786. The Lord Came from Sinai

“The Lord came from Sinai and shone on them from Seir.” This means that from what the children of Seir said, that they do not want to receive, from this it shone for Israel and added to them much light and love. “Appeared from Mount Paran.” From what the children of Paran said, that they do not want to receive, much love and illumination was properly added to Israel (The Zohar, Hukat).

We should ask why the love of Israel was contingent upon the children of Seir and the children of Paran not wanting. This implies that all the love that He has for the people of Israel is because the nations of the world do not want to connect to Him. It follows that this is not real love for the people of Israel. That is, if the nations of the world wanted to receive the Torah, He would love them as much as the people of Israel.

The explanation is that because the children of Seir and the children of Paran do not want, there is room for choice. By the quality of Israel choosing it, He loves the quality of Israel. But when they want, it is a sign that the person is still not working for the sake of the Creator, or he would not agree to receive Torah and Mitzvot [commandments].