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          One of the themes that is repeated in this week’s parsha is the importance of Yiras Hashem, fear of G-d. The most famous verse related to this theme is the question (10, 12) “And now, Israel, what does G-d want of you? Only that you fear Hashem, your G-d…”. There are many interpretations of this statement offered by Chazal and the commentaries, as well as numerous approaches to the nature of fear of the Creator. The Baal Shem Tov has a very interesting and beautiful analysis, cited in Me’eina Shel Torah, as follows: 


When a father commands his young son to wear shoes and not go around barefoot, the father and the son each have a different kind of fear. The father fears that the child may step on a sharp object and cut their foot, but the son is only afraid of disobeying the father and being punished. When the son matures and gets older, his fear is more in line with the father’s, and understands that it is dangerous to go around barefoot. 


Hashem gave us 613 mitzvos to protect us from being drawn into the coarse physicality of our world and as a result, becoming distanced from Him. The mitzvos are a means to purify us and give us the merit of being close to Him. Therefore Hashem doesn't want us to fear because of the punishment of transgressing the mitzvos like the young child fears punishment for disobeying his father’s order to wear something on his feet. Rather he wants us to fear him because of the damage that sin causes and the distance it creates between us and him. 


This is alluded to in the verse “...Only that you fear [es] Hashem, your G-d…” to be read as “ fear with Hashem, your G-d”, meaning that our fear of Him should be similar to the father who fears the actual consequences of his child’s disobedience. May we all merit to reach true Yiras Hashem and the close relationship with him that it can create. 


Have a great Shabbos,

Ben Temin