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Devarim 10:12

And now, Israel, what does HaShem your G-d ask, require, or beseech of you but, except, rather than… 1) to fear HaShem your G-d, 2) to walk (in obedience) in all His ways (in order to imitate or present Him), and 3) to love Him…. AND 4) to serve HaShem your G-d with your whole heart and your whole being.

The Gemara (Berachos 34b, Megillah 25a, etc.) understands from this verse that God has one fundamental demand of us: yirat Shamayim (fear of Heaven).

I don’t understand this Gemara, because although the Gemara says we are dealing with a single entity, the verse itself seems to specify a whole list of demands. Could it be therefore that the 4 points which I summed up: 1) Yirah, 2) following Torah, 3) Ahavah and 4) Avodah, are four main-points upon which everything which is asked from us by HaShem can be hung upon, and maybe this can even be reduced to one, Yirah, because all the rest come from this one command?

Are there any commentaries that explain this?

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    See the intro and first chapter of mesilat yesharim for this verse
    – kouty
    Oct 7, 2016 at 11:48
  • @kouty could you explain it more clear, and if possible provide a answer.
    – Levi
    Oct 8, 2016 at 6:06
  • shemayisrael.com/parsha/kindertorah/archives/eikev69.htm: "Although the gemara says we are dealing with a single entity, the verse seems to specify a whole list of demands: The reason for this is that fundamentally we can speak of one category, but one which then has several components. These components break down into the two elements that I mentioned earlier: the existential, experiential relationship to God (love and fear), and the response to God's commands (keeping His mitzvot).
    – Levi
    Oct 8, 2016 at 6:58
  • The latter takes place both in broader terms (“walking in all His paths and serving Him”) and in the specific details of Halakha (“to keep the Lord’s commandments and laws, which I enjoin upon you today”).
    – Levi
    Oct 8, 2016 at 6:58
  • Rav Shimshon Rafael Hirsch zt"l comments that 'going in all Hashem's ways and loving Him' are the result of yiras shomayim. Fear of Hashem leads a person to walk in His ways. He benefits and grows from this, as the verse states, '(The Torah's) ways are ways of pleasantness' (Mishlei 3:17). They fill a person's heart with richness and satisfaction. This brings him to love the One Who guides him along the beautiful path." And the Zohar states (vol 6): Trough fear, he will merit it all
    – Levi
    Oct 8, 2016 at 6:59

1 Answer 1

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ANSWER BY LEVI:

Rav Shimshon Rafael Hirsch zt"l comments that 'going in all Hashem's ways and loving Him' are the result of yiras shomayim. Fear of Hashem leads a person to walk in His ways. He benefits and grows from this, as the verse states, '(The Torah's) ways are ways of pleasantness' (Mishlei 3:17). They fill a person's heart with richness and satisfaction. This brings him to love the One Who guides him along the beautiful path." And the Zohar states (vol 6): Through fear, he will merit it all – Levi

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