5786/2025
The Haftarah of Shabbat Shuvah, which begins with שׁ֚וּבָה יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל עַ֖ד ה’ אֱלֹקיךָ “Return Israel to hashem your god”, is from the book of Hosheia. A descendant of Reuven, the first person to do teshuvah, Hosheia showed the path of repentance. As the essence of every Navi lies in the beginning of their sefer, from the beginning of Sefer Hosheia, we get the key to Teshuvah.
Sefer Hosheia begins with a demonstration of the indestructibility of Hashem’s love for his people. Hashem had complained to Hosheia about the sins of Klal Yisrael, and instead of defending them, Hosheia responded “Exchange them for another nation.” Hashem said, “What should I do with this זָקֵן?” and proceeded to instruct Hosheia to marry an immoral woman and have children who were possibly illegitimate. Then, Hashem told Hosheia to send away his wife and children. When Hosheia complained, “I can’t send away my wife, even if she is disloyal to me; I have children from her! And how can I send away my children even if I’m not sure that they are actually mine?” Hashem responded, “And I should exchange my wife and children- the Jewish people?”
Hashem called Hosheia a זָקֵן, which refers to זֶה שֶׁקָּנָה חָכְמָה, one who has acquired wisdom. It was in great wisdom that Hosheia, instead of begging for mercy, advised Hashem to exchange the Jewish people. Let Hashem be the One defending His people; let Hashem Himself demonstrate his unconditional love for them. Hosheia holds the secret of teshuvah: we have to return, and we will return. Hashem cannot exchange us, so He will ensure that we return Him, one way or another.
The question is only when and how. Will we be foolish and delay, stubborn and suffer? As we enter Yom Kippur, let’s return to Hashem now, and on our own, because a voluntary return is much easier than a forced one.