It is written in Mishlei (13:7): "There are those who enrich themselves and have nothing, etc." It is known that Mishlei consists of analogies (meshalim). [In the above instance, the analogy is as follows:] Just as in monetary matters, it is possible for one to heap up riches, and yet, when it comes to the accounting, he may find that the great profits in his business are offset by many damages, so that when one is set against the other, he is seen to be left with nothing— so, in matters of eternity, it is possible for a man always to do mitzvoth and good deeds and yet to have an evil nature, which prompts him to slander his fellows. A man like this, when he comes to the higher world, will find that he has nothing, that all of the vines and plants that he planted in Gan Eden through his deeds have been covered with thorns and nettles, and the vines below are not visible, as it is written (Ibid. 24:31): "I passed by the field of a lazy man, and by the vineyard of a man lacking a heart, etc." That is, there are two types of people: one is too lazy to acquire Torah and good deeds for his soul. This is [what is intended by] "the field of a lazy man," one who did not learn, or who forgot through his laziness; and the second lacks a heart. He has Torah and good deeds, but his heart lacks concern for them [to see to it] that they endure. About the first, Solomon writes (Ibid. 24:30): "and, behold, it was all grown over with thorns"; i.e., instead of beautiful words of Torah there grew thorns and briers of idle speech. And, about the second, (Ibid.): "nettles had covered its face." In our context this is understood as meaning that every word of Torah and holiness that he had spoken and that could have produced "glorious fruit, holy to the L-rd," was covered and overlaid from above with the spirit of uncleanliness of his forbidden speech.
As we find in the holy Zohar, Parshath Pekudei: "And in this evil spirit there are found other inciters of din, which are designated to seize upon evil or filthy speech that a man utters with his mouth, that is followed by words of holiness. Woe to them and woe to their lives! Woe to them in this world and woe to them in the next world! For those unclean spirits take that unclean word, and when he subsequently utters words of holiness, those unclean spirits come forward and take that unclean speech and defile [with it] the holy speech, so that the speaker is not credited with it, and, the holy power is weakened, as it were."
And, King Solomon, may peace be upon him, said in a similar vein (Mishlei 13:3): "One who widens his lips— it is 'breaking' for him," which the GRA explains: "One who widens his lips [in lashon hara], though he has a good soul, and though he has done many mitzvoth and [built] many 'fences,' his mouth will break everything."
The verse (Ibid. 24:31) ends: "and its stone wall was broken down." That is, in the course of time, even a strong stone fence will break down, and the vineyard will be trodden underfoot by every wayfarer and will be worth nothing. So is it with the man that does not look to what leaves his lips, which are, [as it were,] "abandoned" by him. All of the strong fences which he had built in the beginning around his conduct will be destroyed. Therefore, the man of heart, who wishes to amend his deeds, must first of all build a fence for his vineyard; that is, he must put an extra-strong guard upon his mouth and his tongue so that they not bring him to grief again.
As to Solomon's using the word "vineyard," aside from the fact that all of Israel is considered a vineyard, viz. (Isaiah 5:7): "For the vineyard of the L-rd of hosts is the house of Israel," and every Jew has a portion in this vineyard— aside from this, everyone has a distinct vineyard in Gan Eden, as it is written (Koheleth 12:5): "A man goes to his eternal house." And he must take especial care with it, to plant it with pleasing growths and to guard it that it not spoil.
He must also root out thorns and briers from his vineyard. That is, people to whom he has caused a loss with his tongue or whom he has shamed or grieved. He must conciliate them with his mouth, and he must also confess before the L-rd for having transgressed His will as stated in the Torah. For all sins between man and his neighbor are also sins between man and his Maker, as is well known. And even if he spoke against them not to their face and his words had no effect, in any event, he must repent before the L-rd, and thus the thorns will be removed from his vineyard, as will the spirit of uncleanliness that covered its face (see Part One, The Gate of Torah, where we expanded on this.) [The end of the (opening) verse (Mishlei 13:7): "and [there are] those who impoverish themselves and have great wealth": It is known that if one repents out of love [of the L-rd], all of the sins that he committed in the beginning become merits for him; so that it emerges that the more he had sinned in the beginning and had become impoverished, the wealthier he becomes afterwards. This can be understood according to its plain meaning: One who repents out of love is certainly embittered over each sin he has committed, and grieves over how his heart could have permitted him to transgress the will of the Creator, who gives life to all of the creation in His lovingkindness and His goodness. As a result, his sin is uprooted from the beginning, and he fulfills thereby the positive commandment of repentance. It emerges, then, that for every sin he committed in the beginning, there is now in its place the positive mitzvah of teshuvah.]
