Chapter 56 is a direct continuation of the preceding chapter. There, the Holy One, Blessed is He, promised that His word would not return void: "For you shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace," the mountains will burst into song, "Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress" - all these are promises concerning the future. Here, the Radak notes, the condition is stated: what holds back the redemption, and in what merit it will come.
כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה שִׁמְרוּ מִשְׁפָּט וַעֲשׂוּ צְדָקָה כִּי קְרוֹבָה יְשׁוּעָתִי לָבוֹא וְצִדְקָתִי לְהִגָּלוֹת׃ - Thus says Hashem: Preserve justice and do righteousness, for My salvation is near to come, and My righteousness to be revealed.
The Radak explains: Having begun to speak of the redemption, the Holy One, Blessed is He, addresses the Jewish people and says to them - do you know what holds back the redemption? Justice and righteousness. If you improve your ways, "Preserve justice and do righteousness," then "My salvation is near to come" - salvation will arrive swiftly. And if it delays, it is only because you have not yet fulfilled justice and righteousness.
The Malbim consistently maintains this principle: mishpat (justice) always pertains to relations between man and his fellow - "Now these are the ordinances that you shall set before them" - while tzedakah (righteousness) always pertains to relations between man and Hashem. Here one must avoid confusion: in the language of the Prophets, "tzedakah" does not mean giving a coin to a poor person, but rather performing righteous deeds between man and Hashem, striving to be a tzaddik in the service of Hashem.
This also clarifies the shift in wording: why does the verse say "preserve" (shimru) regarding justice, but "do" (asu) regarding righteousness? Justice concerns relations between man and his fellow, and its core lies in restraint: do not harm, do not speak lashon hara, do not curse, do not steal, and do not cause damage to others. This belongs to the realm of negative prohibitions ("beware, lest, and do not") - passive restraint, where guarding oneself from transgression is sufficient. In contrast, righteousness, which pertains to man's relationship with Hashem, requires positive action: putting on tefillin, keeping Shabbat, studying Torah, and even performing acts of chesed with others, which also falls under one's duty to Hashem. A person who sits at home all day doing nothing cannot claim to be a great tzaddik; a true tzaddik must have active deeds to show. Therefore, regarding righteousness, the verse specifically commands: "and do."
Based on what was explained in the previous chapter, the Malbim explains that Hashem's kindness is like rain: the kindness is constantly prepared, and everything depends on the recipients. The rain falls steadily, and the question is what you will sow: sow thorns, and thorns will grow; sow grain, and grain will grow. Hashem's kindness does not change; it is constant, and it depends on what you do to receive it.
This explains the precise wording: "My righteousness" (tzidkati) means that the Holy One, Blessed is He, justifies His creations and exonerates them beyond the strict letter of the law. This righteousness already exists in reality, but it is concealed from our eyes, which is why it is described as "to be revealed" - it already exists, and we are merely waiting for it to be unveiled. The salvation itself, however, is not yet here; hence it says "My salvation is near to come" - it has not arrived yet, and we eagerly await it. Conduct yourselves with righteousness and integrity, says the Holy One, Blessed is He, and I will bring it to you soon.
אַשְׁרֵי אֱנוֹשׁ יַעֲשֶׂה זֹּאת וּבֶן אָדָם יַחֲזִיק בָּהּ שֹׁמֵר שַׁבָּת מֵחַלְּלוֹ וְשֹׁמֵר יָדוֹ מֵעֲשׂוֹת כָּל רָע׃ - Praiseworthy is the person who does this, and the son of man who grasps it tightly: who guards the Sabbath from desecrating it, and guards his hand from doing any evil.
