Tehillim 86 – How Many Attributes of Mercy Does the Almighty Have: 12 or 13?

12 or 13 Divine Attributes

Tehillim 86:11  - “horeni Ad-nai darkecha, ahalech ba’amitecha” - (teach me Your way, O L-rd; I will walk in Your truth). Rabbi Ephraim of Sudilkov teaches that truth gives a person the ability to follow the middle, upright path. This is demonstrated by the fact that among the Creator’s 13 Attributes of Mercy, truth stands precisely in the middle:  “1) El, 2) Rachum, 3) ve-Chanun, 4) Erech, 5) Apaim, 6) ve-Rav-Chesed, 7) ve-Emet, 8) Notzer Chesed, 9) La’alafim, 10) Nose Avon, 11) ve-Fesha, 12) ve-Chata’ah, 13) ve-Nakeh.” In reality, the 13 Attributes of Mercy are 12, because the attribute of “truth”—“emet”—is not an independent attribute, but rather the source of life force for all the other attributes. This middle attribute among the 13 encompasses all of the Almighty’s attributes. The Torah hints at this: truth is called “ve-emet”—the “ve,” the letter “vav,” has a gematria value of 6, hinting at the six attributes that precede it and the six that follow it, and providing life force to all 12 attributes.   (“Degel Machaneh Ephraim,” Re’eh, Shoftim)