Teshuva is a central theme in Judaism. It relates to many fundamental philosophical principles and foundational ideas such as reward and punishment. It is a core value, an essential activity that allows us to develop over time.

תלמוד בבלי – יומא פו עמוד ב

אמר ריש לקיש גדולה תשובה שזדונות נעשות לו כשגגות שנאמר {הושע י"ד:ב'} שובה ישראל עד ה' אלהיך כי כשלת בעונך הא עון מזיד הוא וקא קרי ליה מכשול איני והאמר ריש לקיש גדולה תשובה שזדונות נעשות לו כזכיות שנאמר {יחזקאל ל"ג:י"ט} ובשוב רשע מרשעתו ועשה משפט וצדקה עליהם (חיה) יחיה לא קשיא כאן מאהבה כאן מיראה.

Talmud Bavli - Yoma 86b

Reish Lakish said: Great is repentance, as the penitent’s intentional sins are counted for him as unwitting transgressions, as it is stated: “Return, Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled in your iniquity” (Hosea 14:2). The Gemara analyzes this: Doesn’t “iniquity” mean an intentional sin? Yet the prophet calls it stumbling, implying that one who repents is considered as though he only stumbled accidentally in his transgression. The Gemara asks: Is that so? Didn’t Reish Lakish himself say: Great is repentance, as one’s intentional sins are counted for him as merits, as it is stated: “And when the wicked turns from his wickedness, and does that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby” (Ezekiel 33:19), and all his deeds, even his transgressions, will become praiseworthy? The Gemara reconciles: This is not difficult: Here, when one repents out of love, his sins become like merits; there, when one repents out of fear, his sins are counted as unwitting transgressions.

Reish Lakish emphasizes the great power of repentance. He explains that intentional sins can be considered unintentional, and even that intentional sins can be considered to be merits. But this seems unjust. How can willful sins be converted in accidental sins? How can willful sins become merits? At first this seems illogical. The Rambam may shed some light on this issue as he discusses the import of our actions.

משנה תורה להרמב"ם תשובה ג:ג

כל מי שניחם על המצוות שעשה, ותהה על הזכויות, ואמר בליבו, ומה הועלתי בעשייתן, אולי לא עשיתי אותם, הרי זה איבד את כולם, ואין מזכירין לו שם זכות בעולם, שנאמר "(ו)צדקת הצדיק לא תצילנו ביום (רשעו) [פשעו]" (יחזקאל ל"ג:י"ב), אין זה אלא בתוהה על הראשונות:

Rambam - Mishne Torah - Laws of Return 3:3

Anyone who changes his mind about the mitzvot he has performed and regrets the merits [he has earned], saying in his heart: "What value was there in doing them? I wish I hadn't performed them" - loses them all and no merit is preserved for him at all as [Ezekiel 33:12] states "The righteousness of the upright will not save him on the day of his transgression." This only applies to one who regrets his previous [deeds].

As the Rambam explains, a person’s attitudes towards his or her previous actions can define the impact of those actions. A person who regrets the mitzvot that he or she accomplished, loses the merit of those mitzvot. They are no longer an asset. Similarly, it stands to reason that a person who regrets the sins or mistakes he or she has made, can impact the effect of these sins and mistakes (this is what the Rambam outlines in his basic formulation of Teshuva). According to Reish Lakish, if one repents out of fear, these mistakes can be considered unintentional. Further, if one repents out of love, these mistakes can be transformed into merits.

What is the difference between Teshuva out of love versus Teshuva out of fear? What is the definition of each?