The phrase "guards the Sabbath from desecrating it" (shomer Shabbat mechalelo) seems paradoxical at first glance: is he guarding it or desecrating it? The meaning, rather, is that he guards and is careful from desecrating the Sabbath. The Radak explains that "Praiseworthy is the person who does this" refers to Sabbath observance. As for "and the son of man who grasps it tightly" - having already said "does," what does "grasps tightly" add? Doing something once is not the real challenge; the difficulty lies in matters that require constancy and ongoing, daily commitment. Therefore, a one-time deed is not enough; one must maintain vigilance throughout one's days.
Included in the observance of Shabbat, the Radak explains, is also "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." And what is sanctification (kiddush)? The entire essence of holiness is separation: "Aharon to sanctify him" - to separate him from the rest of his fellow kohanim, for he is the Kohen Gadol; "the kohanim to sanctify them" - to separate them from the rest of humanity, as they are the servants of Hashem; "Behold, you are consecrated (mekudeshet) to me" - set apart and separated for me from all other people.
And in what way does one set Shabbat apart? Our Sages teach: through food, drink, and clean garments. In physical matters it is distinct from other days - different clothing, different food, and even a different number of meals: every day requires two meals, whereas Shabbat requires three. And in spiritual matters, as the Radak phrases it: "That his soul be free from worldly pursuits and separated from them, occupying itself with words of Torah and wisdom, and contemplating the works of God." Therefore, on Shabbat a person must redouble his efforts in Torah. One should not engage on Shabbat in mundane and earthly matters, nor occupy one's mind with reading newspapers full of vanity - and that includes religious newspapers - and politics. On Shabbat, take a sefer of Halachah, a book of study, chiddushim on the Parashah, or attend a Torah shiur.
Why did the prophet mention Shabbat here? The Radak explains: here he addresses the people of the exile, seeking to tell them the path by which they will be redeemed. Keep justice and do righteousness - and in what merit will salvation arrive? "One who keeps Shabbat from desecrating it." And why specifically Shabbat? Because the Gemara teaches that Israel was exiled from their land due to the sin of desecrating Shabbat, as Scripture states: "In those days I saw in Yehudah some treading winepresses on Shabbat" - they were treading winepresses and making wine on Shabbat. There were two offenses: desecration of the Sabbath of Creation, and desecration of the Sabbath of the land, which is Shemittah. Since this was the cause of the exile, it will also be the cause of the redemption.
So too our Sages said: Yerushalayim was destroyed only because they desecrated Shabbat in it, as it is said, "And they hid their eyes from My Sabbaths, and I was profaned among them." And they further said: If Israel were to observe two Sabbaths, they would immediately be redeemed, as it is written, "who keep My Sabbaths" - "My Sabbaths" in the plural, and immediately afterward: "I will bring them to My holy mountain." Keep My Sabbaths, and you will merit redemption.
The reason he specifically mentioned Shabbat, the Radak explains, is to allude through it to the rest of the positive commandments, for Shabbat is stringent and contains both positive and negative commandments. And lest one say that this is all that is required - that one may observe Shabbat and then do whatever one pleases - the prophet added generally, "and keeps his hand from doing any evil," corresponding to the negative commandments.
On the surface, there is a grammatical difficulty in the verse: "and the son of man who holds fast to it (bah)" - feminine, followed immediately by "who keeps Shabbat from desecrating it (mechalelo)" - masculine. The Radak explains: nevertheless, both forms may be used for Shabbat. "Shabbat" by itself is feminine, but when referring to "Yom HaShabbat" (the Sabbath day), "yom" is masculine. Therefore, both expressions are appropriate for the word Shabbat.
A clever explanation of the three variations in the Shabbat prayers is cited in the name of Rav Shapiro, founder of Daf Yomi. Among Ashkenazim, on Friday night during Arvit they say "and they shall rest in it (vah)" in the feminine; in Shacharit, "and they shall rest in it (vo)" in the masculine; and at Minchah, "and they shall rest in them (vam)" in the plural. What accounts for this change? He described the prevailing reality in Europe: Friday night was a regular workday for the non-Jews, and a Jewish shopkeeper would leave his store open until eight in the evening - thus only his wife rested, hence "and they shall rest in it (vah)." The next morning, the man did not open the shop, but his wife went to the theater and shopping - thus only he rested, hence "and they shall rest in it (vo)." In the afternoon, at Minchah, he did not open the shop and she had finished her shopping - now both of them were resting, "and they shall rest in them (vam)." Such, unfortunately, was the reality.