בּוֹ יְבֹאַר, שֶׁמִּי שֶׁמַּפְקִיר אֶת פִּיו, עָלוּל שֶׁיִּכְלוּ עֵל יְדֵי זֶה כָּל מִצְוֹתָיו.
In this chapter it will be explained that if one "abandons" his mouth, he is likely to lose all of his mitzvoth.
כְּתִיב בְּמִשְׁלֵי (י"ג ז'): "יֵשׁ מִתְעַשֵּׁר וְאֵין כֹּל" וְגוֹ'. וְיָדוּעַ, שֶׁמִּשְׁלֵי הוּא תָּמִיד מְשָׁלִים, וְהַיְנוּ כְּמוֹ שֶׁבְּעִנְיְנֵי הַמָּמוֹן רָגִיל הוּא לָאָדָם, שֶׁמִּתְעַשֵּׁר בַּעֲסָקָיו וְהוֹלֵךְ לְמַעְלָה לְמַעְלָה, וּמִכָּל מָקוֹם כְּשֶׁבָּא לְחֶשְׁבּוֹן צֶדֶקּ, יִמְצָא, שֶׁאֵין לוֹ מְאוּמָה, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁכְּנֶגֶד שֶׁהָיָה רֶוַח הַרְבֵּה בָּעֵסֶק, הָיוּ הֶזֵּקוֹת הַרְבֵּה, עַד שֶׁכְּשֶׁנַּעֲמִיד זֶה כְּנֶגֶד זֶה, יִרְאֶה, שֶׁלֹּא נִשְׁאָר מְאוּמָה בְּיָדוֹ. כָּךְ בְּעִנְיְנֵי הַנֶּצַח, יֵשׁ לְךָ אָדָם, שֶׁעוֹשֶׂה תָּמִיד מִצְוֹת וּמַעֲשִׂים טוֹבִים, אָכֵן יֵשׁ לוֹ טֶבַע רַע שֶׁטִּבְעוֹ לְהַטִּיל דֹּפִי עַל הַבְּרִיוֹת. אִישׁ כָּזֶה, כַּאֲשֶׁר יָבוֹא לָעוֹלָם הָעֶלְיוֹן, יִרְאֶה שָׁם, שֶׁאֵין לוֹ מְאוּמָה, שֶׁכָּל הַגְּפָנִים וְהַנְּטִיעוֹת שֶׁנָּטַע בְּגַן עֵדֶן בְּמַעֲשָׂיו, נִתְכַּסּוּ פְּנֵיהֶם בְּקוֹצִים וּבַרְקָנִים, וְלֹא מִנְכָּר כְּלָל הַגְּפָנִים שֶׁיֵּשׁ בּוֹ * וְזֶהוּ שֶׁאָנוּ אומְרִים בְּסוף תְּפִלָּתֵנוּ: "אֱלֹהי, נְצֹר לְשׁוֹנִי מֵרָע" וְאַחַר כָּךְ אָנוּ מְבַקְּשִׁים: "פְּתַח לִבִּי בְּתוֹרָתֶךָ", דְּאִי לָאו הָכִי אֵין הַתּוֹרָה נֶחְשֶׁבֶת לִכְלוּם: . כְּמַאֲמַר הַכָּתוּב (משלי כ"ד ל'): "עַל שְׂדֵה אִישׁ עָצֵל עָבַרְתִּי, וְעַל כֶּרֶם אָדָם חֲסַר לֵב". וְהַיְנוּ, שֶׁיֵּשׁ שְׁנֵי מִינֵי אֲנָשִׁים: אֶחָד עָצֵל לְהַשִּׂיג לְנַפְשׁוֹ תּוֹרָה וּמַעֲשִׂים טוֹבִים, וְזֶהוּ: "שְׂדֵה אִישׁ עָצֵל" שֶׁלֹּא לָמַד אוֹ שָׁכַח עַל יְדֵי עַצְלָנוּתוֹ, וְהַשֵׁנִי "חֲסַר לֵב" שֶׁיֵּשׁ בְּיָדוֹ תּוֹרָה וּמַעֲשִׂים טוֹבִים, אֲבָל לִבּוֹ חֲסַר דְּאָגָה עֲלֵיהֶם שֶׁיִּתְקַיְּמוּ בְּיָדוֹ. וּמְפָרֵשׁ עַל הָרִאשׁוֹן (שם ל"א): "וְהִנֵּה עָלָה כֻלּוֹ קִמְּשֹׁנִים" שֶׁתַּחַת נְטִיעוֹת יָפוֹת מִדִּבְרֵי תּוֹרָה גָּדְלוּ קוֹצִים וּבַרְקָנִים מִדְּבָרִים בְּטֵלִים, וְעַל הַשֵּׁנִי "כָּסּוּ פָנָיו חֲרלִּים" וְגוֹ'. וּבֵאוּרוֹ הוּא לְפִי עִנְיָנֵנוּ, שֶׁכָּל דִּבּוּר שֶׁל תּוֹרָה וּקְדֻשָּׁה שֶׁדִּבֵּר וְהָיָה בְּאֶפְשָׁרוּתָן לַעֲלוֹת וְלַעֲשׂוֹת פְּרִי הִלּוּלִים קֹדֶשׁ לַה', נִתְכַּסָּה וְנִמְשְׁכָה עָלָיו מִלְּמַעְלָה רוּחַ הַטֻּמְאָה עַל יְדֵי דִּבּוּרָיו הָאֲסוּרִים.
