Mishlei: Creating a Sense of Security Part Two
“God founded the earth with wisdom; He established the heavens with understanding; through His knowledge, the depths were cleaved, and the heavens dripped dew. My child, do not let them stray from your eyes; safeguard the wise counsel and its wise design. They will be life to your soul and a graceful ornament for your neck. Then you will walk on your way securely, and your foot will not stumble. When you lie down you will not fear; you will lie down and your sleep will be pleasant. You will not fear sudden terror, nor the holocaust of the wicked when it comes. For God will be your security, and He will guard your feet from entrapment (Proverbs 3:19-26).”
In Part One we explained the importance of seeing all of creation as an expression of the wisdom, understanding and knowledge of the Torah and how that trains us to protect Torah from straying from our sights, and safeguarding the wise counsel and design.
“They will be life to your soul and a graceful ornament for your neck.” We know that Torah is called a, “Tree of life,” and that it gives us spiritual life. King Solomon is teaching us that we must work to achieve Torah as a source of life; by not allowing the Torah to disappear from our view of life, and by safeguarding its wise counsel and design.
The Ramchal teaches: “God granted us one particular means which can bring man close to God more than anything else. This is surely the study of His Torah.
Such study accomplishes this in two ways: first through the reading of the Torah, and secondly through its comprehension.
These words have the unique property of causing one who reads them to incorporate in himself the highest excellence and greatest perfection. They must be read with holiness and purity, with the purpose of fulfilling God’s will.
When one strives to understand these works, either through his own intellect or through the explanations provided in their commentaries, he can earn even greater perfection, according to his effort.” (Derech Hashem 1:4:9)
Torah gives us life through its basic study. However, to achieve, “They will be life to your soul,” we must first work to achieve that state of “life,” through study that is lived, and directs our vision at all time. We must become people who live Torah in every aspect of our lives.
At that point, when we access Torah on this level of “life for the soul,” we will incorporate “the highest excellence and greatest perfection,” or, “a graceful ornament for your neck.”