These days of Aseret Yemei Teshuvah are the greatest chesed from Hashem. Imagine a man is standing on trial and his life is on the line. Before the judge gives his final verdict, the man pleads, "Please give me a chance. Tell me what I could do to get off the hook." The judge tells him, "I won't give the final verdict for another week. During that time, if you come to me, admit what you did wrong, sincerely regret it, and tell me you won't do it again, then I'll let you off."
What a chesed! His life is on the line, and the judge tells him exactly what to do to be forgiven. This is the incredible chesed that Hashem gives us during these days. He is telling us, "I want to let you off. I want to give you the greatest of everything. Just do teshuvah so I can forgive you."
We have to answer the call and actually make teshuvah. The days are passing by quickly. We have to think about what we did wrong and go through the steps necessary to gain full atonement, which include admitting to Hashem what we did. We have to actually say, "I did this wrong." Amazingly, Hashem gives us a mitzvah for confessing our sins. Imagine the judge tells the defendant, "Come tell me what you did wrong so I can forgive you. And besides that, I'm going to give you a huge reward just for admitting it." Hashem not only gives us the ability to erase the damage we caused, He gives us a mitzvah for doing it as well.
Rabbeinu Yonah speaks about the regret that we have to have as part of our teshuvah. We have to think about what we did. How could we have gone against the will of Hashem? Hashem warned us in the Torah about all the negative consequences of sin, yet we still allowed a temporary desire to overcome us. How could we exchange eternity for a fleeting pleasure? How could we damage the holy neshamah that Hashem gave us just to satisfy the yetzer hara for a few moments? The Navi tells us that even an animal knows who provides for it. Hashem gives us every breath we take, every heartbeat, every blessing. When we think about that, we can sincerely say, "Hashem, how could I have gone against You? You give me everything."
And then we have to make a commitment for the future. We tell Hashem, "I don't want to do this anymore. I want to change." Hashem knows what's in our hearts. He knows our weaknesses, and He knows whether or not we're sincere. Teshuvah doesn't mean we can guarantee that we'll never face the challenge again. It means that right now we sincerely regret what we did, we genuinely don't want to do it again, and we accept upon ourselves, to the best of our ability, not to repeat it.
We can't imagine what happens when a person sincerely does teshuvah. The Rambam writes that before teshuvah, a person can be so distant from Hashem, but afterward he is beloved and desired, close and dear. Chazal tell us that teshuvah can rip up a harsh decree. It can bring a refuah shelemah. It can lengthen a person's life. And during these days, the opportunity is even greater. The Rambam tells us that although teshuvah and crying out to Hashem are always good, during the Aseret Yemei Teshuvah they are especially effective and are accepted immediately.
Imagine someone had a stain on a very expensive garment that normally needed an enormous process to remove. Then, for just a few days, the manufacturer announced that anyone could bring in his stained garment and they would clean it for him on the spot. No one would say, "Well, let me see if I get around to it." He would run there while the opportunity was available. That is the opportunity we have now during the Aseret Yemei Teshuvah.
We all know that sometimes when a person experiences pain or difficulty, it's a kapparah. Kapparah means that the suffering is helping to atone for our sins. But we would rather not have the sin and not need the kapparah. Teshuvah removes the sins and cleanses us from them. And our Rabbis teach us about the unbelievable power that Torah study has to help bring the full atonement that we need. Torah study can atone for the most serious sins. Aveirot that even korbanot cannot completely atone for can be atoned for through Torah study. Hashem tells us that the words of Torah that come out of our mouths are more precious to Him than all the korbanot that can be offered. And the Midrash tells us that even sins that carry the punishment of death at the hands of Heaven can be atoned for through increased Torah study.
What an opportunity! A person can say, "Hashem, I want to come closer to You. I want to become cleansed. I'm going to add more Torah study to my life." Now is the time. We want to be pure. We want to be close to Hashem. We have an opportunity of a lifetime. The days of Aseret Yemei Teshuvah are passing by quickly. Let us take advantage of them, do teshuvah, strengthen our Torah study, and come back to Hashem. And in that zechut, may Hashem cleanse us and inscribe and seal us for a year filled with life, berachah, and hatzlacha.