The Malbim explains: we noted that righteousness and salvation are ready to arrive and standing on the threshold, and the Holy One, blessed be He, says: draw them close, bring them forth, for this depends on you, on human action. "Praiseworthy is the man (enosh) who does this" - through his actions he reveals righteousness and brings salvation. And even one who does not fulfill it completely, "and the son of man (ben adam) who holds fast to it" - let him at least hold fast to it so that it does not collapse. This corresponds to two dimensions of divine service: "who keeps Shabbat from desecrating it" corresponds to duties between man and God (bein adam laMakom), while "and keeps his hand from doing any evil" corresponds to duties between man and his fellow (bein adam lachavero).
Why did the verse switch from enosh ("man") to ben adam ("son of man")? The Malbim explains that ben adam is always lesser than enosh. Enosh denotes a frail, humble human - perhaps what the Zohar calls bar nash. But ben adam implies an additional deficiency: not only is he small and mortal, but he was born of a human being, as opposed to the "sons of God," who are the angels and transcendent spiritual forces. Therefore, whenever the text addresses Yechezkel in a manner that emphasizes human limitation, it calls him ben adam, highlighting his humble origin - that he was born of man and is unlike those lofty spiritual beings.
וְאַל יֹאמַר בֶּן הַנֵּכָר הַנִּלְוָה אֶל יְהֹוָה לֵאמֹר הַבְדֵּל יַבְדִּילַנִי יְהֹוָה מֵעַל עַמּוֹ וְאַל יֹאמַר הַסָּרִיס הֵן אֲנִי עֵץ יָבֵשׁ׃ - "Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to Hashem speak, saying: 'Hashem will surely separate me from His people'; nor let the eunuch say: 'Behold, I am a dried-up tree.'"
A convert might say: "Why should I have converted? When the Holy One, Blessed is He, rewards Israel, He will set me aside, for I am not of original lineage but an outsider who joined." Similarly, the eunuch, who cannot bear children, might say: "Why should I improve my ways? I am like a dry tree with no continuity and no children."
The Radak explains why the convert and the eunuch are mentioned together here: the convert lacks an ancestral inheritance in the Land of Israel, since the Land was divided by tribes - the children of Dan inherited in the territory of Dan, and the children of Reuven in the territory of Reuven; but to which tribe does a convert belong? This was precisely the issue in the episode of the blasphemer, who sought to pitch his tent among the tribe of Dan, thinking it was enough that his mother was from Dan. But they said to him: "You are not of the lineage of Dan, for inheritance follows 'by their families, by their fathers' houses'" - and they did not permit him. The eunuch likewise has no inheritance to pass on to a son, for he has no children. Thus, both are devoid of an inheritance.
And so that they should not say, "Since we are excluded from an inheritance in the Land of Israel, what part do we have in all the promises concerning the Land?", the Holy One, Blessed is He, responds: "Though you have no ancestral portion and inheritance in the Land, I promise you other good things, and you will surely receive them."
The Radak asks: does Yechezkel not say that converts will indeed receive an inheritance in the Land of Israel? He resolves this by distinguishing between converts who fathered children after converting and those who converted but bore no children afterward. One who has no children after conversion - even if he had children beforehand, they do not inherit from him halachically - is virtually in the same position as a eunuch, which is why the prophet juxtaposes them. Yechezkel, on the other hand, was speaking of converts who fathered children who are full members of the Jewish people, and they will therefore receive a share in the future like any native-born Israelite.
