Theodicy-The Problem of Evil Not the sequel to Theiliad

1 (1) There was a man in the land of Uz named Job. That man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. (2) Seven sons and three daughters were born to him; (3) his possessions were seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen and five hundred she-asses, and a very large household. That man was wealthier than anyone in the East. (4) It was the custom of his sons to hold feasts, each on his set day in his own home. They would invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. (5) When a round of feast days was over, Job would send word to them to sanctify themselves, and, rising early in the morning, he would make burnt offerings, one for each of them; for Job thought, “Perhaps my children have sinned and blasphemed God in their thoughts.” This is what Job always used to do. (6) One day the divine beings presented themselves before the LORD, and the Adversary came along with them. (7) The LORD said to the Adversary, “Where have you been?” The Adversary answered the LORD, “I have been roaming all over the earth.” (8) The LORD said to the Adversary, “Have you noticed My servant Job? There is no one like him on earth, a blameless and upright man who fears God and shuns evil!” (9) The Adversary answered the LORD, “Does Job not have good reason to fear God? (10) Why, it is You who have fenced him round, him and his household and all that he has. You have blessed his efforts so that his possessions spread out in the land. (11) But lay Your hand upon all that he has and he will surely blaspheme You to Your face.” (12) The LORD replied to the Adversary, “See, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on him.” The Adversary departed from the presence of the LORD. (13) One day, as his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in the house of their eldest brother, (14) a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the she-asses were grazing alongside them (15) when Sabeans attacked them and carried them off, and put the boys to the sword; I alone have escaped to tell you.” (16) This one was still speaking when another came and said, “God’s fire fell from heaven, took hold of the sheep and the boys, and burned them up; I alone have escaped to tell you.” (17) This one was still speaking when another came and said, “A Chaldean formation of three columns made a raid on the camels and carried them off and put the boys to the sword; I alone have escaped to tell you.” (18) This one was still speaking when another came and said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in the house of their eldest brother (19) when suddenly a mighty wind came from the wilderness. It struck the four corners of the house so that it collapsed upon the young people and they died; I alone have escaped to tell you.” (20) Then Job arose, tore his robe, cut off his hair, and threw himself on the ground and worshiped. (21) He said, “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there; the LORD has given, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” (22) For all that, Job did not sin nor did he cast reproach on God.

2 (1) One day the divine beings presented themselves before the LORD. The Adversary came along with them to present himself before the LORD. (2) The LORD said to the Adversary, “Where have you been?” The Adversary answered the LORD, “I have been roaming all over the earth.” (3) The LORD said to the Adversary, “Have you noticed My servant Job? There is no one like him on earth, a blameless and upright man who fears God and shuns evil. He still keeps his integrity; so you have incited Me against him to destroy him for no good reason.” (4) The Adversary answered the LORD, “Skin for skin—all that a man has he will give up for his life. (5) But lay a hand on his bones and his flesh, and he will surely blaspheme You to Your face.” (6) So the LORD said to the Adversary, “See, he is in your power; only spare his life.” (7) The Adversary departed from the presence of the LORD and inflicted a severe inflammation on Job from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. (8) He took a potsherd to scratch himself as he sat in ashes. (9) His wife said to him, “You still keep your integrity! Blaspheme God and die!” (10) But he said to her, “You talk as any shameless woman might talk! Should we accept only good from God and not accept evil?” For all that, Job said nothing sinful. (11) When Job’s three friends heard about all these calamities that had befallen him, each came from his home—Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They met together to go and console and comfort him. (12) When they saw him from a distance, they could not recognize him, and they broke into loud weeping; each one tore his robe and threw dust into the air onto his head. (13) They sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights. None spoke a word to him for they saw how very great was his suffering.

