“Three books are opened on Rosh Hashana, one for those who are completely wicked, one for those who are completely righteous, and one is for those in between. The completely righteous are written down and sealed right away for life; the completely wicked are written down and sealed right away for death; those in between remain suspended from Rosh Hashana through Yom Kippur. If they merit it, they are written down for life; if they don’t merit it, they are written down for death.” (Rosh Hashana 16b, and echoed, in different words, by Rambam, Hilchos T’shuvah 3:3)

While the Talmud tells us the consequences of being righteous or wicked, it doesn’t define for us who are considered such. Rambam (3:1-2) tells us that whoever has good deeds that outweigh their bad deeds is “righteous,” those whose bad deeds outweigh their good deeds are “wicked,” and those whose “good” and “bad” deeds are exactly even are considered “in between” (or “middling”). However, if those whose fate is not determined on Rosh Hashana is limited to only those whose good deeds weigh exactly the same as their bad deeds, it would seem that only a small number of people have until Yom Kippur to mend their ways in order to improve their upcoming year. Yet the wording of our prayers indicate that the heavenly decrees that will affect us for the next year aren’t sealed until Yom Kippur. Are these prayers meant only for the few whose deeds are exactly “half and half?” Why is there so much focus on improving ourselves before Yom Kippur, rather than on or before Rosh Hashana, if the decrees issued on Yom Kippur apply to only a few people?

Lechem Mishneh (3:2), answering a different question, says that Rambam’s definition of who is righteous and who is wicked is only meant for the judgment made upon death, not the yearly judgments made on Rosh Hashana. He says that for Rosh Hashana, the Rambam would define “righteous” and “wicked” the same way Ramban does (at the beginning of Sha’ar HaG’mul), with the terms referring to the outcome of this particular judgment; even a wicked person who is given a year of life is considered “righteous” vis-à-vis that decision. Aside from the semantic gymnastics, Rambam gives no indication that the terms are different for this judgment then they were for the previously discussed judgment). Additionally, if these terms refer to the outcome of the judgment, and are not a description of the person being judged (and the reason for the judgment), the Talmud’s statement doesn’t read well; saying the “righteous are given a good judgment” is superfluous, since the reason they are considered “righteous” is precisely because there was a positive outcome to their judgment! Also, this explanation does not apply to the person referred to as “in between,” unless the term is a euphemism for “to be determined.” How can there be a separate book opened on Rosh Hashana for each category, if the categories don’t really apply until after the judgment?

“The essence of a human being is his desires.” These are the opening words of Rabbi Eliyahu Dessler’s essays on the High Holy Days (Michtav Mei’Eliyahu volume II, page 62). He explains how these desires remain with the person even after death, and are the source of most of the reward and punishment in the next world. After all, how can one satisfy a physical desire in a world that exists only on a spiritual plane? Rav Dessler applies this concept to the above Talmudic quote; the completely righteous are those whose “wants” are completely spiritual, the completely wicked those who have only physical cravings, and those in between have both physical and spiritual longings.  Therefore, as almost everybody fits into the latter category, it is not until Yom Kippur that the King of kings seals our decrees. (The goal is to improve ourselves so that our primary cravings are for the spiritual, which would move us from the category of being “in between” to being among the “righteous.”) Nevertheless, since Rambam discusses deeds, not desires, it would be difficult to suggest that this was what he meant.

