Kaisipang Hudyo sa Mga Awit 145:17: Akeidat Yitzchak & Duties

Just as it is inconceivable for G-d to create a creature and endow such a being with all the Divine qualities, since the image of Divinity itself would suffer thereby, so it is impossible to imagine that the Almighty in His capacity of absolute perfection would act unfairly or unjustly towards anyone or anything in His universe. Were He to do so, our concepts of what constitutes absolute perfection would be shattered. This thought is expressed by Moses (Deuteronomy 10,17-18), "For the Lord your G-d is the Lord of all lords, Master of masters; the great Power, the mighty and awesome One, who does not show favor or accept bribes. Rather, He does justice with the orphan and the widow, loves the stranger and gives him food and clothing." This teaches that the very essence of being "the Lord of lords" makes it impossible for Him to be reduced to the physical. His very perfection makes it impossible for Him to be unjust. Abraham understood quite correctly when he asked, "It is obviously impossible for the Lord of the universe not to do justice and kill the good together wih the wicked!" (Genesis 18,25). Similar thoughts are expressed in Job chapter 34 and Jeremiah chapter 12. This subject will be discussed in connection with the "induced" obstinacy of Pharaoh. Because man is frequently perplexed by the seeming paradox of the suffering endured by the righteous and the success of the wicked, David proclaims in Psalms 145,17, "The Lord is righteous in all His ways, and full of kindness in all His deeds." Despite the rule of justice-- a general guideline—chessed, kindness is employed in all His actions whenever possible (whenever the recipients benefit thereby). Some serious problems in our Parshah:

The objective yardsticks of ethics and morality are the laws given by G-d. When David prayed "Grant, O Lord, to Solomon Your justice, to the king Your righteousness," it is as if David had prayed for Solomon to be granted that objective yardstick of justice which is reserved for the Lord Himself. Proof that this prayer was granted is found in Chronicles I 29,23, "Solomon sat on the throne of G-d as king, replacing his father David.” The first example of Solomon having been granted this Divine yardstick of justice, is the story of the two mothers who accused each other of having switched babies (Kings I Chapter 3). If human yardsticks were to be applied, the mother in possession of the surviving baby should have been awarded custody, since the other mother had no proof to offer. Solomon's initial decision to cut the living baby in half, and divide it between the two claimants, runs counter to Talmudic law, i.e. the example of two people each holding on to part of a garment, since in this case possession had not been shared. Obviously then, Solomon only used this to demonstrate that the ultimate decision was inspired by a superior logic, i.e. G-d’s. The idea of dividing the baby was so abhorrent to Rabbi Yehudah bar lla-i, that he says only a minor could have come up with a decision like that (Solomon at the time had not yet reached his thirteenth birthday). Rabbi Yehudah applied the verse in Kohelet 10,16, "Woe to the country that is ruled by a child." The same people who were aghast at a decision that would have resulted in the death of the surviving baby, hailed Solomon's eventual decision. This reflects the verse in Kohelet 10,17, "Hail to the country whose ruler is truly free." The Midrash stating that the words "she is his mother" were spoken by a Heavenly voice teaches that Solomon's decision was indeed the correct one. Solomon's initial verdict did not even correspond to the Talmudic principle of gud o agud (Baba Batra 13), which stipulates that in cases where physical division of disputed property would result in irreparable loss to either litigant, division of the disputed property is to be arranged in kind. It is clear that suspension of the Divine system of justice would result in perversion of justice, since our yardsticks of comparison would vanish. When only a small section of mankind indulges in false morality, the result, while damaging, might help to restore true morality elsewhere. To the Jew, Abraham's query "Shall the judge of the whole earth not do justice?" (Genesis 18,25) is not a question of "if," but a question of “how.” The fact that G-d’s morality is objectively true morality is axiomatic; our concern is only with attempting to comprehend some of its aspects. The premise is "the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice" (Deuteronomy 32,4). Similar statements can be found throughout the Bible. If we become too perturbed when enquiring into apparently unjust occurrences and one forgets this premise, then the danger of heresy is very real, and one can no longer claim to be a searcher for truth, but becomes a doubter of truth. This is the lesson the prophet Chabakuk (2,4) teaches, "The righteous lives by his faith." We proclaim the truth of G-d both by day and by night immediately following the shema yisrael, "hear O Israel," prayer.

3) It is on the third plane, man's relationship with society at large, that man's duty to act morally is most evident. Concerning all his business dealings, man needs to observe justice and fairness, as well as to ensure that no fellow human being suffers physical harm on his account. When David dispatched a servant to Naval, (Samuel I 25,6) bidding him "may you be at peace, may your household be at peace, may all that is yours be at peace," he may well have referred to the three areas in which man has to assure himself of his moral well being. "Peace is only attained when one has satisfied the moral demands made upon one." When Michah identifies the Lord's demands on mankind, (Michah 6,5) he refers to the very same thing when he proclaims "what does the Lord demand of you except to do justice, loving kindness and to walk humbly with your G-d." Justice refers to one's conduct vis a vis society at large, loving kindness to one's conduct vis a vis one's family who may not have a legal claim on one. Finally, humility is an area in which one is least restricted, namely one's conduct vis a vis oneself. When Moses describes G-d’s attributes, (Deut. 32,4) he refers to the same thing. "All His ways are justice," refers to G-d’s conduct in His very own domain. "A G-d of faithfulness," refers to His relationship with His creatures. "He is righteous and upright," refers to His relationship with the universe at large. Psalms 145,17, "G-d is just in all His ways, fair in all His deeds," explains that there are two kinds of justice. Tzedek is the justice that applies to most men in similar circumstances. Chessed is the allowance made for special circumstances when the law, which is after all designed to cover only most situations, fails to allow for special circumstances. The right to grant pardon is based on the recognition that strict application of the law does not always mean that true justice is being meted out. G-d, of course, is the ultimate judge who can make allowances for all exceptions, since He is the only one aware of all circumstances. Tzaddik, just means the norm are His guidelines. Chassid, He adjusts for individual need. Here are some examples of the inadequacies of normal assumptions which Jewish law is based on. "Debtors do not repay loans before the due date." (Baba Batra 5) The underlying assumption of this statement may not always be correct. "Claimants have to furnish proof of their claim." G-d has instructed Jewish judges in Deut. 17,10, that if doubts arise as to the adequacy of existing provisions in law, the Supreme Court may give a decision based on their deliberations, and such decision is binding, even (as the Sifrey puts it) if "they say that left is right or right is left." The idea is: even if the decision of the Supreme Court appears in direct conflict with normative Jewish practice. Of course, all this is applicable only when the Supreme Court's decision is based on accepted Jewish guidelines. Anyone who disputes the authority of such a Jewish Supreme Court, i.e. Sanhedrin, is liable to the death penalty. The Talmud Shabbat 10, states "whosoever judges truly, is a partner to G-d." This is also the reason that Torah frequently refers to judges by the term "elohim." This is also what the serpent had in mind when it said to Eve "you will be like elohim, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3,5) The Midrash explains the meaning as "like creators of worlds." He who invariably feels himself bound to the general rules, even though he may be meticulous in applying them, is destroying worlds rather than building them. The Talmud Baba Metzia 38, claims that it was this kind of bureaucratic zeal that caused the destruction of Jerusalem.