהוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֛ם לָלֶ֥כֶת בְּכָל־דְּרָכָ֖יו וּלְדָבְקָה־בֽוֹ׃
(22) If, then, you faithfully keep all this Instruction that I command you, loving the LORD your God, walking in all His ways, and holding fast to Him,
(ה) אַחֲרֵ֨י יְהוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֛ם תֵּלֵ֖כוּ וְאֹת֣וֹ תִירָ֑אוּ וְאֶת־מִצְוֺתָ֤יו תִּשְׁמֹ֙רוּ֙ וּבְקֹל֣וֹ תִשְׁמָ֔עוּ וְאֹת֥וֹ תַעֲבֹ֖דוּ וּב֥וֹ תִדְבָּקֽוּן׃
(5) After the LORD your God you should walk, and revere none but Him; observe His commandments alone, and heed only His orders; worship none but Him, and hold fast to Him.
ואמר רבי חמא ברבי חנינא מאי דכתיב (דברים יג, ה) אחרי ה' אלהיכם תלכו וכי אפשר לו לאדם להלך אחר שכינה והלא כבר נאמר (דברים ד, כד) כי ה' אלהיך אש אוכלה הוא אלא להלך אחר מדותיו של הקב"ה מה הוא מלביש ערומים דכתיב (בראשית ג, כא) ויעש ה' אלהים לאדם ולאשתו כתנות עור וילבישם אף אתה הלבש ערומים הקב"ה ביקר חולים דכתיב (בראשית יח, א) וירא אליו ה' באלוני ממרא אף אתה בקר חולים הקב"ה ניחם אבלים דכתיב (בראשית כה, יא) ויהי אחרי מות אברהם ויברך אלהים את יצחק בנו אף אתה נחם אבלים הקב"ה קבר מתים דכתיב (דברים לד, ו) ויקבר אותו בגיא אף אתה קבור מתים
דרש ר' שמלאי תורה תחלתה גמילות חסדים וסופה גמילות חסדים תחילתה גמילות חסדים דכתיב ויעש ה' אלהים לאדם ולאשתו כתנות עור וילבישם וסופה גמילות חסדים דכתיב ויקבר אותו בגיא
And Rabbi Ḥama, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, says: What is the meaning of that which is written: “After the Lord your God shall you walk, and Him shall you fear, and His commandments shall you keep, and unto His voice shall you hearken, and Him shall you serve, and unto Him shall you cleave” (Deuteronomy 13:5)? But is it actually possible for a person to follow the Divine Presence? But hasn’t it already been stated: “For the Lord your God is a devouring fire” (Deuteronomy 4:24), and one cannot approach fire. He explains: Rather, the meaning is that one should follow the attributes of the Holy One, Blessed be He.
Just as He clothes the naked, as it is written: “And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skin, and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21), so too, should you clothe the naked. Just as the Holy One, Blessed be He, visits the sick, as it is written “And the Lord appeared unto him by the terebinths of Mamre” (Genesis 18:1), so too, should you visit the sick. Just as the Holy One, Blessed be He, consoles mourners, as it is written: “And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed Isaac his son” (Genesis 25:11), so too, should you console mourners. Just as the Holy One, Blessed be He, buried the dead, as it is written: “And he was buried in the valley in the land of Moab” (Deuteronomy 34:6), so too, should you bury the dead.
Rabbi Samlai taught: With regard to the Torah, its beginning is an act of kindness and its end is an act of kindness. Its beginning is an act of kindness, as it is written: “And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skin, and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21). And its end is an act of kindness, as it is written: “And he was buried in the valley ” (Deuteronomy 34:6).
(ב) ללכת בכל דרכיו. הוּא רַחוּם וְאַתָּה תְּהֵא רַחוּם, הוּא גּוֹמֵל חֲסָדִים וְאַתָּה גּוֹמֵל חֲסָדִים (שם):
(2) ללכת בכל דרכיו TO WALK IN ALL HIS WAYS — He is merciful, you should be merciful; He bestows lovingkindness, you should bestow lovingkindness (Sifrei Devarim 49:1).
(4) ובו תדבקון AND UNTO HIM YE SHALL CLING — i.e. cling to His ways: do kindly actions, bury the dead, visit the sick, as did the Holy One, blessed be He (Sotah 14a).
(ו) כָּךְ לָמְדוּ בְּפֵרוּשׁ מִצְוָה זוֹ. מַה הוּא נִקְרָא חַנּוּן אַף אַתָּה הֱיֵה חַנּוּן. מַה הוּא נִקְרָא רַחוּם אַף אַתָּה הֱיֵה רַחוּם. מַה הוּא נִקְרָא קָדוֹשׁ אַף אַתָּה הֱיֵה קָדוֹשׁ. וְעַל דֶּרֶךְ זוֹ קָרְאוּ הַנְּבִיאִים לָאֵל בְּכָל אוֹתָן הַכִּנּוּיִין אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד צַדִּיק וְיָשָׁר תָּמִים גִּבּוֹר וְחָזָק וְכַיּוֹצֵא בָּהֶן. לְהוֹדִיעַ שֶׁהֵן דְּרָכִים טוֹבִים וִישָׁרִים וְחַיָּב אָדָם לְהַנְהִיג עַצְמוֹ בָּהֶן וּלְהִדַּמּוֹת אֵלָיו כְּפִי כֹּחוֹ:
(6) In explaining this commandment the sages taught as follows: Just as He is called gracious, you too must be gracious; Just as He is called compassionate, you too must be compassionate ; Just as He is called Holy, you too must be holy. In this way did the prophets attribute to God all such terms as long-suffering, abundant in benificience, just and right, perfect, mighty and powerful and others like these, to proclaim that they are good and straight paths, and that a person is obligated to lead oneself in them, and to be like Him in proportion to ones own power.
Ben Parker-
With great power comes great responsibility