Rav Yitzchok Hutner (Pachad Yitzchok, Rosh Hashana 18) discusses this Rambam as well, including the differences between his wording and that of the Talmud. When describing those who are “in between,” the Talmud says that if they merit it, on Yom Kippur they are written in for life, while if they don’t, they are written down the other way. Rambam, on the other hand, specifies that in order for those “in between” to be sealed “for life,” they must repent (and if the don’t, they will be sealed “for death”). Aside from needing to explain why Rambam changed the verbiage at all (including why those “in between” are “sealed” rather than “written”), stating that the “in between” have to repent has larger implications. If the reason they are “in between” is because their good deeds are exactly equal to their sins, shouldn’t all they need to do be to “unbalance” the scales by adding more good deeds? [This becomes more difficult based on Rambam’s own words in the very next law (3:4), where he explains why we make an extra effort between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur to give more charity, do more good deeds and fulfill more mitzvos.] Why is the only way for those “in between” to merit “life” to repent past misdeeds, thereby making their “positive side” heavier than their “negative side,” rather than being able to make their “positive side” heavier by adding to it?

Rav Hutner has a similar approach to Rav Dessler’s, but rather than changing the definition of “righteous” and “wicked,” Rav Hutner changes the definition of “having a majority of merits or sins” to be a description of the person rather than of the number of his good deeds or bad deeds. (Bear in mind that Rav Dessler is explaining the Talmud, while Rav Hutner is explaining how Rambam understands the Talmud; the Talmud never discusses the actions, only how the person is categorized.) Still, Rambam’s wording (3:1), “if he has more merits than sins,” sounds like a description of his actions, not a categorization of the person.

When discussing the decrees made regarding the “righteous” and “wicked,” the Talmud says they are “sealed” on Rosh Hashana. This indicates that the reckoning based on their previous actions is complete; good deeds and bad deeds done between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur will be counted next Rosh Hashana, when the next year’s reckoning is done, but are not part of the calculation of the previous year. There is no reason to think that this isn’t true for those who are “in between” as well. [Although the Talmud does use the word “written” for them, it is rather obvious that by Yom Kippur it is sealed. The word “written” is most likely used because until Yom Kippur their fate is not “sealed”; not repenting before Yom Kippur doesn’t mean they won’t do so sometime before Yom Kippur is over, and repenting doesn’t “seal the deal” if they can still “un-repent” before Yom Kippur ends. In order to avoid confusion, Rambam uses the term “sealed” for those “in between” as well, referring to the end of the process, i.e. their status after Yom Kippur is over.] Since good deeds done after Rosh Hashana do not count for the judgment made about the previous year, the only way to “tip the scales” after Rosh Hashana is to repent, thereby retroactively removing sins that had prevented the “merit” side from being heavier. (Not removing them, leaving the “scales” as they were, means not being given “life.”)

[As far as Rambam promoting increasing good deeds between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, the context indicates that this was not meant to affect the judgment, but the way we live our lives. As he says explicitly, we should try to do every good deed we can all year long. However, many are “asleep” spiritually, and need to be woken up (which is why we blow the shofar on Rosh Hashana). As part of our “reawakening,” we increase our amount of good deeds, something we are always supposed to do.]

Although Rambam only mentions those “in between” needing to repent, he is referring to what it takes for those “in between“ to be granted “life.” But just as repenting helps those in between by removing sins from their scale, repenting removes sins from the scales of the righteous as well. True, they were granted “life” even beforehand (when their original decree was sealed on Rosh Hashana), but there are many more aspects to decrees than just “life,” and their situation will be much improved after some of their (fewer) bad deeds are removed retroactively. As Rambam wrote earlier (2:6), even decrees that were sealed can be changed during the Ten Days of Repentance (especially if it is part of a public repentance). Yom Kippur providing us the opportunity to cleanse ourselves of our sins is enough of a reason to take advantage of it, but even if a decree of “life” was given on Rosh Hashana, the more affective our repentance is, the better our final decree will be.

Despite the Talmud saying that the decrees regarding the righteous and wicked are sealed on Rosh Hashana, the liturgy refers to the decrees made on Rosh Hashana as being “written” because it is literally true for those “in between,” and true from a practical standpoint for everyone else, since we can improve on the decrees made by improving ourselves through repentance. Therefore, even though it is only those “in between” who first have their decrees “sealed” on Yom Kippur, its benefits apply to all of us.