Pensamiento judío sobre Génesis 28:13

A husband is obliged to provide his wife with three basics. They are food, clothing, and conjugal rights. We therefore read in that passage first about G'd fulfilling His "duties," i.e. the duties of a husband. (6,10-11) At the same time, in keeping with the dictum that "indolence leads to immorality" (Ketuvot.5 9), the love relationship between husband and wife notwithstanding, the spouse's duties do not cease. "You shall revere the Lord your G'd, fear Him and serve Him." The need to accord glory to the beloved is not diminished by the intimacy of their relationship. Familiarity must not be allowed to breed contempt. Since it is in the nature of a woman to test her husband's love from time to time, in order to receive psychological reassurance, the Torah tells us "do not test the Lord your G'd." We must not conduct ourselves in such immature fashion. When the sages describe the passage commencing with the words "when your son will ask you," (6,20) as the question of a clever son who wants to understand the rationale of Torah observances, they did so with good reason. We have explained this in detail, in chapter thirty eight. (6+7) After having concluded the instructions how to insure our loyalty to G'd after we have taken possession of the land of Israel, the last part of our Parshah deals with ensuring that also our children will remain loyal to the covenant. At first glance, the demand for isolation from gentile society may sound harsh. Therefore, the Torah explains 1) the need to remain a holy nation. 2) The reminder that if G'd had wanted us to be similar to other nations, He would have chosen a numerically much stronger nation for His pilot project. (8) When the Torah threatens prompt retaliation to the wicked person, the switch from the singular to the plural may mean that when the wicked become numerous, G'd may have to delay application of retributive acts in order to demonstrate His patience, as discussed in chapter three. However, as long as the number of the wicked is few, of no sociological consequence, immediate retribution is in order. This is necessary to prevent sinners from relying on the patience of G'd and the delay of retribution. The correct meaning of the whole verse (7,9) then is as follows: "when there are many enemies, He will pay them back to their face, to result in the sinners' destruction. When there are only a few individual sinners however, He will not delay before paying him back." It is clear from Jeremiah chapter twelve and Psalms chapter seventy three as well as from Chabakuk chapter one, that the conduct of G'd towards a group of people is not necessarily subject to our evaluation and comprehension. (since we lack too many facts in the total equation.) Psalms ninety two, states so explicitly. (6) The fact that our duties in the marriage contract are spelled out, does not mean that we are entitled to a reward because we have lived up to our undertaking. If the Torah nonetheless begins the next paragraph with a list of promises based on our fulfilling our contractural duties, this is an act of kindness on the part of G'd, not something that we could claim as a right. Just as Abraham considered G'ds promise to grant him children and to give the land of Canaan to them as an act of kindness by G'd, (Genesis 15,6 and our discussion of this in chapter seventeen) so it remains for all time. The answer that the clever son receives may be divided into two parts. Up to the end of Parshat va-etchanan, he is told about the chukkim and eydot the laws that seem to lack rationale and the laws that demonstrate our testifying to the Torah's and G'ds historic truth. In Parshat eykev, he is told about the mishpatim, the social laws of the Torah. Since mishpatim are universally accepted phenomena and no special Torah is needed to assure a nation's establishing standards of social behaviour, the Torah explains the superiority of its legislation to the clever son.

50. The Rabbi: The divine law imposes no asceticism on us. It rather desires that we should keep the equipoise, and grant every mental and physical faculty its due, as much as it can bear, without overburdening one faculty at the expense of another. If a person gives way to licentiousness he blunts his mental faculty; he who is inclined to violence injures some other faculty. Prolonged fasting is no act of piety for a weak person who, having succeeded in checking his desires, is not greedy. For him feasting is a burden and self-denial. Neither is diminution of wealth an act of piety, if it is gained in a lawful way, and if its acquisition does not interfere with study and good works, especially for him who has a household and children. He may spend part of it in almsgiving, which would not be displeasing to God; but to increase it is better for himself. Our law, as a whole, is divided between fear, love, and joy, by each of which one can approach God. Thy contrition on a fast day does nothing the nearer to God than thy joy on the Sabbath and holy days, if it is the outcome of a devout heart. Just as prayers demand devotion, so also is a pious mind necessary to find pleasure in God's command and law; that thou shouldst be pleased with the law itself from love of the Lawgiver. Thou seest how much He has distinguished thee, as if thou hadst been His guest invited to His festive board. Thou thankest Him in mind and word, and if thy joy lead thee so far as to sing and dance, it becomes worship and a bond of union between thee and the Divine Influence. Our law did not consider these matters optional, but laid down decisive injunctions concerning them, since it is not in the power of mortal man to apportion to each faculty of the soul and body its right measure, nor to decide what amount of rest and exertion is good, or to determine how long the ground should be cultivated till it finds rest in the years of release and jubilee, or the amount of tithe to be given, etc. God commanded cessation of work on Sabbath and holy days, as well as in the culture of the soil, all this 'as a remembrance of the exodus from Egypt,' and 'remembrance of the work of creation.' These two things belong together, because they are the outcome of the absolute divine will, but not the result of accident or natural phenomena. It is said: 'For ask now of the days that are past--Did ever a people hear the voice of God--Or hath God assayed,' etc. (Deuteronomy 4:32, sqq.). The observance of the Sabbath is itself an acknowledgment of His omnipotence, and at the same time an acknowledgment of the creation by the divine word. He who observes the Sabbath because the work of creation was finished on it acknowledges the creation itself. He who believes in the creation believes in the Creator. He, however, who does not believe in it falls a prey to doubts of God's eternity and to doubts of the existence of the world's Creator. The observance of the Sabbath is therefore nearer to God than monastic retirement and ascetism. Behold how the Divine Influence attached itself to Abraham, and then to all those who shared his excellence and the Holy Land. This Influence followed him everywhere, and guarded his posterity, preventing the detachment of any of them, it brought them to the most sheltered and best place, and caused them to multiply in a miraculous manner, and finally raised them to occupy a degree worthy of such excellence. He is, therefore, called: 'God of Abraham' (Genesis 28:13),'God of the land' (I Samuel 4:4),'Dwelling between the Cherubim' (Psalms 9:12), 'Dwelling in Zion' (Psalms 135:21), 'Abiding in Jerusalem' (Psalms 123:1), these places being compared to heaven, as it is said: 'Dwelling in heaven' (Psalms 123:1). His light shines in these places as in heaven, although through mediums which are fit to receive this light. He sheds it upon them, and this it is that is called love. It has been taught us, and we have been enjoined to believe in it, as well as to praise and thank Him in the prayer: "With eternal love Thou lovest us"; so that we should bear in mind that it originally came from Him, but not from us. To give an instance, we do not say that an animal created itself, but that God formed and fashioned it, having selected the proper matter for it. In the same manner it was He who initiated our delivery from Egypt to be His people and to acknowledge Him as king, as He said: 'I am the Lord your God who led you out of the land of Egypt to be unto you a God' (Leviticus 22:33, Numbers 15:41). He also says: 'O Israel, in whom I will be glorified' (Isaiah 44:3).

51. Al Khazari: This sentence seems to go too far, and is overbold in expressing that the Creator is glorified through mortal man.