Pirkei Avos 7: Perek 1, Mishna 2 and 3.

Shimon HaTzaddik Misheyarei Keneset HaGedolah Hu hayah omer:

על שלושה דברים העולם עומד: על התורה ועל העבודה ועל גמילות חסדים.

What does it mean על שלושה דברים העולם עומד? Rabbeinu Yonah teitsh: רצונו לומר שבשביל דברים אלו נברא העולם. These are the tachlisos of the world. The Rambam writes that with Torah, avodah, gemilut chasadim, תהיה התמדת תיקון העולם וסידור מציאותו על הדרך השלם. So olam omed according to the Rambam means that it's what sustains the world. That what sustains the world in al ha-derech ha-shalem is Torah, avodah, gemilut chasadim. The medubar is not that Shimon HaTzaddik is identifying what the goals of the briyah are, but rather what sustains the briyah. With these, תהיה התמדת תיקון העולם וסידור מציאותו על הדרך השלם. The Rambam's understanding of this mishnah seems very mechudashdik. So the Rambam, going to the beginning of the Rambam's commentary to this mishnah:

יאמר שבחכמה והיא התורה ובמעלות המדות והן גמילות חסדים ובשמירת מצות התורה והן הקרבנות.

Then what we read before: תהיה התמדת תיקון העולם וסידור מציאותו על הדרך השלם. So avodah for the Rambam is representative, is not something special about avodas korbanos, but it's something representative of shmiras ha-mitzvos in general. And gemilut chasadim is representative of tikkun ha-middos. What does it mean, how does that pshat conform, how does it emerge from the words? So lich'ora as follows: If you take a look what the Rambam has at the end of Hilchos Me'ilah, the last halachah in Hilchos Me'ilah, פרק ח' הלכה ח'. We want, so it's the end of the halachah, but we'll begin from the beginning of the halachah.

פרק ח' הלכה ח'. ראוי לאדם להתבונן במשפטי התורה הקדושה ולדעת סוף עניינם כפי כחו.

A person should reflect upon mitzvos ha-Torah to understand the goal of mitzvos to the best of his ability. ודבר שלא ימצא לו טעם ולא ידע לו עילה, when he comes up empty, when he's unable to uncover a reason, a cause, אל יהי קל בעיניו. He shouldn't chas ve-shalom, the mitzvah should not as a result be something that he relates to lightly rachmana litzlan, ואל יהרס לעלות אל השם פן יפרץ בו. And he shouldn't recklessly judge, as it were. or the mitzvah. ולא תהא מחשבתו כמחשבתו של דבר אחר and the way he thinks about an inscrutable mitzvah should not be the way he thinks about mundane matters. If you read an op-ed and it doesn't make any sense, so it taka doesn't make any sense. It could be that what the guy said is nonsense and taka doesn't make any sense. There is no, you know, that is a fair conclusion. You read it, it doesn't make any sense, it doesn't make any sense. So rachmana litzlan that a person should react that way to divrei Torah because they don't make sense to him.

בא וראה כמה החמירה תורה במעילה ומה אם עצים ואבנים ועפר ואפר כיוון שנקרא שם אדון העולם עליהם בדברים בלבד נתקדשו,

right? He points to something and he says it is kodesh Lashem because Hakadosh Baruch Hu's name is associated with it, it is invested with kedusha. And as a result וכל הנוהג בהן מנהג חול מעל בהשם. And therefore if someone again doesn't treat this hekdesh, but he treats it sacrilegiously by using it for his own benefit, so מעל בהשם ואפילו היה שוגג טעון כפרה, kal v'chomer the mitzvos שחקק לנו הקדוש ברוך הוא that Hakadosh Baruch Hu legislated

שלא יבעט אדם בהן מפני שלא ידע טעמן ולא יחפה דברים שלא כן על השם

and he should not attribute things to Hakadosh Baruch Hu which are not true

ולא יחשוב בהן מחשבתו בדברי החול. הרי נאמר בתורה ושמרתם את כל חוקותי ואת כל משפטי ועשיתם אותם.

So the Torah says about chukim and mishpatim that there needs to be both asiya and shmira.

ואמרו חכמים ליתן שמירה ועשייה לחוקים כמשפטים. והעשייה ידועה והיא שיעשה החוקים

to comply, to fulfill. והשמירה שיזהר בהן ולא ידמה שהן פחותים מן המשפטים. So shmira is attitude. That a person should have an attitude of reverence. My father zichrono livracha used to say of esteem for the chukim.

והמשפטים הן המצוות שטעמן גלוי וטובת עשייתן בעולם הזה ידועה.