It is written in Mishlei (13:7): "There are those who enrich themselves and have nothing, etc." It is known that Mishlei consists of analogies (meshalim). [In the above instance, the analogy is as follows:] Just as in monetary matters, it is possible for one to heap up riches, and yet, when it comes to the accounting, he may find that the great profits in his business are offset by many damages, so that when one is set against the other, he is seen to be left with nothing— so, in matters of eternity, it is possible for a man always to do mitzvoth and good deeds and yet to have an evil nature, which prompts him to slander his fellows. A man like this, when he comes to the higher world, will find that he has nothing, that all of the vines and plants that he planted in Gan Eden through his deeds have been covered with thorns and nettles, and the vines below are not visible, as it is written (Ibid. 24:31): "I passed by the field of a lazy man, and by the vineyard of a man lacking a heart, etc." That is, there are two types of people: one is too lazy to acquire Torah and good deeds for his soul. This is [what is intended by] "the field of a lazy man," one who did not learn, or who forgot through his laziness; and the second lacks a heart. He has Torah and good deeds, but his heart lacks concern for them [to see to it] that they endure. About the first, Solomon writes (Ibid. 24:30): "and, behold, it was all grown over with thorns"; i.e., instead of beautiful words of Torah there grew thorns and briers of idle speech. And, about the second, (Ibid.): "nettles had covered its face." In our context this is understood as meaning that every word of Torah and holiness that he had spoken and that could have produced "glorious fruit, holy to the L-rd," was covered and overlaid from above with the spirit of uncleanliness of his forbidden speech.
