What Does It Really Mean to Love Hashem? The Rambam Explains

The Rambam (Maimonides) teaches us that the highest form of serving Hashem comes not from fear of punishment or the desire for reward, but from genuine love. Through his teachings, he invites us to deepen our relationship with Hashem and fulfill His mitzvot because we recognize their truth and value.

Serving Hashem Out of Love, Not for Reward

In Hilchot Teshuvah (Laws of Repentance 10:1), the Rambam explains that our motivation for observing the Torah should go beyond what we hope to gain from it:

“A person should not say, ‘I will perform the mitzvot of the Torah and occupy myself with its wisdom so that I will receive all the blessings written in it, or so that I will merit the life of the World to Come; and I will keep away from the sins that the Torah warned against so that I will be saved from the curses written in the Torah, or so that I will not be cut off from the life of the World to Come.’ It is not fitting to serve Hashem in this way.”

The Rambam teaches that someone who truly loves Hashem studies Torah and fulfills His commandments not because they expect a reward or fear the consequences of disobedience, but because they recognize that doing so is right and true.

He continues:

“One who serves out of love occupies himself with Torah and mitzvot and walks in the paths of wisdom, not because of anything in the world, not because of fear of evil, and not in order to inherit the good. Rather, he does what is true because it is true, and in the end the good comes because of it” (Hilchot Teshuvah 10:2).

This is the essence of serving Hashem out of love: choosing to do what is right simply because it is right, without making personal benefit the reason for our actions.

The Spiritual Level of Avraham Avinu

The Rambam describes this kind of devotion as an exceptionally high spiritual level, one that even great Torah scholars do not always attain.

“And this level is a very great level, and not every sage merits it. It is the level of Avraham our father, whom Hashem called ‘His beloved,’ because he served only out of love. And it is the level that Hashem commanded us through Moshe, as it is said, ‘You shall love Hashem your God’ (Deuteronomy 6:5). And when a person loves Hashem with the proper love, he immediately performs all the mitzvot out of love.”

Avraham Avinu (Abraham our forefather) represents this extraordinary level of devotion. His service of Hashem was rooted in love rather than personal gain, demonstrating the kind of relationship with Hashem that the Torah encourages us to develop.

The Rambam goes on to describe the depth of this love as “loving Hashem with a love that is great, abundant, and exceedingly powerful, until his soul is bound up in the love of Hashem and he is constantly absorbed in it” (Hilchot Teshuvah 10:3).

At this level, a person's connection with Hashem becomes so precious and meaningful that it occupies their thoughts and shapes the way they live.

How Can We Develop a Deeper Love for Hashem?

According to the Rambam, love of Hashem does not develop automatically. It requires conscious effort, reflection, and a genuine desire to know Him more deeply.

He explains:

“It is a known and clear matter that the love of Hashem does not become bound up in a person’s heart until he is constantly absorbed in it as is fitting and leaves aside everything in the world except for it, as He commanded and said, ‘with all your heart and with all your soul.’ A person loves Hashem only according to the knowledge with which he knows Him, and according to that knowledge will be the love: if little, little; and if much, much” (Hilchot Teshuvah 10:6).

In other words, the more we come to know Hashem, the more our love for Him can grow. Developing that connection involves learning about His wisdom, reflecting on His goodness, and making the effort to understand Him to the best of our ability.

The Rambam concludes this teaching by emphasizing the importance of actively pursuing that knowledge:

“Therefore, a person must devote himself to understanding and grasping the forms of wisdom and insight that make his Creator known to him, according to the capacity a person has to understand and comprehend” (Hilchot Teshuvah 10:6).

Through learning, contemplation, and a deeper understanding of Hashem, we can gradually strengthen our love for Him. As that love grows, observing the Torah and fulfilling His mitzvot become more than obligations. They become a meaningful expression of our relationship with Hashem.