Chasidut · Other Chasidut Works
Ba'al Shem Tov, Tetzaveh 1/בעל שם טוב על התורה·
אונתת אל חושן המשפט את האורים ואת התומים. יש בזה סוד עמוק ושער גדול ואגלה ואכסה וכו', כי ידוע שבאורים ותומים היו הכ"ב אתוון בדוחק כידוע מאמר חכמינו ז"ל (בגמרא יומא דע"ג ע"ב), ונמצא כשהיו צריכין לשאול דברים שיש בו ב' או ג' אותיות שוין כגון האלך לבבל, האיך היה התשובה בזה, ויש בזה סוד עמוק, ואענה חלקי בזה כי קבלתי בזה מאדוני אבי זקיני זללה"ה כי בכל אות מהכ"ב אתוון יש כל הכ"ב אותיות [היינו על ידי המילואים ומילואים דמילואים וכו'] חוץ מאות מ' [שגם המילוי אינו אלא מ' כזה והכהן המתלבש ברוח הקודש השואל, אחר שציוה השם שיהיו כל הכ"ב אותיות באורים ותומים והיו מאירין האותיות עם מילואין שלהם גם כן, ומזה היה יודע כל מה שצריך, והבן, וזהו אבני שהם ואבני מילואים גם כן [היינו המילואים של האותיות שהאירו גם כן על האבנים] שצריך לאפוד ולחושן וכו':
(דגל מחנה אפרים בליקוטים).
(דגל מחנה אפרים בליקוטים).
1And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel on the Breastplate of Judgment upon his heart, when he goes into the holy place, for a memorial before the L-rd continually. And you shall put in the Breastplate of Judgment the Urim and the Thummim; and they shall be upon Aaron's heart, when he goes in before the L-rd…” (Exodus 28:29-30)It is known that the Breastplate barely contained all twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, as our Sages have said.1 73b. There were twelve precious stones set in the Breastplate of Judgment. They were engraved with the names of the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the names of the twelve tribes, and the words “tribes of Yeshurun.” Certain letters, such as the gimel or the zayin, were written only once. Therefore, when they had to ask a question2, vol. 1 (New York: Moznaim, 1979), 6:36 and fn. 110, for more on this subject. that used several of the same letters, such as “Should I go to Bavel,”3, and three lameds –האלך לבבל. However, it is likely that the author was only using this as an example of a phrase with repeating letters, because there were at least five beits and four lameds in the Breastplate –enough to spell out these words. how were they answered? There is a very great mystery in this . . . I heard from my grandfather [the Baal Shem Tov], that each of the twenty-two letters [of the Hebrew alphabet] contains within it all the other letters of the alphabet4 in full provides a lamed and a phey (אלף). Furthermore, each of these letters can further expanded, to produce even more letters, until the entire Hebrew alphabet is reconstituted. (except for the letter mem5, when written in full, will not produce any additional letters – מם. (Original editor’s note.)). Since G-d commanded that all twenty-two letters be inscribed on the Breastplate, when the priest would be enwrapped in Divine inspiration, the letters would shine in their expanded forms. This enabled them to receive everything they needed to know. Understand this!This is the meaning of “onyx stones, and stones to be set,6,” read alternatively as “stones that are filled out” – meaning that the engraved letters shone in their expanded forms. In a number of other lessons on this theme, the Baal Shem Tov explains that additional letters can be derived from a single letter by using the techniques of gematria (numerical value of the letters), or by dividing the letters into their component parts. It is possible that those approaches were originally mentioned with this lesson, since there are a number of other letters, such as the gimel, zayin, ches, tes and samech that could never be derived from the other letters, no matter how many times they are spelled out. See Baal Shem Tov on the Torah, parashas Yisro, fn. 11, for more on this subject. for the ephod, and for the breastplate” (Exodus 25:7).Degel Machane Ephraim, Likutim
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