Pirkei Avot - Ethics of the Fathers

~Level 1~
Sforno - in order to make Israel righteous He wished to increase for them Torah and commandments in order that each one will be found righteous with some portion in the torah and the commandments so that all of them will merit life in the world to come.

~Level 2~
Midrash Shmuel - "therefore He gave them Torah and commandments in abundance" - so that one will not say: "(the torah's) measure is longer than the Earth and wider than the sea" (Iyov 11:9) and likewise the details and fine points of the commandments (mitzvot) are enormously vast. Who can ever fulfill all of them?"

Therefore the Tanna teaches us that Gd, "who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us" (asher kidshanu bmitzvotav vetzivanu) - His commandments are not like those of a flesh and blood king. For the latter commands and fixes an amount of work to his servant such and such. And if the servant does not complete the entire amount, he will be punished for not fulfilling all the king's command.

But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not like this. For that which He increased torah and mitzvot on Israel, the intent is not to say that they must finish and learn the entire torah and fulfill all the commandments. And if not, they will be punished even though they fulfilled some of them or most of them. Thereby the increase of torah and mitzvot is mainly a cause to be punished through them.

It is not so. For "it is not incumbent on you to finish" (Avot 2:19) and "whether one does much or little as long as his heart is to Heaven". This is like the story of the man who learned all his days only tractate Chagigah. Thus the increase in mitzvot is not a cause to punish but rather just the opposite.. For "He wished to grant merit to Israel" to he who is unable to fulfill all of them For according to how much he attains in torah learning and fulfilling mitzvot, so too his reward will increase without limit. Therefore "He gave them Torah and commandments in abundance".

~Level 2~
Maharal - even though now that there are many mitzvot, it is possible to result in many sins, but it does not matter. For G-d wants to bestow good to the good. And since with many mitzvot it is more merit for the good people, for then they will be whole in the 613 mitzvot, therefore G-d wanted to grant merit to the good (lezakot hatovim)... For Gd is righteous and loves righteousness...

That which the Rambam explains: "by many mitzvot it is impossible for a person to not do at least one wholly. Through that he wil merit life in the world to come.." It seems the Rambam wrote these things to draw the hearts of the people.. But these words have no basis at all.. (see there for a long discussion with many arguments).

~Level 2~
Rashi - this mishna was not said in Pirkei Avot but rather in the end of tractate Makot. But since it has a nice ending, it became a custom by all the people to read it at the end of every chapter.

And since one does not recite the Kaddish on mishna but rather on Agadah as the talmud says: "Mar said: on what does the world endure? On kedusha of Sidra and kaddish of Agadah" (Sotah 49a).

These chapters are called Pirkei Avot because in them are arranged the words of the early fathers who received the torah one from the other. For example, Moshe and Yehoshua and the Elders until the men of the great assembly, and Hillel and Shamai and Rabban Yochaban ben Zakai and his disciples.

Rebbi told us how their deeds were noble and that they would exhort the people of their generation and guide them in the just path. So too it is proper for every Chacham (torah scholar) to exhort the people of his generation and teach them the just path.