Pemikiran Yahudi Ulangan 5:21: Akeidat Yitzchak & Guide for the Perplexed

Our conduct vis a vis G'd is based on the very same principles. Some people expect G'd to do their bidding, relying on their merit and presenting their claim to G'd. Once these merits have been exhausted, they appear before G'd pleading their case through prayer. Concerning these two groups of people, the Psalmist says "Moses and Aaron of His priests, and Samuel who called on His name,” meaning the former have deeds to their credit, the latter employed the venue of prayer. (Psalms 99,6) However, when the desired response to having employed the first two methods is not forthcoming, many of us resort to the third and unacceptable means of securing our demands. Kings, both of Yehudah and Israel, are prime examples of how the attempt to secure one's end by illegal means failed in the end after approximately five hundred years, during most of which G'd exercised almost inexhaustible patience. Despite our long exile, despite the fact that all the dire prophecies of the Torah and prophets have been fulfilled, Jeremiah holds out hope for the rejuvenation of his people and their eventual redemption. He stresses that the goodness of G'd will become evident especially to those who keep their faith in the coming of the saviour, providing such a person works actively for the coming of this redemption. "The Lord is good to those who trust in Him, when they seek Him out." (Lamentations 3,25) In this vein Jeremiah paints a picture of hope and confidence even amid the ruins in which he laments our lost glory. Similarly, Isaiah, when predicting doom, reinforces our hope of ultimate redemption with rousing visions of a rejuvenated G'd fearing Jewish nation. (chapter 40)

(1) Man is apt to sin for either of two reasons. Either he is overcome by physical temptation, or he subscribes to a faulty philosophy. In the latter event, his sin will be performed with dedication, since the sinner has become convinced that what he is doing is actually the will of the deity he worships. Warnings against this kind of sin must therefore be expressed in much stronger language than warnings against sins which are merely the result of weakness of the flesh, often only temporary. When warning against sins of the flesh, the Torah uses the term nefesh. When warning against aberrations due to intellectual misconceptions, the Torah uses the term ish, describing man's intellectual essence. The chapter dealing with immorality, incest etc. is introduced by a warning not to follow the lifestyle of the Egyptians, nor to adopt the lifestyle of the Canaanites. The former were more sophisticated, known for their intellect. Their physical corruption was rooted in a corrupt philosophy. The Canaanites, however were renowned for their physical prowess; their philosophy was only an outgrowth of their physical perversions. To counteract the former, the Torah says "observe My social laws, My philosophy, and keep My statutes." (in that order) Concerning the latter, the Torah says "keep My statutes and observe My social laws." (in that order) The purpose of the legislation is contained in the latter half of verse five, "that man shall perform them and live by them," meaning that we shall remain "human" only by observing Torah laws. The fact that the Torah stresses these practices as determining whether a person will retain the tzelem, the Divine image, which entitles him to the description Adam, human being in the true sense of the word, tells us that it is not the fundamental error of philosophy that requires the most urgent treatment. The errors stemming from physical urges require treatment on a priority basis. It is easier to disabuse the mind of ish of faulty reasoning, than to disabuse the nefesh, the physical essence of its urges. The repetition at the end of chapter eighteen, "for I am the Lord your G'd," is to impress upon us that we must observe this legislation not only out of fear of punishment, but because we appreciate the wisdom of the Creator revealed in this legislation. It is only in the next Parshah that the Torah addresses itself to many of the philosophic aberrations that we must avoid also.