The reason is obvious to us and we see the benefit

כגון איסור גזל ושפיכות דמים וכיבוד אב ואם. והחוקים הן המצוות שאין טעמן ידוע. אמרו חכמים חוקים שחקקתי לך ואין לך רשות להרהר בהן.

But because we don't understand them

ויצרו של אדם נוקף בהן ואומות העולם משיבין עליהן כגון איסור בשר חזיר ובשר בחלב ועגלה ערופה ופרה אדומה ושעיר המשתלח.

The examples that the Gemara in Yoma gives.

וכמה היה דוד המלך מצטער מן המינים והגויים שהיו משיבין על החוקים וכל זמן שהיו רודפין אותו בתשובות השקר שעורכין לפי קוצר דעת האדם היה מוסיף דבקות בתורה שנאמר טפלו עלי שקר זדים אני בכל לב אצור פיקודיך ונאמר שם בעניין כל מצוותיך אמונה

sheker r'dafuni ozreni. וכל הקרבנות here comes the line which shed light in our mishna.

וכל הקרבנות כולם מכלל החוקים הן לפיכך אמרו חכמים שאף על עבודת הקרבנות העולם עומד.

Let me re-read that line.

וכל הקרבנות כולם מכלל החוקים הן לפיכך אמרו חכמים שאף על עבודת הקרבנות העולם עומד.

So A, the Rambam is of the opinion that it is not only sa'ir hamishtaleach which is a chok but all of korbanos are chukim. And when the mishna, when our mishna says Should be and become the type of people that we should. So shmiras hamitzvos even and maybe especially that even and even the chukim are absolutely indispensable for that. And that's what it means again, ha'olam omeid here too, that to sustain the world, again, you need that meticulous observance of mitzvos, so avoda is representative of that because the point is even the chukim, not only I would have thought maybe the mishpatim שהתועלת עשייתם בעולם הזה ידועה, that's necessary for ha'olam omeid. So kamashma lan no, that's not only the mishpatim that are necessary for ha'olam omeid, but the chukim are necessary for ha'olam omeid also. And that's what avoda represents. I think the Rambam in the Moreh speaks directly to the reason for korbanos because of avoda zara. It seems like the same as what you're saying here, it's all chukim. But the Rambam says that the chukim have reasons, it's just that the reasons are not intuitive. So what the Rambam in the Moreh, the Rambam suggests what he thinks are the ta'amei mitzvos for the korbanos. But everything, everything which is a chok has reason and the reason is never intuitive and is never therefore immediately apparent. But the Rambam gives he gives reasons for just about everything. The Rambam thinks the distinction between mishpatim and chukim is not that mishpatim have reasons and chukim don't have reasons, but mishpatim the reasons are obvious to us and intuitive, ma she'ein kein chukim certainly at first glance are unknown to us and again maybe at second and third glance also.

לפיכך אמרו חכמים שאף על עבודת הקרבנות העולם עומד שבעשיית החוקים והמשפטים זוכין הישרים לחיי העולם הבא.

So is that a different pshat in ha'olam omeid than what the Rambam says here in Peirush Hamishnayos? Peirush Hamishnayos ha'olam omeid is not referencing Olam Haba, right? It's תהיה התמדת תיקון העולם וסידור מציאותו על הדרך השלם. It's to sustain the world, the society, that the people should, that we should live the way we're supposed to. It's not referencing Olam Haba, but it's clear that the Rambam says no, but gufa that's what leads to chayei Olam Haba, right? When we live the way we're supposed to in Olam Hazeh, so that gufa is the zchus, is the bridge to Olam Haba. So he's the two points he's making are two sides of the coin or two ends of the bridge. So Korbanos is chosen, Shimon HaTzadik chooses Korbanos to illustrate kiyum hamitzvos because A, he wants to emphasize the indispensability not only of mishpatim but of chukim. And B, l’chora there is presumably an intimation that even within the category of chukim, so Korbanos are especially representative. But what about why is it or how do we understand the fact that for the Rambam also when Shimon HaTzadik says Gemilus Chasadim, he means b’ma’alos hamidos, he means in general tikkun hamidos? He doesn't mean, he doesn't mean only kindness. Again, he means kindness the same way Avoda represents most broadly shmiras hamitzvos and specifically within shmiras hamitzvos the chukim, so too Gemilus Chasadim is representative of midos. So how do we understand that? Also, so he talks as follows: The Rambam explains in Parshas Ki Sisa when Moshe Rabbeinu asks הודיעני נא את דרכיך. And Hakadosh Baruch Hu responds,

