DEUT898 Excessiveness [in things permitted] is where one crosses the limit of the necessary into the superfluous, what man has no need for, such as overindulgence in food and drink-- the Wise Man has already warned us of this, saying, “Be not among those who drink wine to excess, or among gluttonous eaters of meat” (Mishlei 23:20 ); also, extravagant adornment in dress; overly large homes; excessive talk, in which one cannot be sure that one will not stumble, as the Wise Man said, “When there is too much talk, mistakes are not lacking” (ibid.10:19). He also said of sexual immoderation, “He who keeps the company of harlots loses wealth” (ibid. 29:3); “Do not give your strength to women” (ibid. 31:3); and [Scripture] says of the King, “He should not have many wives” (Devarim 17:17). [Further examples of excessiveness are] striving to multiply possessions and to accumulate money. Of this it is said, “Do not toil to get wealth; of your own understanding, desist” (Mishlei 23:4); and [Scripture] says of the king, [nor shall he greatly multiply for himself silver and gold” [Devarim 17:17]. Whatever we have mentioned above as conducive to the body's well-being and pleasure is, in the end, contemptible, for it brings a man to that which the Creator has warned him against and forbidden him.

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DEUT899 (Continued from [[LEV108]] Leviticus 11:29 unclean 809-11). The permitted. There are also three ways of [partaking of] the permitted things left to our discretion. The first [way] is partaking [only] of food that is not consumed for pleasure, [food] without which one could not live or continue to exist. The second [way] is partaking of permitted food in a [more] liberal fashion, aiming for moderation in pleasure without extravagance or profligacy-- for example, by meeting [basic] needs with good bread and finely prepared dishes, by drinking good wine in moderation. The same applies to dress, living accommodations, and other needs. The third [way] is overindulging in permitted pleasures purely for the sake of luxury. This leads one to forbidden pleasures and keeps him from performing the duties he owes God, as it says: “Lest he quaff and forget that which is decreed” (Mishlei 31:5). You should practice abstinence from the permitted pleasures, my brother, to the best of your ability, so that you come to regard them as in the same class with the pleasures that are forbidden to you. Otherwise, you may forsake the Torah and neglect your duty. You know what the Creator, may He be exalted, commanded the king when He said: “He should not have many wives” (Devarim 17:17); “Only he should not have many horses” (ibid. 17:16); and as it says (Nechemyah 13:26): “Did not Shelomo, King of Israel, sin on account of these?... The foreign women caused even him to sin”-- this despite his powerful intellect, vast knowledge, and great stature.

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DEUT908 See [[NUM190]] Numbers 15:39 remember DUTIES 777-9

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DEUT932 What you must know is that the aim and objective of the duties of the heart are for both our outer and inner selves to share equally in serving God; that the heart, tongue, and limbs be consistent in their testimony, that they authenticate each other and bear out one another, rather than oppose and contradict each other. This is what Scripture calls being “wholehearted”: “You must be wholehearted with Hashem your God (Devarim 18:13); He was wholehearted in his generation (Bereshis 6:9); He who acts wholeheartedly does what is right, and speaks the truth from his heart (Tehillim 15:2); I contemplate the wholehearted path; when will I attain it? I will conduct myself with wholeness of heart, within my own house (ibid. 101:2).” Regarding one whose inside is not like his outside, Scripture says: “His heart was not whole with Hashem his God” (Melachim 1, 11: 4); “They flattered Him with their mouths, lied to Him with their tongues; and their hearts were disloyal to Him” (Tehillim 78:36-37). As is well known, if someone contradicts himself or proves himself a liar, whether in speech or in deed, people no longer believe in his integrity and have no confidence in his sincerity. Similarly, if our outer and inner selves are in contradiction, if our talk is not matched by our intentions, if the actions of our limbs are at odds with the convictions of our hearts, then our worship of God is imperfect; for God does not accept insincere service, as it is written: “I cannot tolerate iniquity along with holy assembly” (Yeshayahu 1:13) ...

