14. Thus You Shall Say to the House of Jacob
“Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob” are the women; tell them the matters in general, for they can listen; “and tell the sons of Israel” are the men. He told him, “Tell them the precisions of the matters, for they can listen.
Another explanation: Why to the women first? For they hurry with Mitzvot [commandments]. Another explanation: Why to the women? So they will lead their sons to the Torah.
Rabbi Tachlifa deKeisarin said, “The Creator said, ‘When I created the world, I commanded only Adam HaRishon. Afterward, Eve was commanded, and she transgressed and corrupted the world. Now, if I do not call the women first, they will cancel the Torah.’” This is why it was said, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob.”
We should understand the following:
1) Why do women hurry with Mitzvot more than men?
2) Why should women be addressed first so they will lead their sons to the Torah? If the men are approached before them, will they not agree to lead their sons to the Torah?
3) It is as though He is afraid of the women, that they might spoil the world unless He gives them the honor of preceding the men.
4) How can it be said that because of the honor that the Creator gave when he commanded Adam HaRishon before Eve, she transgressed and corrupted the world? It is as though Eve avenged it.
In the work, we can interpret that man and woman are within the same person. When one works in order to receive and satisfy his own lack, meaning his femaleness, a person is called “woman.” When he acts in order to bestow, he is called a “man.”
It is known that man is but a desire to receive. The order of the beginning of the work is that we start with the will to receive, which is called Lo Lishma [not for Her sake], and afterward we come to Lishma [for Her sake].
Therefore, the order, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob,” are the women. “Tell them the matters in general,” meaning the beginning of the work, when He forbade them to say that we must work Lishma because a person cannot begin with Lishma.
Afterward, “and tell the sons of Israel” are the men, who can already work Lishma, meaning to bestow. “Tell them the precisions of the matters, for they can listen,” meaning that they can already hear about Lishma and should already be meticulous that everything will be only Lishma. This is the meaning of “the precisions of the matters.”
“Another explanation: Why to the women first? For they hurry with Mitzvot,” meaning in Lo Lishma. When one’s intention is to receive reward in return for his work, the body rushes the person. Conversely, the body does not agree that a person will work in order to bestow, and will certainly not rush him.
Hence, when a person begins the work in order to receive, he accustoms himself to be quick in the work, and later he can use this habit when he begins to work in order to bestow, as well, since he has already acquired the tool of quickness at the time of Lo Lishma.
“Another explanation: So they will lead their sons to the Torah.” Father and son are cause and consequence. That is, if first there is a cause for reception, this reason causes him to want to do more things in Torah and Mitzvot. But in bestowal, it is hard for the body to make efforts to add. Rather, each time requires a new overcoming. Conversely, Lo Lishma constantly gives more power to add.
By a person being accustomed to work during the preparation period, he already has tools that are ready for work while he marches on the path of bestowal. At the time of the creation of the world, Adam HaRishon was commanded first. This is according to what The Zohar wrote, that Adam HaRishon had nothing of this world, meaning he was devoid of any reception whatsoever; he was only VAK, in the quality of the upper nine (see “Introduction to the Book Panim Meirot uMasbirot”).
In that respect, everything was fine. However, through his mingling with the will to receive, called Eve, since he did not have the preparation of Lo Lishma for reception—since only then can one bring in the will to receive so it is reception in order to bestow—so when he approached the will to receive, called “woman,” and he already attained the Lishma on his own quality, for his root is vessels of bestowal, she therefore transgressed and corrupted the world, since she lacked the practice in Lo Lishma on the will to receive, as Maimonides wrote, that the matter of Lishma must not be revealed at once, but gradually.
Therefore, when he revealed the Lishma to the woman, she immediately transgressed and corrupted the world. Therefore, we must start with the women and tell them only the matters in general, meaning the Lo Lishma.