ויעבור ה׳ על פניו ויקרא ה׳ ה׳ אל רחום וחנון

and teaches him the י״ג מדות הרחמים. So the Rambam says that isn't the full, that isn't the full comprehensive answer to הודיעני נא את דרכיך. There are more darchei Hashem than are encapsulated in רחום וחנון ארך אפים ורב חסד. But he said those, but the Rambam says those are the midos which are most necessary, which are central for Moshe Rabbeinu in his capacity as the manhig of Klal Yisrael. When Moshe Rabbeinu says הודיעני נא את דרכיך ואדעך כי עמך הגוי הזה, something to that effect. Meaning Moshe Rabbeinu says, I need to know your derachim, your midos so that I can emulate them in in the responsibility of leadership that you've that you've thrust upon me. So the Rambam says so when Hakadosh Baruch Hu answers at least the part of the answer that's recorded in the Chumash, so Hakadosh Baruch Hu prioritized those midos, those derachim which are most necessary for a manhig hamedina. K’midumeh that that it's correct to extrapolate, to extend from there and and to say that to a large extent that's also true of every yachid in his own daled amos. I thought man d'amar b'alma? V'ikar, the יג מידות הרחמים. Again, focus on the bein adam l'chavero and it's davka chesed which is formulated as v'rav chesed. And vitachen that's according to the Rambam what's reflected in our mishna that within tikkun hamiddos, the centrality of v'rav chesed is something that you see gufeh within the יג מידות הרחמים and mimaila that's why Shimon Hatzaddik represents the tchum of middos with middos chassidus. Okay, mishna gimmel. Antignos ish socho kibel mishimon hatzaddik. Hu hayah omer:

אל תהיו כעבדים המשמשים את הרב על מנת לקבל פרס אלא היו כעבדים המשמשים את הרב שלא על מנת לקבל פרס ויהי מורא שמים עליכם.

The phrase, the idiom ish socho. So Rashi in masechet shabbos comments, the Gemara here has in יב עמוד ב shevna ish yerushalayim. So Rashi says אדם גדול היה בירושלים ושמו שבנא. So ish as in the way Rashi comments at the beginning of parshas shelach, kulam anashim. Rashi, bnei yisroel heim, it's a lashon chashivus, a lashon of a person of great stature. And socho is his place. Antignos ish socho kibel mishimon hatzaddik. Hu hayah omer:

אל תהיו כעבדים המשמשים את הרב על מנת לקבל פרס אלא היו כעבדים המשמשים את הרב שלא על מנת לקבל פרס ויהי מורא שמים עליכם.

The chiddush that antignos ish socho is telling us is the following. So take a look here in פרק י הלכות תשובה of the Rambam. Take a look

פרק י הלכות תשובה. אל יאמר אדם הריני עושה מצוות התורה ועוסק בחכמתה כדי שאקבל הברכות הכתובות בתורה או כדי שאזכה לחיי העולם הבא ואפרוש מן העבירות שהזהירה תורה מהן כדי שאנצל מן הקללות הכתובות בתורה או כדי שלא אכרת מחיי העולם הבא אין ראוי לעבוד את השם על דרך זו שהעובד על דרך זו עובד מיראה ואינה מעלת הנביאים ולא מעלת החכמים.

Halacha beis.

העובד מאהבה עוסק בתורה ובמצוות והולך בנתיבות החכמה לא מפני דבר בעולם ולא מפני יראת הרעה ולא כדי לירש הטובה אלא עושה אמת מפני שהוא אמת וסוף הטובה לבוא בכלל.

So the Rambam says that the ultimate madreigah is that a person should not be motivated by schar v'onesh. He shouldn't be motivated by avoiding onesh and qualifying for schar, but he should do it without ulterior motive. עושה אמת מפני שהוא אמת without ulterior motive. Fine. But when you read it carefully there's a chiddush gadol meod here. In halacha aleph when the Rambam was pushing to the side the mindset of oved miyirah, so he said, don't be עושה מצוות התורה ועוסק בחכמתה. And don't be

פורש מן העבירות להינצל מן הקללות ושלא יכרת מחיי העולם הבא,

right? So that's now Halacha Beis comes the counterpart, right? Halacha Aleph is don't do A, don't do B. But the counterpart

העובד מאהבה עוסק בתורה ובמצוות והולך בנתיבות החכמה עושה אמת מפני שהוא אמת.

In Halacha Aleph and Beis the Rambam speaks both of being mekayeim mitzvos asei and being נזהר מצוות לא תעשה. You have the Rambam in front of you? Do you see it? Because the lashon mitzvos in Halacha Beis, what mitzvos doesn't mean הן עשה לא תעשה because look how the Rambam used the term mitzvos in Halacha Aleph:

אל יאמר אדם הריני עושה מצוות התורה ועוסק בחכמתה כדי שאקבל הברכות ואפרוש מן העבירות.

