דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר בַּחֹדֶשׁ הַשְּׁבִיעִי בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ יִהְיֶה לָכֶם שַׁבָּתוֹן זִכְרוֹן תְּרוּעָה מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ

 (ויקרא כג:כד)

“Speak to Bnei Yisroel and tell them: ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe complete rest, a sacred occasion commemorated with truah blasts, a holy gathering,” (Vayikra 23:24).

The Gemara in Rosh Hashana (8b) cites the pasuk in Tehillim 81:5: “ki chok l’Yisroel hee, mishpat l’Elokei Yaakov,” which means “For it is a statute for Israel, a judgment of the God of Yaakov.” The Gemara explains that the first phrase, “ki chok l’Yisroel hee—For it is statute for Israel, indicates that Rosh Hashanah is a day of judgment for the Jewish nation. And the second phrase, “mishpat l’Elokei Yaakov—a judgment of the God of Yaakov,” teaches that on Rosh Hashanah, Hashem also judges the other nations of the world.

In short, the Gemara teaches us that Rosh Hashanah is a day of judgment for both the Jewish nation and the gentile nations of the world. The first phrase, “ki chok l’Yisroel hee—it is a statute for Israel,” emphasizes the that there is a judgment of klal Yisroel on Rosh Hashanah and the second phrase, “mishpat l’Elokei Yaakov—a judgment of the God of Yaakov,” clarifies that Hashem judges all other nations.

Zera Shimshon asks two questions: First, how did Chazal derive that Hashem judges the gentile nations on Rosh Hashanah from the phrase, “mishpat l’Elokei Yaakov—A judgment of the God of Yaakov,” when the verse specifically mentions, “Elokei Yaakov—the God of Yaakov” which implies judgment of the Jewish nation who are descendants of Yaakov and not the other nations of the world? Second, if “the God of Yaakov” refers to Hashem’s judgment of the gentile nations, why does the Gemara ask what is the first phrase, “For it is a statute for Israel,” teaching? The answer is obvious: we need to know that Rosh Hashanah is also a day of judgment for klal Yisroel and not only for the other nations of the world!

Zera Shimshon answers these two questions by referencing to a concept proposed by Alshich Hakodesh (Tehillim 75:7-8) regarding Yaakov’s dream. In Yaakov’s dream, he saw the angel of Eisav ascend the ladder—but not descending—which indicated that Eisav’s rule is eternal. Yaakov then wondered where Eisav’s seemingly never-ending power came from. Based on pesukim in Tehillim, Alshich explains that Eisav’s authority does not stem from his lineage as the grandchild of Avraham or the son of Yitzchak, nor did he gain power from Bnei Yisroel’s sin with the golden calf. This is evident from Hashem’s acceptance of Bnei Yisroel’s teshuva and the command to build the Mishkan. So, where does Eisav’s power come from?

Alshich Hakodesh answers that the answer to this question is found in Tehillim 75:8-10. It is written there, “ki Elokim yishpote, zeh yashpeel vezeh yahreem—Because Hashem is a judge, He lowers one and raises the other.” This is referring to Eisav and his descendants and Yaakov and his descendants. When Hashem raises one of them the other one is lowered. When Yaakov is dominant, then Eisav is subordinate, and vice versa. The status of each is dependent on the other. They are not independent of one another but inversely linked.

This idea is not unique to Alshich Hakodesh, Rashi also writes this concept in parshas Chaya Sarah (Bereishis 25:23) on the pasuk, “u’l’ome mi’lehohm yeh’amatz—and one nation from the other nation will become strong.” In that pasuk, Shem told Rivka that she is carrying twins and that Yaakov and Eisav will never attain equal greatness simultaneously. Tzur’s strength only materialized from the ruins of Yerushalayim. This is the same idea proposed by the Alshich; that Yaakov’s and Eisav’s statuses are linked together.

According to this, we can now understand how Chazal derived from the phrase, “mishpat l’Elokei Yaakov—A judgment of the God of Yaakov,” that Hashem judges the nations of the world on Rosh Hashanah, even though the nations of the world is not at all mentioned in that pasuk. Since the judgment of Yaakov and Eisav are intertwined and dependent on each other, a judgment on Yaakov and his descendants is also a judgment on Eisav and his descendants!

According to this, the Gemara asked another question: What is the first phrase, “ki chok l’Yisrael hee—For this is a statute (decree) for Yisroel,” teaching? Since the verdict of Yaakov is a direct result of the ruling on the other nations, why is a separate ruling needed?

The Gemara answers that it teaches, “The Jewish people enter judgment first.” Meaning, Hashem judges klal Yisroel and according to the outcome of that ruling, the other nations are judged and given their verdict. The order is not the other way around, that Hashem judges the nations of the world and according to their verdict klal Yisroel is given their verdict. The phrase, “ki chok l’Yisroel hee” teaches that the judgment of the Jewish people is the primary decree, and the verdict for the other nations is a derivative of it.

To summarize, Zera Shimshon asks: How can the baraisa concludes that Hashem judges the gentile nations on Rosh Hashanah, from the phrase “a judgment of the God of Yaakov,” which only mentions “Elokei Yaakov—the God of Yaakov” and there isn’t even an allusion to the other nations! He also asks a second question that after the baraisa established that the phrase, “mishpat l’Elokei Yaakov—A judgment of the God of Yaakov,” teaches that Hashem judges the gentile nations of the world on Rosh Hashanah, why does the Gemara then ask what is the phrase “ki chok l’Yisrael hee—For this is a statute (decree) for Yisroel,” teaching? The answer is obvious; it is needed to teach us that klal Yisroel is also judged on Rosh Hashanah!

Zera Shimshon explains that Yaakov and Eisav’s statuses are dependent on each other, and Eisav’s power is only as long as klal Yisroel does not act appropriately. The judgment of one affects the other, and this understanding explains that the judgment of Elokei Yaakov is essentially also a judgment on Eisav since they are inversely linked. The phrase “ki chok l’Yisrael hee” teaches that the judgment of the Jewish people is the primary decree, and the verdict for the other nations is a derivative of it.

HaRav Shimshon Nachmani—author of Zera Shimshon—lived in Italy about 300 years ago, in the time of the Or HaChaim HaKodesh. The Chida writes that he was a great mekubal and wrote many sefarim—including sefarim about “practical Kabbalah”—and asked that all of his sefarim be buried after he passes away, except for Zera Shimshon and Niflaos Shimshon on Avos.

HaRav Shimshon Nachmani had one child who died in his lifetime (hence the name “Zera Shimshon”) and, in the preface, he promises for people who learn his sefarim after he dies, “… And your eyes will see children and grandchildren, like the offshoots of an olive tree around your tables, wise and understanding with houses filled with all manner of good things… and wealth and honor … ”