The separation spoken of here, explains the Radak, refers to the convert's fear: "Though I have attached myself and become part of the Jewish people, since I have no son in Israel, I will not truly be part of them in this world or in the World to Come." Similarly, the eunuch thinks: "I have left no son like myself." Indeed, our Sages said: "Anyone who does not leave a son to inherit him is as if he were excommunicated by Heaven." For the Holy One, Blessed is He, established the world so that mankind would be fruitful and multiply, as it says, "He formed it to be inhabited"; and if one did not merit leaving a son, Heaven forbid, his name and memory may be cut off from the world, and it is as though the Holy One, Blessed is He, has no desire for him.
Yet the Radak asks: what claim can be made against him? What can the unfortunate person do if he cannot have children, and why should he be excommunicated? One could explain that the statement refers to someone who deliberately chose not to have children - who could have engaged in procreation, but decided he was not yet ready for marriage and wished to indulge in life a while longer. But the Radak notes that it can also apply to one who simply did not merit surviving offspring, pointing to the precise phrasing: it does not say "he is excommunicated" - which would imply a punitive decree - but rather "as if excommunicated by Heaven," meaning he appears as one cast out. Such a person might then think: "Here I did not merit a son, as though Heaven rejected me; why then should I anticipate the future redemption?" To this the prophet responds: know that the Holy One, Blessed is He, has wonderful promises even for those who perceive themselves as lesser - the convert who came from the nations, and the eunuch who did not merit children. Come and attach yourselves to Hashem's heritage, and I will give you goodly promises for the future.
The Malbim explains this based on the principle that there is endurance of the individual (ish) and endurance of the species (min). Endurance of the species, which is the continuation of the physical body and the human race, depends on the chain of generations: one had a father, bore children, and those children will multiply and bear further generations. But the individual endurance of the soul depends neither on parents nor on children; the soul endures on its own merits. Although the holy Arizal writes - as noted elsewhere - that one who did not merit children has not even begun his soul's rectification and must return in another reincarnation, this applies only to someone who never had children in any reincarnation. If in one of his past lifetimes he already had children, that suffices, and he will not need to reincarnate solely because he lacks children now. And indeed, all of us are reincarnated souls.
And corresponding to what we explained - that everything depends on the recipient's preparation, that the divine flow is like rain falling constantly, and everything depends on what you sow in your garden: good seeds yield good, thorns and thistles yield thorns - the Holy One, blessed be He, says: let the recipient be whoever he may be, even the foreigner or the eunuch. The eunuch worries that he lacks lineage after him, and the foreigner worries that he lacks lineage before him - where he came from, having gentile parents. Yet the Holy One, blessed be He, says: whether one lacks lineage before him or after him, I will not separate him, for he has 'joined himself to Hashem,' nor will I treat him as a dry tree. For even if they have no continuity of physical offspring, they have the continuity of a spiritual lineage. A person who has no physical perpetuation of the species still possesses a spiritual root, and that spiritual root endures forever - for in spirituality there is no nullification or cessation, and it lasts eternally. Their spiritual existence endures, and upon this rests the promise given by the Holy One, blessed be He.
Chapter 56 opens with the conditions for redemption: 'Keep justice and do righteousness' - justice in interpersonal matters, through vigilance and refraining from harm, and righteousness between man and God, through active fulfillment. Hashem's lovingkindness is like constant rain, and everything depends on the preparation of the recipient; therefore, righteousness already exists and only needs 'to be revealed,' whereas salvation is 'near to come' through the merit of our deeds. The prophet emphasizes Shabbat, for whose desecration Israel was exiled and in the merit of whose observance they will be redeemed, and adds 'and keeps his hand from doing any evil' corresponding to the negative commandments. Finally, Scripture consoles the foreigner and the eunuch, assuring them that although they have neither inheritance nor physical continuity in this world - the Holy One, blessed be He, does not separate them from His people, their spiritual root endures forever, and they are promised blessings that will never be cut off.