So clearly mitzvos here in the Rambam means mitzvos asei. Means mitzvos asei. It's not the way we generally use the term. So then that means that in Halacha Beis when the Rambam is speaking about oved mei'ahava, he doesn't revise what he told us about being nizar from mitzvos lo sa'asei. He only revises the counterpart in terms of being osek bechochmaso and mekayeim mitzvos asei. So I don't understand, on the one hand he critiques it in Halacha Aleph but mei'idach gisa he doesn't correct it in Halacha Beis. Look at the vort like this. In Sefer HaMitzvos,

והמיצווה הרביעית במצוות עשה. והמיצווה הרביעית היא שציוונו להאמין יראתו יתעלה ולהיפחד ממנו ולא נהיה ככופרים ההולכים בקרי אבל נירא ביאת עונשו בכל עת והוא אמר יתעלה את ה' אלוהיך תירא.

So yiras ha'onesh is part of it's part of the mitzvah asei de'oraisa of את ה' אלוהיך תירא. That a person should have yiras ha'onesh, that we live knowing that there's accountability. נירא ביאת עונשו בכל עת, so clearly if it's one of the taryag mitzvos it's not a stepping stone to a it's not only a stepping stone to a higher level. No, it's part of the highest level that a person is supposed to be on. A person is not supposed to graduate from yiras ha'onesh. That's not supposed to be the only part of his religious consciousness, but it's supposed to be a part of his religious consciousness. A person is not supposed to graduate from yiras ha'onesh. That's why in Halacha Beis when the Rambam describes the oved mei'ahava, he doesn't revise the mindset לגבי מצוות לא תעשה. He doesn't revise it. So then why did he critique it in Halacha Aleph? Why did he critique it in Halacha Aleph? How does a person know when he looks in the mirror? No one else needs to know, a person himself needs to know. How does a person know when he looks in the mirror whether his yiras ha'onesh is... To be mekayem the mitzvah is because that's part of the correct configuration of how a person relates to Hakadosh Baruch Hu or whether it's self-interest. Either way it's supposed to be yiras ha-onesh, right? Either way it's supposed to be yiras ha-onesh. Either way, either way, the person is supposed to know that if this is assur, if I'm not supposed to be doing this, there's a din ve-cheshbon. But if I want to be honest with myself, we're not always interested in doing that, but naniach that's a good day. And if I want to be honest with myself, is it self-interest or is it, no, because part of the proper attitude towards Hakadosh Baruch Hu, not the exclusive element or component, but one element, one component of a proper attitude and approach to Hakadosh Baruch Hu is that a person should have yiras ha-onesh. So how do I know which it is? So the answer is be-zoth nivchanu. How do I fulfill my mitzvos asei? By mitzvos asei which are nitpasim in being oved me-ahava, is it with the same

כדי שאקבל הברכות הכתובות בתורה כדי שאזכה לחיי העולם הבא?

Or is it

עושה אמת מפני שהוא אמת ולסוף הטובה באה מכלל שהיה עושה אותה מפני אהבת אדון הכל שציווה בו?

So that's what the Rambam says. He says, and that explains the Seder ha-Rambam, everything, everything, everything is so meduyak. And in the Seder ha-Rambam Halacha Alef, the Rambam begins with the עושה מצוות התורה כדי שאקבל שכר. Why? Because it's in light of that that the yiras ha-onesh is critiqued. It's because if that's the mode in which he's osek ba-Torah, in which he's mekayem mitzvos, so then that sheds light that his yiras ha-onesh is not a yiras ha-onesh of that's part of relating to Hakadosh Baruch Hu who's nora ve-ayom to have yiras ha-onesh. No, it's self-interest. Ve-haraya, it's the same thing that motivates him, that animates him when he learns Torah. So the Rambam davka has to begin with הרי אני עושה מצוות התורה. If the person has that mindset for being osek be-chochmaso and עושה מצוות התורה, so then when that mindset extends also, so no, that's not, that's also worthy of critique. That's also worthy of critique. Then the Rambam corrects in Halacha Beis, but what needs to be corrected is העובד מאהבה עוסק בתורה ומצוות והולך בנתיבות החכמה. How does Rambam know all this? Answer is he got it from our Mishna. That's gufeh what Antigonus Ish Socho is saying in this Mishna. Antigonus Ish Socho begins by saying you have to be oved me-ahava. And then he says, lest you think that being oved me-ahava means that you graduate from yiras ha-onesh, that yiras ha-onesh is a temporary stage, it's a stepping stone to the highest madreiga. No, it's not. ויהי מורא שמים עליכם, even when you're holding on the madreiga of Antigonus Ish Socho of being שלא על מנת לקבל פרס or even more על מנת שלא לקבל פרס, no, there still has to be ויהי מורא שמים עליכם.