וּכְמוֹ דְּאִיתָא בַּזֹּהַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ, פָּרָשַׁת פְקּוּדֵי, וְזֶה לְשׁוֹנוֹ: וּבְהַאי רוּחָא בִּישָׁא תָּלְיָן כַּמָּה גַּרְדִּינִין אַחֲרָנִין, דְּאִנּוּן מְמֻנִּין לַאֲחָדָא מִלָּה בִּישָׁא אוֹ מִלָּה טִנּוּפָא, דְּאַפִּיק בַּר נָשׁ מִפּוּמֵהּ, וּלְבָתַר אַפִּיק מִלִּין קַדִּישִׁין וְכוּ'. וַי לוֹן בְּהַאי עָלְמָא, וַי לוֹן בְּעָלְמָא דְּאָתֵי, בְּגִין דְּאִלֵּין רוּחִין מְסָאֲבִין נָטְלִין הַהוּא מִלָּה מְסָאֲבָא, וְכַד אַפִּיק בַּר נָשׁ לְבָתַר מִלִּין קַדִּישִׁין, אַקְּדִּימֵי אִלֵּין רוּחֵי מְסָאֲבִין, וְנָטְלִין הַהוּא מִלָּה מְסָאֲבָא וּמְסָאֲבֵי לְהַהוּא מִלָּה קַדִּישָׁא, וְלָא זָכֵי לֵהּ בַּר נָשׁ, וְכִבְיָכוֹל תָּשְׁשָׁא חֵילָא קַדִּישָׁא. עַד כָּאן לְשׁוֹנוֹ.
As we find in the holy Zohar, Parshath Pekudei: "And in this evil spirit there are found other inciters of din, which are designated to seize upon evil or filthy speech that a man utters with his mouth, that is followed by words of holiness. Woe to them and woe to their lives! Woe to them in this world and woe to them in the next world! For those unclean spirits take that unclean word, and when he subsequently utters words of holiness, those unclean spirits come forward and take that unclean speech and defile [with it] the holy speech, so that the speaker is not credited with it, and, the holy power is weakened, as it were."
וּבְרוּחַ רָעה זוֹ תְּלוּיִים כַּמָּה מְעוֹרְרֵי דִּין אֲחֵרִים, שֶׁהֵם מְמֻנִּים לֶאֱחֹז בִּדִבּוּר רַע אוֹ דִּבּוּר טִנּוּף, שֶהוֹצִיא אָדָם מִפִּיו, וְאַחַר כָּךְ מוֹצִיא מִלִּים קְדוֹשׁוֹת. אוֹי לָהֶם, אוֹי לְחַיֵּיהֶם, אוֹי לָהֶם בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, אוֹי לָהֶם בָּעוֹלָם הַבָּא. מִפְּנֵי שֶׁאוֹתָן רוּחוֹת טְמֵאוֹת נוֹטְלוֹת אוֹתָהּ מִלָּה טְמֵאָה, וְכַאֲשֶׁר מוֹצִיא הָאָדָם אַחַר כָּךְ מִלִּים קְדוֹשוֹת, מַקְדִּימוֹת אוֹתָן הָרוּחוֹת הַטְּמֵאוֹת וְלוֹקְחוֹת לְאוֹתוֹ דִּבּוּר טָמֵא וּמְטַמְּאִים לְאוֹתוֹ דִּבּוּר קָדוֹשׁ, וְלֹא זוֹכֶה לוֹ הָאָדָם, וְכִבְיָכוֹל תָּשַׁשׁ הַכֹּחַ הקָדוֹשׁ.
וּכְעֵין זֶה אָמַר שְׁלֹמֹה הַמֶּלֶךְ עָלָיו הַשָּׁלוֹם (במשלי י"ג ג'): "פֹּשֵׂק שְׂפָתָיו מְחִתָּה לוֹ", וּבֵאֵר הַגְּרָ"א, וְזֶה לְשׁוֹנוֹ: מִי שֶׁמַּרְחִיב שְׂפָתָיו, אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ נֶפֶשׁ טוֹב וְעָשָׂה מִצְוֹת הַרְבֵּה וְכַמָּה גְּדָרִים פִּיו יִהְיֶה לוֹ מְחִתָּה לַכֹּל. עַד כָּאן לְשׁוֹנוֹ.
And, King Solomon, may peace be upon him, said in a similar vein (Mishlei 13:3): "One who widens his lips— it is 'breaking' for him," which the GRA explains: "One who widens his lips [in lashon hara], though he has a good soul, and though he has done many mitzvoth and [built] many 'fences,' his mouth will break everything."
