A vort from the Rebbe on this week's parshah, Parshat Vayeshev. In Parshat Vayeshev, we learn that Tamar gave birth to Yehudah twins. And the way the Torah tells the story, first one of the twins stuck out his hand, and the מיילדת, the nurse, put a ring around his hand to show that he's first, but really Peretz, the other son, the other child, overpowered him and came out first. So she called the one that came out first, called him Peretz, and she said, \"Why פרצת עליך פרץ? You worked, you fought, you overcame him, you broke through, and you came first.\" And the second one she called Zerach because he had the string around his hand, she called him Zerach. Now, in Midrash it says, \"פרץ, זה משיח.\" Peretz refers to Mashiach, it's a remez for Mashiach, as it says, \"עלה הפורץ לפניהם.\" בנוגע משיח, it says the poretz, the one that'll break through, is going to come, and that goes on Mashiach. And actually, Mashiach is a descendant from Peretz. The question the Rebbe asks is it says in Sefer HaBahir that Zerach, which means to shine, represents the sun. The sun shines always. Peretz represents the moon, because the word Peretz means to break, because the moon is sometimes, so to speak, broken. Sometimes it's revealed, sometimes not, it's almost as if it's broken, so that is the remez of the word Peretz. Now, it seems from this that Zerach is higher than Peretz. Zerach represents the sun, the sun always shines, so there's a maalah, something special in the sun over the moon. So why would davka Peretz be connected to the inyan of Mashiach, when Peretz is a lower madregah, it represents the moon?

So the Rebbe explains, it's based what it says in chassidut, that the Tzemach Tzedek writes in Or HaTorah, that the sun and the moon represent two ways of serving Hashem. There is the עבודת ה׳, the service of Hashem that tzaddikim do, and the service of Hashem that baalei teshuvah do, people who do teshuvah. The avodah of tzaddikim is they always do the right thing, that's what a tzaddik is. It's like the sun, no changes, the sun always shines. While the avodah of baalei teshuvah is that it's lower, they were, before they were low, and then it changes and they go up, which is similar to the moon. The moon is covered, and then, which means it's lower, it's not seen, and then it goes up. So the inyan of the moon represents a baal teshuvah. And that's the difference between Peretz and Zerach. Zerach represents the sun, which is the avodah of tzaddikim. Because by tzaddikim, the sun always shines, means they're always doing the right thing. And Peretz represents the avodah of baalei teshuvah, which the teshuvah is like the moon, but it's also connected to the inyan of Peretz, which means to break through, because they have to break through their limitations. A baal teshuvah means he wasn't in that level that you're supposed to be, and he had to break through that, while a tzaddik doesn't have to break through. So Peretz represents the moon, but it represents baalei teshuvah, and Zerach represents tzaddikim, which is shining, always shining.

And now we understand why davka Peretz is a hint for Mashiach, because the specialty that will be by Mashiach is the avodah of teshuvah. It's merumaz, it's hinted in the fact that Mashiach comes from Dovid, and Dovid, the Gemara says in עבודה זרה, הקים עולה של תשובה. Dovid brought up the yoke of teshuvah, Dovid represents baalei teshuvah, and Mashiach comes because Mashiach has to do with teshuvah. Like it says in זוהר, משיח אתא לאתבא צדיקיא בתיובתא. Mashiach will bring everybody, even tzaddikim, to do teshuvah. So the inyan of Mashiach has to do with teshuvah. And the Rambam takeh says that Mashiach will come because all the Yidden will do teshuvah. So the inyan of coming of Mashiach has to do with teshuvah. And that's the reason that even though Peretz represents the moon, which is a lower madregah, but nevertheless, because it represents teshuvah, it's a higher madregah. Like we know the כלל, במקום שבעלי תשובה עומדים, צדיקים גמורים אינם יכולים לעמוד שם. In the level that baalei teshuvah are, tzadikim can't be there. So baalei teshuvah is higher than tzadikim, and that's why Mashiach has to do with baalei teshuvah, with teshuvah, with Peretz. This also explains the seder, the way they were born. First, Zerach was going to come out, because if you look at it superficially first, what's higher? Tzadikim are higher. They never did aveirot, they're tzadikim. So they come first. So Zerach was going to be first. But in truth, it's not so. במקום שבעלי תשובה עומדים, צדיקים גמורים אינם יכולים לעמוד, where tzadikim stand— baalei teshuvah can't stand— what where teshuvah stand, tzadikim can't stand. Umimela, that is higher, and that's the inyan of Mashiach.

But then somebody might ask, if we say baalei teshuvah are higher, so a tzadik could claim, \"Because I didn't do any aveirot, I shouldn't be able to reach a higher madregah? וכי חוטא נשכר? Because I— the person sinned, he reaches a higher madregah, and I didn't sin, I shouldn't be able to reach it?\" So the Rebbe said in a different sichah that a person who never sinned, a person who is not a baal teshuvah, can also reach the level of a baal teshuvah. How? If you help another Yid do teshuvah, you have a Share in his עבודת התשובה. Mimela even a tzadik can reach that. And that can be connected to what the Zohar says: משיח אתא לאתבא צדיקיא בתיובתא, משיח will make tzadikim do teshuvah. I'm just saying this on my own, could be the pshat is that Mashiach, in the time of Mashiach, and Mashiach will be by, even the tzadikim will become baalei teshuvah by helping other Yidden become baalei teshuvah.