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DEUT995 See [[DEUT293]] Deuteronomy 6:16 try DUTIES 401-5

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DEUT1345 See [[GEN959]] Genesis 18:17 hide DUTIES 587

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DEUT1555 Out of reverence for His Name, [a person who loves God] must be aware of all that might bring him to swear in the Name of the Creator, may He exalted, [whether] to affirm what is true or refute what is false, and certainly not to affirm what is false or refute what is true, as it is written: “He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not sworn falsely by My Name or sworn deceitfully” (Tehillim 24:4); “To fear this glorious and awesome Name” (Devarim 28:58) ; “But the sunrise will bring salvation to you who fear My Name, with healing in its wings” (Malachi 3:20). Our sages, of blessed memory, said [of the last verse]: “’You who fear My Name’ refers to people who fear to utter the Name of God in vain” (Nedarim 8b). “Curses” include revilement, vilification, and insults in which God's Name is mentioned. This is exceedingly disgraceful in a believer; yet the masses permit themselves this practice to a most reprehensible degree. Their intention [in mentioning God’s Name] is to dramatize and exaggerate in their vilification and heighten and embellished their insults. In this they embody what the Wise One said: “To a fool it is like sport to commit an indecency” (Mishlei 10:23). It is also said: “Every mouth speaks impiety” (Yeshayahu 9:16); “The tongue of a righteous man is like pure silver” (Mishlei 10:20).

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DEUT1570 Conditions of undertaking not to repeat the offense. The conditions of undertaking not to do so again what the Creator has forbidden are also five in number. ... 3. One should consider the days he turned away from God and disregarded His service, despite the steady favors that God bestowed upon him throughout that period, as it says: “For for long ago I [God] broke your yoke and burst your bands, and you [Israel] said, לא אעבר״” (Yirmeyahu 2:20). לא אעבר״” in this verse means, “I [Israel] will not assume Your service nor enter into Your covenant”-- as though it had said, לא אעבר בבריתך, as in לעברך בברית י-י אלקיך , “To enter into the covenant of Hashem your God” (Devarim 29:11).

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DEUT1576 A further reason [that Scripture does not elaborate on reward and punishment in the World-to-Come] is that the practice of goodness is of two kinds. One of these is concealed; none but the Creator observes it—e.g., duties of the heart, and the like. The other kind is observable in physical movements and is not concealed from other people. These are the active precepts, performed with the limbs. For the fulfillment of observable duties, the Creator bestows a visible reward in this world. For the fulfillment of inner, hidden duties, He gives a hidden reward, i.e., the reward of the World-to-Come. David therefore referred to it in language that gives expression to this, as he said, “How great is Your good that You have hidden away for those who fear You” (Tehillim 31:20). The manner of punishment--visible and hidden--is like that of reward. Proof of this is God's promise to His people that for visible service there will be visible, immediate reward in this world--as explicitly stated in parashas Im B’chukkosay (Vayikra 26)-- and that for visible, external transgression there will be visible, immediate punishment in this world (ibid.). This is because the people, as a community, are responsible only for external acts, not for what is hidden, as it says: “The hidden things belong to Hashem our God, but those that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever” (Devarim 29:28); “If the people of the community in any way hide their eyes from that person... then I will set My face against that person and his family” (Vayikra 20:4-5). In regard to the inner service and transgression of the heart, however, the Creator, may He exalted, is responsible for requiting them, in this world and the next. That is why Scripture does not elaborate on reward in the World-to-Come.

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DEUT1577 All this is Divine justice because, in your hidden thoughts and secret intentions, you chose either to rebel against Him rather than serve Him, or to serve Him rather than rebel against Him. For your outward appearance and inward disposition are equally known to Him, and He will repay you for all that He observes in you, even if it remains hidden from other people. Do you not see that a judge decides according to what has been established before him as fact, whether by witnesses or by his own senses? If he could establish what was in the mind, he would also take that into account in his decision. Since the Creator, may He be exalted, knows everything equally, it follows that He judge according to His knowledge. As it says in Scripture, “The hidden things belong to Hashem our God” (Devarim 29:28).

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