וְסִיֵּם הַכָּתוּב (משלי כ"ד ל"א): "וְגֶדֶר אֲבָנָיו נֶהֶרָסָה", וּבֵאוּרוֹ שֶׁבְּהֶמְשֵׁךְ הַזְּמַן, אַף גָּדֵר שֶׁל אֲבָנִים הֶחָזָק נֶהֱרַס, וְנַעֲשָׂה הַכֶּרֶם לְמִדְרַס רַגְלַיִם לְכָל עוֹבֵר וָשָׁב וְאֵין שָׁוֶה מְאוּמָה. וְכֵן הוּא הָאָדָם, אֲשֶׁר לֹא יַבִּיט לְמוֹצַא שְׂפָתָיו, וְהֵם כְּהֶפְקֵר אֶצְלוֹ: כָּל הַגְּדָרִים הַחֲזָקַים שֶׁהָיָה לוֹ מִתְּחִלָּה עַל הַנְהָגָתוֹ כֻּלָּם יִהְיוּ נֵהֱרָסִים. וְעַל כֵּן צָרִיךְ הָאִישׁ הַנִּלְבָּב, כְּשֶׁרוֹצֶה לְתַקֵּן מַעֲשָׂיו, תְּחִלַּת הַכֹּל לַעֲשׂוֹת גָּדֵר לְכַרְמוֹ, דְּהַיְנוּ לִשְׁמֹר פִּיו וּלְשׁוֹנוֹ בִּשֶׁמִירָה יְתֵרָה, שֶׁלֹּא יוֹסִיף לְדַאֲבָה עוֹד.
The verse (Ibid. 24:31) ends: "and its stone wall was broken down." That is, in the course of time, even a strong stone fence will break down, and the vineyard will be trodden underfoot by every wayfarer and will be worth nothing. So is it with the man that does not look to what leaves his lips, which are, [as it were,] "abandoned" by him. All of the strong fences which he had built in the beginning around his conduct will be destroyed. Therefore, the man of heart, who wishes to amend his deeds, must first of all build a fence for his vineyard; that is, he must put an extra-strong guard upon his mouth and his tongue so that they not bring him to grief again.
וּמַה שֶּׁהִמְשִׁיל בְּשֵׁם הַכֶּרֶם, לְבַד שֶׁכָּל בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל חֲשׁוּבִין כְּכֶרֶם, כְּמוֹ דְּכָתוּב בִּישַׁעְיָה (ה' ז'): "כִּי כֶרֶם ד' צְבָאוֹת בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל", וְכָל אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל יֵשׁ לוֹ חֵלֶק בַּכֶּרֶם הַזֶּה. לְבַד זֶה כָּל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד יֵשׁ לוֹ כֶּרֶם מְיֻחָד בְּגַן עֵדֶן, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב: הוֹלֵךְ הָאָדָם לְבֵית עוֹלָמוֹ; וְצָרִיךְ לְשָׁמְרוֹ שְׁמִירָה יְתֵרָה לִנְטֹעַ בּוֹ נִטְעֵי נַעֲמָנִים וּלְשָׁמְרוֹ שֶׁלֹּא יִתְקַלְקֵל.
As to Solomon's using the word "vineyard," aside from the fact that all of Israel is considered a vineyard, viz. (Isaiah 5:7): "For the vineyard of the L-rd of hosts is the house of Israel," and every Jew has a portion in this vineyard— aside from this, everyone has a distinct vineyard in Gan Eden, as it is written (Koheleth 12:5): "A man goes to his eternal house." And he must take especial care with it, to plant it with pleasing growths and to guard it that it not spoil.