ספר העיקרים לרבי יוסף אלבו – מאמר ד פרק כה

שחפשנו כל מצות עשה שבתורה לא מצינו מצוה שיזכה האדם בה בלבד לתכלית המושג מצד התורה אלא התשובה, וזה שהתכלית המכוון בתורה ובעשית מצותיה… ולזה השב בתשובה מחמת יראה הנה הוא שב להיותו ירא שישיגנו עונש מחמת העבירות שעשה, והשם יתברך בשכר תשובה זו ממשיך אליו חסד כפי מה שישאל ומגין עליו מן העונש, והזדונות נעשות לו כשגגות שאינו נענש עליהן, אלא שצריך כפרה כשוגג, אבל השב מאהבה הנה הוא אחר שאינו שב מיראת עונש שיגיע לו מן העבירה, שלא יחוש לעונש, שלבו כשמיר חזק מצור לסבול העונשין, ואינו שב אלא מאהבת השם יתברך בלבד שרוצה לעשות הטוב בעיניו מצד שהוא טוב בעיניו בלבד, כמו שיעשה האוהב מה שהוא טוב בעיני אהובו מזולת יראת עונש כלל, הנה הוא מגיע בתשובה זאת אל התכלית המכוון מצד התורה שהיא אהבת השם יתברך

Rabbi Yosef Also - Book of Fundamentals Essay 4 Chapter 25

If we examine all the mandatory precepts in the Torah, we do not find any one precept though which along on may again the purpose intended by the Torah except repentance. The purpose intended by the Torah to be realized through the performance of its commandments…A person who repents from fear, does so because he is afraid that punishment will come upon him for the sins he has committed. God, as a reward for his repentance, gives him grace as he requests protest him from punishment, coverts his willful misdeeds into errors, and he is not punished for them, but requires atonement as for a deed done in error. But he who repents from love, not from fear of the punishments that may come upon him for his sin, who is not afraid of punishment, his hear being “as an adamant harder than flint” (Ezek. 3:9), in bearing punishment, who repents solely from a love of God, because he desires to do that which is pleasing to God solely because it is pleasing to God, as a lover does that which is pleasing to his friend, no because of the dear of any punishment, —such a person attains through such repentance the purpose intended by the Torah, viz. the love of God.

There are two types of Teshuva which can result in a person changing his or her ways. One type of Teshuva occurs because the individual wishes to avoid a consequence or punishment. This is termed Teshuva from fear. In this case, a person recognizes the potential consequences of a particular course of action and undertakes to abandon that course. This development is localized. It does not represent a broad evolution of the personality, but rather a recognition that a particular action is not beneficial. This is nonetheless considered true Teshuva and is an important and valuable step in the development of an individual. He or she has changed his or her relationship with that previous action, such that the current individual genuinely views it as a mistake. It is a kindness from HaShem that we are judged based on our current state of thinking, and a “willful sin can be considered an inadvertent error”. While the individual person has made arrangements to avoid this particular behavior, the underlying fault that led to this error in the first place may not have been fully addressed. Hence atonement would still be required when Teshuva from fear is employed.

There is however a second type of Teshuva. This type of Teshuva occurs not to avoid a consequence or punishment, but because of a broader development in the person’s relationship to reality and with HaShem. An enlightenment occurs in a particular area of one’s life, and this results in a desire to change course. Upon reflection, a person recognizes the error of one’s ways, incorporating that recognition into his or her personality. The error has now prompted a reevaluation and contributed positively to the person’s development. Just like if one regrets mitzvot he or she has done forfeits their merit, so too, a person that sincerely regrets the errors he or she has committed can turn those failures into a source of merit for the future. This previous experience becomes a source of value and merit and atonement is complete. It is again a kindness from HaShem that we are judged based on our current state of thinking, and even “a willful sin can be considered a source of merit”. This particular change in action represents a global development in the person’s recognition of the Ultimate Reality and the role that HaShem plays in the world and in our lives. Interestingly, Albo explains, based on the juxtaposition of this discussion in the Torah, that one who engages in Teshuva out of fear will eventually be granted the opportunity to engage in Teshuva out of love.

References

Albo, J., & Husik, Isaac. (1946). Sefer haʻiḳarim. (Schiff library of Jewish classics). Philadelphia]: [Jewish Publication Society of America].

Maimonides, M., Touger, E., Kaplan, B., Abramson, Z., & Silverstein, S. (2007). Mishneh Torah. New York: Moznaim Pub. Retrieved from: https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/682956/jewish/Mishneh-Torah.htm

Steinsaltz, A., In Weinreb, T. H., In Schreier, J., & Hotsaat Koren (Jerusalem),. (2017). Koren Talmud Bavli, the Noe edition: Talmud Bavli. Retrieved from: https://shas.alhatorah.org/

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