3 (1) Afterward, Job began to speak and cursed the day of his birth. (2) Job spoke up and said: (3) Perish the day on which I was born, And the night it was announced, “A male has been conceived!” (4) May that day be darkness; May God above have no concern for it; May light not shine on it; (5) May darkness and deep gloom reclaim it; May a pall lie over it; May what blackens the day terrify it. (6) May obscurity carry off that night; May it not be counted among the days of the year; May it not appear in any of its months; (7) May that night be desolate; May no sound of joy be heard in it; (8) May those who cast spells upon the day damn it, Those prepared to disable Leviathan; (9) May its twilight stars remain dark; May it hope for light and have none; May it not see the glimmerings of the dawn— (10) Because it did not block my mother’s womb, And hide trouble from my eyes. (11) Why did I not die at birth, Expire as I came forth from the womb? (12) Why were there knees to receive me, Or breasts for me to suck? (13) For now would I be lying in repose, asleep and at rest, (14) With the world’s kings and counselors who rebuild ruins for themselves, (15) Or with nobles who possess gold and who fill their houses with silver. (16) Or why was I not like a buried stillbirth, Like babies who never saw the light? (17) There the wicked cease from troubling; There rest those whose strength is spent. ....

4 (1) Then Eliphaz the Temanite said in reply: (2) If one ventures a word with you, will it be too much? But who can hold back his words? (3) See, you have encouraged many; You have strengthened failing hands. (4) Your words have kept him who stumbled from falling; You have braced knees that gave way. (5) But now that it overtakes you, it is too much; It reaches you, and you are unnerved. (6) Is not your piety your confidence, Your integrity your hope? (7) Think now, what innocent man ever perished? Where have the upright been destroyed? ...

38 (1) Then the LORD replied to Job out of the tempest and said: (2) Who is this who darkens counsel, Speaking without knowledge? (3) Gird your loins like a man; I will ask and you will inform Me. (4) Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundations? Speak if you have understanding. (5) Do you know who fixed its dimensions Or who measured it with a line? (6) Onto what were its bases sunk? Who set its cornerstone (7) When the morning stars sang together And all the divine beings shouted for joy? (8) Who closed the sea behind doors When it gushed forth out of the womb, (9) When I clothed it in clouds, Swaddled it in dense clouds, (10) When I made breakers My limit for it, And set up its bar and doors, (11) And said, “You may come so far and no farther; Here your surging waves will stop”? (12) Have you ever commanded the day to break, Assigned the dawn its place, (13) So that it seizes the corners of the earth And shakes the wicked out of it? (14) It changes like clay under the seal Till [its hues] are fixed like those of a garment. (15) Their light is withheld from the wicked, And the upraised arm is broken. (16) Have you penetrated to the sources of the sea, Or walked in the recesses of the deep? (17) Have the gates of death been disclosed to you? Have you seen the gates of deep darkness? (18) Have you surveyed the expanses of the earth? If you know of these—tell Me. (19) Which path leads to where light dwells, And where is the place of darkness, (20) That you may take it to its domain And know the way to its home? (21) Surely you know, for you were born then, And the number of your years is many! (22) Have you penetrated the vaults of snow, Seen the vaults of hail, (23) Which I have put aside for a time of adversity, For a day of war and battle? (24) By what path is the west wind dispersed, The east wind scattered over the earth? (25) Who cut a channel for the torrents And a path for the thunderstorms, (26) To rain down on uninhabited land, On the wilderness where no man is, (27) To saturate the desolate wasteland, And make the crop of grass sprout forth? (28) Does the rain have a father? Who begot the dewdrops? (29) From whose belly came forth the ice? Who gave birth to the frost of heaven? (30) Water congeals like stone, And the surface of the deep compacts. (31) Can you tie cords to Pleiades Or undo the reins of Orion? (32) Can you lead out Mazzaroth in its season, Conduct the Bear with her sons? (33) Do you know the laws of heaven Or impose its authority on earth? (34) Can you send up an order to the clouds For an abundance of water to cover you? (35) Can you dispatch the lightning on a mission And have it answer you, “I am ready”? (36) Who put wisdom in the hidden parts? Who gave understanding to the mind? (37) Who is wise enough to give an account of the heavens? Who can tilt the bottles of the sky, (38) Whereupon the earth melts into a mass, And its clods stick together. (39) Can you hunt prey for the lion, And satisfy the appetite of the king of beasts? (40) They crouch in their dens, Lie in ambush in their lairs. (41) Who provides food for the raven When his young cry out to God And wander about without food?