The story of Creation teaches that belief in fatalism is wrong. Since the Creator was free to create at that time, He will forever remain free to change His world and its laws whenever it pleases Him. (compare chapter 1 and chapter 15) Fear then is predicated on the assumption that what is dreaded need not necessarily happen, or need not necessarily fail to happen, since the ultimate decision is within the province of G'ds will and Power. We are therefore asked by the Torah not to relate to anything from a fatalistic point of view. We are asked to fear Him, just because He is able to either halt or precipitate the very events which we dread. Fear is the opposite of resignation then. If one were to assume that misconduct by man would inevitably result in retribution by G'd, then fear, which is the catalyst of repentance, would be replaced by resignation, and repentance would become almost impossible. (Chagigah 15, telling about the apostate Elisha ben Avuyah is a prime example of this approach). The latter had heard that the gates of repentance would be closed to him, and had therefore lost his incentive to do penitence, and to re-acquire the yir-ah expected of us. In his prayer, during the inauguration ceremonies of the temple, king Solomon used this very argument, lema-an yira-ucha, in order that they may fear You as long as they live on this earth." (Kings I 8.37-40) Concerning this "fear,"- which is identical with faith,- Rabbi Chaninah proclaims that whereas all is within the power of Heaven, imbuing someone with this faith is not within the power of Heaven, but is solely up to the believer himself. For this reason, Abraham was given credit for having believed in the promise that he would sire children. "He believed G'd, and He considered it an act of righteousness on Abraham's part." (Genesis 15,6) This faith could not have been supplied by G'd, but had to be an act of willpower on the part of Abraham himself. He was the first philosopher who found his way to this yir-ah/emunah, as is recorded of him after the akeydah, the binding of Isaac. (Genesis 22,12) "For now I know that you are G'd fearing." After all, this is the goal of all our striving, as Solomon proclaims at the end of his book Kohelet: "In conlusison, after all is said and done, fear the Lord, observe His commandments because this is the sum total of being a human being " There is a third variety of fear that is composed of an intelligent awareness of the fact that if one does not take adequate precautions against known dangers, disastrous consequences may result. This fear, while recognising the dangers of inaction or lack of preparedness, is nevertheless not due to a fatalistic outlook. It is therefore fear, not resignation. The intelligence involved stems from the recognition of a free G'd as the ultimate cause of events, events which He can control, but that man can influence directly. If a king threatens a subject with jail unless said subject carries out certain orders, such conduct is autocratic and deprives the subject of any meaningful choice. If, on the other hand, the king points out that strike action by the subject would result in his losing income, his family going hungry etc., this would not really be called putting the subject under duress. A person doing the right thing under such circumstances falls into the category of "who is clever? he who can foresee the consequences." (Tamid 32) The fear experienced by such individuals is based on an intelligent appraisal of the options open to them in the long run. When Moses realised that his killing of the Egyptian had been witnessed, (Exodus 2,14) he became afraid, not resigned, and took action to escape the consequences. When our sages in Avot 3,21, say "where there is no wisdom, there is no fear, and where there is no fear, there cannot be any wisdom," this is what they had in mind. He who is intellectually unaware of what the future may hold, cannot relate to it with fear. On the other hand, he who is insensitive to what the future may hold, is obviously devoid of wisdom. Fear of the type described, is fear of becoming the architect of one's own misfortune, seeing that the Torah tells us that we will be punished for our sins. Since no one is completely free from sin, no one should be completely free from this fear. Just as an invalid whose doctor prescribes abstention from certain foods to avoid harming his condition, will not consider himself under compulsion, so a Jew whose Torah forbids matters which would endanger his physical and spiritual survival cannot consider himself as observing Torah under duress. In this way we understand Moses' address to the people at the time of matan Torah, the giving of the Torah, (Exodus chapter twenty) when he said "do not be afraid; in order to test you did the Lord come; and in order that the fear of Him shall be upon you so that you will not sin." (verse 17). Although, at first glance these lines seem self contradictory, the fact is that they are exhortations not to relate to G'd with the wrong kind of fear. The result of the revelation was that Israel realised that it was possible to witness the glory of G'd and yet to remain physically alive. We were elevated from the purely instinctive, animalistic dread. Our concepts were raised to a level that afforded us an inkling of His grandeur, not like the beasts around us. This kind of fear fills one with a degree of joy, as David expresses it in Psalm 2,11, "serve the Lord in fear, rejoice even while trembling." With this thought one can also resolve the contradiction in Psalm 76,9 "from the Heavens you have heard judgment, the earth was afraid and calm." How can calmness be a product of fear or vice versa? As long as the earth had not heard that Israel had accepted the Torah, she had been concerned about her own future. Once she heard that Israel had spoken the words "We shall do and we shall listen," the earth became calm, knowing her own future was assured. In other words, joy is the product of the right kind of fear at the right place at the right time. Going back to our opening Midrash, we can appreciate now how the attainment for the kind of fear we have described was truly a minor accomplishment for Moses. The Torah has taught us this concept meanwhile in so many ways, that we can no longer claim that the attainment of such "fear" as Moses achieved without the help of the Torah, is really such an unattainable goal for the Jewish masses who enjoy the benefit of Torah and its teachings.