מדרש אויף ישעיהו 66:2

2. Blessed is the Lord, blessed is He, who recognizes at the start what will be in the end. And He proclaims from the beginning the ending from before that He made (i.e. created). And He knows that which He made and what it would be destined to do. And He foresees for good and He does not foresee for evil. He is rich and is happy with His portion. And in His wisdom and His understanding, He created His world, and He prepared and afterward created in it a Man (Adom), and flung him before Him. And He calculated until the end of all the generations and foresaw that his (man's) descendants would be angering. He said if I were to guard in him the first debts (i.e. seek payback in regards to sins), the world would not stand. It is on me to overlook the first (sins), so He does. Where can you know this is so? When (The Nation of) Israel was in the Desert, they rotted in their actions (by the sin of Golden Calf). He stood to overlook all that They had done, as it says "And Hashem passed (ויעבור) in front of him (Moshe) [Shemos 34:6]. Do not read he passed (ויעבור) rather he forgave (ויעביר). Learn that He forgave all the evil in front of him. And it should be known to you that so was with Mordechai in the time that Esther spoke not properly; since she said "but I have not been called to come in to the king etc." [Esther 4:11]. And he (Mordechai) responded to her "For if you remain silent etc." [Esther 4:14]. And when she repented and spoke to him properly, "Go, gather all the Jews" [Esther 4:16]. He looked past her words (i.e. her original words, forgiving them) as it says "And Mordechai passed" [Esther 4:17]. (The verb עָבַר has multiple meanings, literally to pass or take away, here the meaning is its use in the following verse) and he said: "Who is like God, who forgives iniquity, and overlooks transgression (וְעֹבֵ֣ר עַל־פֶּ֔שַׁע)" [Micha 7:18]. "Your eyes did see my unshaped flesh (for in Thy book all things are written)" etc. [Psalms 139:16] that teaching says in the future The Holy One Blessed Be He will sit in the Big House of Study of His. And the Righteous (צדיקים) will sit before him, and He will say to them 'My children, this generation such Torah it did and such I did with them righteousness, but I will not mention their sins, and they do not go upon my heart', as it says "and the former things shall not be remembered" etc. [Isaiah 65:17]. (Continuing the interpretation of the cited verse) "These days were formed, but not one from them" [Psalms 139:16] (the verse ends as written ולא אֶחָד בָּהֶם not one from them, yet is read וְלוֹ אֶחָד בָּהֶם which means and to him one from them both connotate a unique day). This refers to the day of Shabbos for Israel. How so? A man does work all six days and rests on the seventh. He has amity with his children and the people of his house. Mans returns to do work in the face of his enemy all six days, and rests on the seventh, forgetting all pain, as it is so with the ways of man - a good day he forgets the bad day. A bad day he forgets the good day. The Holy One Blessed be He says to Israel did I not write to them in my Torah, "You should not remove this Book of Torah from your mouths" [Joshua 1:8] even though you do work all six days, Shabbos you should make fully Torah. From here, it is said a man should arise early and learn on Shabbos. And go to the Synagogue and to the House of Study. And he should read Torah verse, then learn in the Prophets, and afterward go to his house and eat and drink to fulfill that which it says "[But you, the righteous one,] go and eat your bread in joy, and drink your wine with a good heart, (for G-d has already accepted your good deeds) [Ecclesiastes 9:7]. Accordingly, there is no refreshment to the Holy One Blessed be He except only with those who make Torah, therefore that it says "For all those things has my hand made, (and so all those things came to be, says the Lord:) but to this man will I look, to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembles at my word." [Isaiah 66:2]. From here it is said what a man says (i.e. when learning Torah) he should grasp in his hand in order that he does not have to handle the embarrassment and shame at the time when they say to him 'Stand and arrange (וערוך) the Verses you said and arrange (וערוך) the Mishnayos you have learned. And so it is explicit in the Tradition by King David, "Hashem, in the morning you hear my voice, in the morning I arrange before you (אֶעֱרָךְ־לְךָ) and I hope" [Psalms 5:4].

[(Gen. 18:1:) THEN THE LORD WAS AWESOME UNTO HIM.]⁹The verse is traditionally rendered, THEN THE LORD APPEARED UNTO HIM. In the unvocalized text, however, APPEARED can be translated WAS AWESOME; and so the midrash understands it. This text is related (to Is. 66:1-3): THUS SAYS THE LORD: THE HEAVENS ARE MY THRONE … FOR ALL THESE THINGS HAS MY HAND MADE … < BUT UNTO THIS PERSON WILL I LOOK: UNTO ONE WHO IS POOR AND OF A CONTRITE SPIRIT, WHO TREMBLES AT MY WORD, WHO > ¹⁰Translations generally interpret what follows as referring to someone evil who is being contrasted with the ONE WHO IS POOR AND OF A CONTRITE SPIRIT. SLAUGHTERS THE OX, WHO SLAYS A HUMAN, WHO SACRIFICES THE LAMB…. Who is trembling at the words of the Holy One? This is Abraham, < for > (according to Gen. 18:1) THEN THE LORD WAS AWESOME UNTO HIM…. What is written (in Is. 66:2)? BUT ON THIS PERSON WILL I LOOK: UNTO ONE WHO IS POOR AND OF A CONTRITE SPIRIT, WHO TREMBLES AT MY WORD. Now, if you want to know that the text is speaking about Abraham, see what is written (in vs. 3): WHO SLAUGHTERS THE OX. This is Abraham (according to Gen. 18:7): THEN ABRAHAM RAN UNTO THE HERD, < TOOK A CALF >…. (Is. 66:3, cont.:) WHO SLAYS A HUMAN < refers to > the one who killed Nimrod, < and > Nimrod is Amraphel (of Gen. 14).¹¹Targum Ps. Joh. to Gen. 14:1; ‘Eruv. 53a; Gen. R. 42:4; Tanh., Gen. 3:6; also PRK 8:2; PR 18:3. (Is. 66:3, cont.:) WHO SACRIFICES THE LAMB. When? When he offered up his son Isaac as stated (in Gen. 22:8): GOD WILL SEE TO THE LAMB [FOR A BURNT OFFERING], MY SON.

Our sages stated in the name of R. Eleazar the son of Pedat: The Holy One, blessed be He, likens Himself to the humblest of men in seven places in the Torah. It is written: For the Lord your God, He is God of Gods, and the Lord of Lords, the great God, the mighty and the awful (Deut. 10:17), and this is followed by the verse: He doth execute justice for the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger (ibid., v. 18). It says likewise: For though the Lord be high, yet regardeth He the lowly (Ps. 138:6), and also: Thus saith the High and Lofty One that inhabiteth eternity and whose name is holy: I dwell in the high and holy places, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble (Isa. 57:15). Similarly, Scripture says: Thus saith the Lord: The heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool (ibid. 66:1), and that is followed by: And on this man will I look, even on him that is poor and of a contrite spirit and trembleth at My word (ibid., v. 2). Elsewhere it is written: The Lord is King forever and ever. The nations are perished out of His land (Ps. 10:16), and that is followed by the verse: Lord, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble (ibid., v. 17). Scripture says: Sing unto God, sing praises to His Name. Extol Him that rideth upon the skies, whose name is the Lord; and exult ye before Him (ibid. 68:5), and after that is written: A father of the fatherless, the judge of the widows (ibid., v. 6). Likewise the verse Who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that in them is, who keepeth truth forever, who executeth justice for the oppressed (Ps. 146:6–7) is followed by: He upholdeth the fatherless, and the widow; and the way of the wicked He maketh crooked (ibid., v. 9).