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Dear Yeshiva Family:
Parshas Ki Setzei contains the most mitzvos, or commandments, of any parshah, making it an ideal occasion to discuss the profound impact of even a single mitzvah. These insights will enhance our appreciation of our spiritual potential as we approach the upcoming Yemei Din – the High Holy Days.
The Mishnah in Makkos (23a) explains that Hashem, wishing to benefit us, created numerous mitzvos. Rashi explains that Hashem's point was to "stack the deck" in our favor for success in this world. Many of these mitzvos are easy to fulfill, such as the prohibitions against drinking blood or eating the limbs of a live animal. When a person refrains from a sin, even if it is not challenging, such as avoiding the prohibition of drinking blood, they receive reward as if they performed a mitzvah. With 365 prohibitions to follow, most of which are simple, even habitual violators are not breaking all the laws. Hashem designed the world so that at any moment, a person accrues immense reward with minimal effort. This divine arrangement ensures that everyone has a nearly guaranteed "good grade" in the afterlife. While a guaranteed B-minus might not suffice for eternity, it is a baseline that everyone can achieve, even if they are not outstanding in many respects.
In fact, the Gemara (Brochos 57a) compares Klal Yisrael to a pomegranate, symbolizing that even those who seem 'empty' are full of mitzvos, just as a pomegranate is full of seeds. The Pri Chadash therefore questions why we eat pomegranates on Rosh Hashanah, which is supposed to symbolize a life full of mitzvos, if everyone, even the sinners, are already full of mitzvos.
The Rambam interprets the Mishnah differently. He explains that to merit acceptance into the next world, one must perform at least one mitzvah entirely for the sake of Heaven. Therefore, Hashem gave us many mitzvos to ensure that we would be successful in at least one of them. We see from here an incredible thought, that one mitzvah, even just one mitzvah, can have the power to secure our place in the next world.
This idea is also illustrated by the creation of the world. Initially, Hashem gave Adam HaRishon just one mitzvah: not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. This single command had the potential to imbue the entire universe with meaning and guarantee Adam's place in eternity. Although Adam sinned, the story underscores the incredible power of one mitzvah.
Sometimes, we may feel discouraged or as if we are not achieving much. Reflecting on the vast number of mitzvos performed every second and recognizing our good fortune can bring immense joy. For example, a recent report suggests that Elon Musk could become a trillionaire by 2027. With his current net worth around 250 billion dollars, this would require him to earn an additional 750 billion dollars in the next three years—about 29 million dollars per hour or nearly half a million dollars per minute. Knowing that each minute brings substantial wealth (in a society that highly values wealth) can be fulfilling. Similarly, every Jew should feel a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction, knowing that each second in this world is filled with mitzvos, each with immense power.
Let us add another layer. Consider this scenario: Imagine struggling against one's yetzer hara, fighting hard to avoid a sin. If, after a prolonged struggle, one ultimately succumbs, the yetzer hara may make them feel like a failure. However, it's crucial to view the situation differently. Every second spent battling the yetzer hara remains as a mitzvah. If one avoids a sin for 10 seconds and then sins for 1 second, the score is still 10 to 1 in their favor. If the struggle lasted several days before succumbing, the score is in the millions to 1! The effort to resist the sin is not erased by the lapse.
Continuing the tally, while recognizing that both the effort and the sin remain, but if one later regrets the sin and performs teshuva, they erase the point against themselves, resulting in a score of millions to none. This demonstrates how the odds are overwhelmingly in our favor.
The Mishnah (Peah 1:1) states that learning Torah is equivalent to all 613 mitzvos. Thus, if someone learns and reads a Mishnah, in one minute, they might say about 180 words of Torah. This means that a minute of learning can be worth over 110,000 mitzvos! This further illustrates how Hashem has designed the world to make spiritual gain relatively easy.
The Nefesh Hachayim teaches that if the world went without Torah learning for even one second, it would collapse. Torah learning, even the learning of a small child, sustains the world. This means the power of one word of Torah has in it the energy to power up the incalculable strength of the oceans, the trillions of insects in every mile of the Amazon and of course billions of people. The power inherent in a single word of Torah is immense.
This understanding is meant to inspire us to put more effort into our learning and mitzvah performance. While we are indeed primed for success, we should seize every opportunity in our quest for spiritual perfection. Recognize the vast opportunities available, the power of each individual mitzvah, and how Hashem has set us on a path to unimaginable success. By acknowledging these truths, we can better capitalize on the many opportunities before us.
Have a great Shabbos!
Rabbi Moshe Revah Rosh HaYeshiva, HTC - Beis HaMidrash LaTorah moshe.revah@htc.edu | 
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