GEN1258 The love of long life should take the form of one’s loving his days not for eating, drinking and indulging in pleasures in the days of his vanity, but from consideration of the fact that the labor of Torah and mitzvos is very great and that if he lived twice or four times as long as he would not be able to fulfill the demands of Torah and attain the goodly qualities by which a servant finds favor with his master.  He should thus love the days of his life, for through them he attains Divine service and the pure fear and love of the Blessed One.   He acquires substance in this world which he brings to the next world.   Through this world and its ephemeral days he attains the eternal world and eternal pleasure.   And he should always fear death and grow each day in purity and abnegation, thinking that he may not yet have achieved all of the perfection that he could have achieved; and each day he should increase love and fear for the Holy One Blessed be He.   But life without fear of Hashem is not considered life, and one must abhor and despise life which is contrary to the will of the Creator, Blessed be He, as expressed by Rivkah [this verse].  Therefore, in a situation which involves desecrating God’s name, one must not pity his life and one must always be ready to sacrifice himself for sanctification of the Name on behalf of all mitzvos, regardless of the degree of their severity.   TZADIK 117