לקוטי שיחות חלק ח׳ - שבועות

It may be said that the three themes associated with Shavuos—(1) Matan Torah, (2) the passing of King David, and (3) the passing of the Baal Shem Tov—are interconnected.

The explanation is as follows:

The essence of Matan Torah was the annulment of the decree separating the spiritual and physical realms, thereby enabling a connection between heaven and earth. However, Matan Torah was only the beginning and the empowerment for this union. At that stage, the primary development was that “the higher realms descended to the lower realms.”

The next stage—“the lower realms ascending to the higher realms”—was accomplished afterward through David HaMelech. David's defining characteristic was kingship, in which the entire existence of the people is bound to the king. Therefore, one who rebels against the king, even in a seemingly minor matter, forfeits his very standing and existence.

This ascent of the lower realms was also expressed through the Beis HaMikdash, for whose construction David made all the necessary preparations. The Beis HaMikdash did not merely draw holiness into the world; rather, the physical objects themselves became inherently holy.

In the future era, however, there will be “both this and that”—a complete union of both qualities: the drawing down of the higher realms and the elevation of the lower realms.

The preparation for this future state was accomplished by the Baal Shem Tov. He revealed a teaching of Torah—which represents a revelation from Above—that the true reality of every created being, representing the elevation of the lower realm, is nothing other than the Divine word that continuously gives it life. Thus, he united both movements: Divine revelation from Above and the recognition that the very essence of creation is G‑dliness.