Classic Questions

What is confession? When must it be done? (v. 5:6-7)

Rambam: If a person transgresses any of the mitzvos of the Torah, be it a positive command or a prohibition, whether intentionally or unintentionally, he is required to confess before G‑d when he repents and returns from his sin, as the verse states, “If a man or woman commits any sins against [another] man...they should confess the sin they committed,”1 which refers to a verbal confession. This confession is a positive command from the Torah...

One is required to confess with one’s lips and state verbally those things which one has resolved in one’s heart. If a person confesses verbally, but has not resolved in his heart to repent, it is comparable to one who immerses in a mikvah while holding a sheretz [a creature that causes ritual impurity], for the immersion will not be effective until he casts the sheretz away.2

Sefer Hachinuch: Through verbal confession of sin, the sinner reveals his thoughts and feelings, that he truly believes that all his deeds are revealed and known before G‑d, and that he will not act as if “the Eye that sees” does not see. Furthermore, through mentioning the sin specifically, he will feel remorseful about it, and he will be more careful on another occasion not to stumble in the same way again.3

The Rebbe's Teachings

The Mitzvah of Confession (v. 5:7)

Rambam writes that the act of confession, which is derived from v. 7, is “to say verbally those things which one has resolved in one’s heart.”

From this, it would appear that:

  1. The confession does not actually further the teshuvah (repentance) process, it is merely a verbal expression of the teshuvah that has already occurred internally.
  2. Confession is meaningless without a prior internal resolution not to sin again—as Rambam writes, it is “comparable to one who immerses in a mikvah while holding a sheretz.”

However, on further analysis, it could be argued that both these conclusions are, in fact, unfounded, and the confession does:

  1. Advance the teshuvah process even after a person has fully repented;
  2. Become meaningful even without proper repentance first.

Advancement of the Teshuvah Process

Even if a person has done “complete teshuvah” in his heart and resolved firmly never to sin again, verbal confession will bring him to further remorse. This can be discerned from the words of Sefer Hachinuch: “Through mentioning the sin specifically, he will feel remorseful about it, and he will be more careful on another occasion not to stumble in the same way again.”

While Rambam does not refer to this quality of confession here in his Laws of Teshuvah, he does hint to it in his Laws of Fasts:4

“There are days when all of Israel fasts because of the tragedies that occurred [on those days], in order to arouse the hearts, opening the way to the paths of teshuvah. This reminds us of our bad deeds, and the deeds of our ancestors that were like our deeds now, which caused them, and us, these tragedies. Through remembering these things, we will return to being good, as the verse states, ‘They will confess their sins and their fathers’ sins.’”5

Here we see that bringing to mind one’s sins actually helps a person “return to being good.” In other words, confession actually inspires further teshuvah.

Insincere Confession

At first glance, Rambam appears to maintain that insincere confession is totally worthless, “comparable to one who immerses in a mikvah while holding a sheretz.”

However, on closer examination, Rambam’s analogy brings to light that even an insincere confession has something positive to it. To understand why this is the case, let us compare Rambam’s choice of expression with that of the Talmud: “What is this comparable to? To a person who holds a sheretz in his hand; even if he were to immerse in all the waters of the world, he would not undergo a valid immersion.”6

A key difference between Rambam’s choice of phrase and that of the Talmud is that the Talmud discusses immersion in a mikvah as a theoretical possibility, whereas Rambam describes it as something which actually happened: The Talmud writes, “Even if he were to immerse in all the waters of the world,” but Rambam stresses that we are speaking of one who actually “immerses in a mikvah.”

With this turn of phrase, Rambam indicates that an insincere confession is still essentially positive, comparable to actually immersing in a mikvah. The only problem is that since the person is still reluctant to give up his sinful ways, the confession is ineffective. And this persistent attachment of the person’s heart to the sin is therefore compared to the holding of a sheretz, which invalidates the immersion.

How is this positive quality of an insincere confession expressed?

This is simply by virtue of the fact that it is human nature to become uncomfortable and embarrassed when one verbalizes one’s wrongdoing, even if one does not plan to change one’s ways. And this uncomfortable feeling brought on by the confession is itself part of teshuvah.

In summary, confession is effective before, during and after the teshuvah process:

  1. Before a person has resolved to stop sinning, an insincere confession helps him to feel uncomfortable and embarrassed, initiating the teshuvah process.
  2. When a person has sincerely resolved in his heart not to sin again, confession brings his resolutions to be expressed outwardly.
  3. The confession is then effective in inspiring the person to further remorse, and, “he will be more careful on another occasion not to stumble.”7