Deutéronome 30:2

The upright of you will be favoured with a blessed repentance; and though you have sinned, yet shall your repentance come up unto the glorious throne of the Lord your God, if you will hearken to His Word according to all that I have commanded you this day, you, and your children, with all your heart and with all your soul.

AND THOU SHALT RETURN UNTO THE ETERNAL THY G-D, AND HEARKEN TO HIS VOICE ACCORDING TO ALL THAT I COMMAND THEE THIS DAY, THOU AND THY CHILDREN. The meaning thereof is that you will return with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and you will take it upon yourself and upon your children throughout their generations to do according to all that I command thee this day, just as they did at the second redemption [i.e., the redemption from Babylon], as it is written, and they entered into a curse, and into an oath, to walk in G-d’s law, which was given by Moses the servant of G-d, and to observe and do all the commandments of the Eternal our G-d, and His ordinances and His statutes. Or it may be that the expression that I command thee this day, thou and thy children is like “command you — to you and to your children,” is gramatically difficult, because the verse begins with the accusative thee, and follows with the nominative thou. Ramban offers two explanations: First, that the verse contains two separate thoughts: that you will return to G-d, and that you will accept upon yourself and your children all that He commands us. Second, that the nominative thou is equivalent to the accusative thee [“to you”], and the verse is thus expressing a single thought: “that I command thee this day — to you and to your children.” Ramban proceeds to cite Scriptural examples of similar usage — a nominative in place of an accusative. similar to the expression ‘v’atah tzuveitha’ (and you) is to be understood as lecha (“and to you”). [meaning lecha tzuveithi — “to you I ordered that the command be given”]. So also, and they dealt ill ‘othanu’ is “us,” but Ramban interprets it in the context of the verse as if it means “to us.” means lanu (“to us”). (you) means lecha (to you). And in my opinion there is in this matter a great secret; for it alludes to that which the Rabbis said, “The son of David [i.e., the Messiah] will not come until all souls in the guf are exhausted.” I have already spoken of this matter.

ושבת עד ה' אלוקיך, your repentance will have as its exclusive purpose to henceforth carry out only G’d ‘s will to the extent that He has revealed it. Our sages in Yuma 86 have said of this type of repentance that “it reaches right up to the throne of G’d’s Majesty.”

ושמעת בקולו ככל אשר אנכי מצוך היום, instead of listening (abiding by) man-made laws as you were in the habit of doing.

אתה ובניך, also the children of this generation will recognise this. Jeremiah 31,33 refers to “everyone knowing Me,” i.e. G’d, adding למקטנם ועד גדולם, “from their early youth till their reaching adulthood.”

בכל לבבך, without any reservation.

ובכל נפשך, without allowing the “natural,” evil urge inspired temptations to sidetrack you by downplaying the importance of some of G’d’s legislation

ושבת עד ה' אלוקיך, “and (then) you will return to the Lord your G–d;” elsewhere (Deut.23,15) it says in indirect speech: ושב ה' אלוקיך את שבותך ורחמך, “and the Lord your G–d will return with your captives and have mercy on you. Why does this have to be repeated? In the Talmud, tractate “Yuma”, folio 86, the Talmud says that repentance is important as it hastens the arrival of the redemption. This is based on Isaiah 59,20: ובא לציון גואל, ”and the Redeemer will come to Zion,” why? The verse continues with ושבי פשע ביעקב, “when the sinners among Yaakov have repented.” Rabbi Yossi bar Yehudah added that when a person transgresses a commandment once he is forgiven. By the time he transgresses a fourth time he is no longer subject to forgiveness. He bases himself on Amos 2,6: “thus said the Lord; for three transgressions of Israel, for four I will not revoke it (evil decree);” this is how the Talmud in tractate Yuma folio 86 understands that verse. I heard a reason for this attributed to Rabi Meir Levi, who stated that access to the Lord is guarded by three different “fences.” The first is overwhelming noise, the second is fire, and the third is a region of strong wind; finally there is a region in which almost inaudible sound is heard; (Compare Kings I 19, 11-12) in each region of these fences there are angels. When a person sins for the first time, the angels in the first region obstruct such a person’s access to commit further sins. This results in his obtaining forgiveness [as without this he would continue to sin having started to do so. Ed.] This process continues in varying degrees if he commits a second or third sin [without having repented in the interval. Ed.] When he sins a fourth time, having already breached the fences separating him from the Presence of G–d three times, he is no longer subject to forgiveness, as we know from Isaiah 65,3-7: “the people who provoke My anger who continually, to My very face, sacrifice in gardens and burn incense on tiles etc. etc. such things make My anger rage, like fire blazing all day long and I will not stand idly by but will repay deliver their sins into their bosom and the sins of their fathers as well.” In other words, G–d is patient until sinning has become a pattern of the sinner’s lifestyle before He reacts irrevocably.