120. “Bereshit. Rabbi Ḥiyya, etc.” Bereshit. Rabbi Ḥiyya opened [his discourse by citing this verse]: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it will have a good understanding; His praise endures forever” (Psalms 111:10). “The beginning of wisdom” – the question is raised: This verse should have stated: “The fear of the Lord is the end of wisdom,” since the fear of the Lord is the mystical meaning of Malkhut, which is the end of wisdom [Ḥokhma] The answer is: Rather, Malkhut is the first to enter the level of the supernal Ḥokhma, as it is stated: “Open for me the gates of righteousness [tzedek]” (Psalms 118:19), which are the gates of Malkhut, called tzedek. “This is the gate of the Lord” (Psalms 118:20) – certainly, if one does not enter through this gate, he will never enter to the supernal King, for He is lofty, hidden, and concealed, and He fashioned gates for Himself, one above the other.

Explanation: The question being asked is: Since the fear of the Lord is the sefira of Malkhut, which is at the end of the ten sefirot, [the verse] should have stated: “The fear of the Lord is the end of wisdom.” [The Zohar] then states: “The supernal King […] is lofty, hidden, and concealed etc.” This is not a metaphor but the point itself. It means that since He is a lofty, hidden, and concealed King, and no thought can grasp Him at all, He therefore fashioned many gates one above the other, by virtue of which [He] made the approach to Him possible. This is the mystical meaning of the verse: “Open for me the gates of righteousness.” These are the gates that God has fashioned and [thereby] provided the option for the righteous to approach Him via those gates.

[The Zohar] continues: “And at the end of all the gates, He made one gate with several locks etc.” [section #121#, below]. This is the gate called Malkhut of Malkhut, which is the end point of all the supernal gates. This last gate is the first gate to the supernal Ḥokhma. In other words, it is only possible to merit the supernal Ḥokhma specifically after the attainment of this last gate, because this [gate] is the first gate for attaining the supernal Ḥokhma. With regard to this mystical meaning, it is stated: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” since it is specifically “the fear of the Lord” [which is Malkhut] that is the last gate, which is the first [gate] to [reach] the Ḥokhma of the Lord.