וְגַם צָרִיךְ לַעֲקֹר קוֹצִים וּבַרְקָנִים מִכַּרְמוֹ, דְּהַיְנוּ לָאֲנָשִׁים שֶׁהִפְסִידָם בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ אוֹ שֶׁבִּזָּה אוֹתָם וְצִעֲרָם, צָרִיךְ לְפַיְּסָם בְּפִיו, וְגַם לְהִתְוַדּוֹת לִפְנֵי ה' עַל שֶׁעָבַר עַל רְצוֹנוֹ הַכָּתוּב בַּתּוֹרָה, דְּכָל עֲוֹנוֹת שֶׁבֵּין אָדָם לַחֲבֵרוֹ הוּא גַּם כֵּן עָוֹן שֶׁבֵּין אָדָם לַמָּקוֹם, כַּיָּדוּעַ. וַאֲפִלּוּ אִם דִּבֵּר עֲלֵיהֶם שֶׁלֹּא בִּפְנֵיהֶם, וְלֹא אַהֲנוּ מַעֲשָׂיו צָרִיךְ לָשׁוּב עַל כָּל פָּנִים לִפְנֵי ה', וּבָזֶה יַעַבְרוּ הַקּוֹצִים מִכַּרְמוֹ, וּתְסֻלַּק רוּחַ הַטֻּמְאָה שֶׁכִּסְּתָה פָּנָיו. וְעַיֵּן בְּחֵלֶק רִאשׁוֹן, שַׁעַר הַתּוֹרָה, פֶּרֶק א', שֶׁהִרְחַבְנוּ שָׁם הַדִּבּוּר בָּזֶה. [וְסוֹף הַכָּתוּב (משלי י"ג ז'): "מִתְרוֹשֵׁשׁ וְהוֹן רָב". וּבֵאוּרוֹ הוּא: לְפִי מַה שֶּׁיָּדוּעַ שֶׁמִּי שֶׁעוֹשֶׂה תְּשׁוּבָה מֵאַהֲבָה, כָּל עֲוֹנוֹתָיו שֶׁעָשָׂה מִתְּחִלָּה נַעֲשִׂין לוֹ כִּזְכֻיּוֹת, וְנִמְצָא, שֶׁכָּל מַה שֶּׁעָשָׂה יוֹתֵר עֲוֹנוֹת מִתְּחִלָּה וְנַעֲשָׂה רָשׁ בְּיוֹתֵר, יִמְצָא אַחַר כָּךְ עַל יְֹדֵי זֶה הוֹן רַב. וְהַטַּעַם אֶפְשָׁר כִּפְשׁוּטוֹ, דְּמִי שֶׁהוּא עוֹשֶׂה תְּשׁוּבָה מֵאַהֲבָה, בְּוַדַּאי מִתְמַרְמֵר עַל כָּל עָוֹן בִּפְנֵי עַצְמוֹ וּבוֹכֶה וּמִתְאוֹנֵן, אֵיךְ מְלָאוֹ לִבּוֹ לַעֲבֹר עַל רְצוֹן הַבּוֹרֵא, הַמְחַיֶּה כָּל הַמְּצִיאוּת בְּחַסְדּוֹ וְטוּבוֹ, וּמִמֵּילָא נֶעֱקָר הַחֵטְא מֵעִקָּרוֹ, וּמְקַיֵּם בָּזֶה מִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה שֶׁל תְּשׁוּבָה. וְנִמְצָא, שֶׁבְּכָל חֵטְא שֶׁעָשָׂה מִתְּחִלָּה יֵשׁ עַתָּה מִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה שֶׁל תְּשׁוּבָה].
He must also root out thorns and briers from his vineyard. That is, people to whom he has caused a loss with his tongue or whom he has shamed or grieved. He must conciliate them with his mouth, and he must also confess before the L-rd for having transgressed His will as stated in the Torah. For all sins between man and his neighbor are also sins between man and his Maker, as is well known. And even if he spoke against them not to their face and his words had no effect, in any event, he must repent before the L-rd, and thus the thorns will be removed from his vineyard, as will the spirit of uncleanliness that covered its face (see Part One, The Gate of Torah, where we expanded on this.) [The end of the (opening) verse (Mishlei 13:7): "and [there are] those who impoverish themselves and have great wealth": It is known that if one repents out of love [of the L-rd], all of the sins that he committed in the beginning become merits for him; so that it emerges that the more he had sinned in the beginning and had become impoverished, the wealthier he becomes afterwards. This can be understood according to its plain meaning: One who repents out of love is certainly embittered over each sin he has committed, and grieves over how his heart could have permitted him to transgress the will of the Creator, who gives life to all of the creation in His lovingkindness and His goodness. As a result, his sin is uprooted from the beginning, and he fulfills thereby the positive commandment of repentance. It emerges, then, that for every sin he committed in the beginning, there is now in its place the positive mitzvah of teshuvah.]