Ki Tavo: From Darkness to Light

Yeshayahu 60:1–22

The haftorah opens with a stirring call: קוּמִי אוֹרִי כִּי בָא אוֹרֵךְ וּכְבוֹד ה׳ עָלַיִךְ זָרָח, Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of Hashem has dawned upon you. The Malbim reads קוּמִי אוֹרִי as two distinct commands. First, קוּמִי—rise out of the darkness. Then, אוֹרִי—become a source of light for the entire world. This is not simply a promise that light will arrive. It is a call for each one of us to participate in bringing that light into the world.

But the very next posuk challenges us, acknowledging that: כִּי הִנֵּה הַחֹשֶׁךְ יְכַסֶּה אֶרֶץBehold, darkness shall cover the earth. There is still darkness in the world and yet Yerushalayim is told that she need not wait before beginning to shine.

This is one of the many messages of Elul. We may believe that before we can move forward, every struggle must be resolved and every shadow removed. But teshuvah does not begin when the darkness is gone. It begins with the willingness to rise within it. Facing darkness can help us discover a light we did not know we possessed.

Perhaps that is why Yeshayahu calls it אוֹרֵךְ—your light. It is formed through each of our individual journeys and is strengthened through all that we endure.

Hashem calls to each of us: קוּמִי אוֹרִי. Do not wait until every shadow has disappeared. Rise now. Shine now. Allow your own unique light to illuminate the path toward a better year.