39 (1) Do you know the season when the mountain goats give birth? Can you mark the time when the hinds calve? (2) Can you count the months they must complete? Do you know the season they give birth, (3) When they couch to bring forth their offspring, To deliver their young? (4) Their young are healthy; they grow up in the open; They leave and return no more. (5) Who sets the wild ass free? Who loosens the bonds of the onager, (6) Whose home I have made the wilderness, The salt land his dwelling-place? (7) He scoffs at the tumult of the city, Does not hear the shouts of the driver. (8) He roams the hills for his pasture; He searches for any green thing. (9) Would the wild ox agree to serve you? Would he spend the night at your crib? (10) Can you hold the wild ox by ropes to the furrow? Would he plow up the valleys behind you? (11) Would you rely on his great strength And leave your toil to him? (12) Would you trust him to bring in the seed And gather it in from your threshing floor? (13) The wing of the ostrich beats joyously; Are her pinions and plumage like the stork’s? (14) She leaves her eggs on the ground, Letting them warm in the dirt, (15) Forgetting they may be crushed underfoot, Or trampled by a wild beast. (16) Her young are cruelly abandoned as if they were not hers; Her labor is in vain for lack of concern. (17) For God deprived her of wisdom, Gave her no share of understanding, (18) Else she would soar on high, Scoffing at the horse and its rider. (19) Do you give the horse his strength? Do you clothe his neck with a mane? (20) Do you make him quiver like locusts, His majestic snorting [spreading] terror? (21) He paws with force, he runs with vigor, Charging into battle. (22) He scoffs at fear; he cannot be frightened; He does not recoil from the sword. (23) A quiverful of arrows whizzes by him, And the flashing spear and the javelin. (24) Trembling with excitement, he swallows the land; He does not turn aside at the blast of the trumpet. (25) As the trumpet sounds, he says, “Aha!” From afar he smells the battle, The roaring and shouting of the officers. (26) Is it by your wisdom that the hawk grows pinions, Spreads his wings to the south? (27) Does the eagle soar at your command, Building his nest high, (28) Dwelling in the rock, Lodging upon the fastness of a jutting rock? (29) From there he spies out his food; From afar his eyes see it. (30) His young gulp blood; Where the slain are, there is he.

40 (1) The LORD said in reply to Job. (2) Shall one who should be disciplined complain against Shaddai? He who arraigns God must respond. (3) Job said in reply to the LORD: (4) See, I am of small worth; what can I answer You? I clap my hand to my mouth. (5) I have spoken once, and will not reply; Twice, and will do so no more. (6) Then the LORD replied to Job out of the tempest and said: (7) Gird your loins like a man; I will ask, and you will inform Me. (8) Would you impugn My justice? Would you condemn Me that you may be right? (9) Have you an arm like God’s? Can you thunder with a voice like His? ...

42 (1) Job said in reply to the LORD: (2) I know that You can do everything, That nothing you propose is impossible for You. (3) Who is this who obscures counsel without knowledge? Indeed, I spoke without understanding Of things beyond me, which I did not know. (4) Hear now, and I will speak; I will ask, and You will inform me. (5) I had heard You with my ears, But now I see You with my eyes; (6) Therefore, I recant and relent, Being but dust and ashes. (7) After the LORD had spoken these words to Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am incensed at you and your two friends, for you have not spoken the truth about Me as did My servant Job. (8) Now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to My servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. And let Job, My servant, pray for you; for to him I will show favor and not treat you vilely, since you have not spoken the truth about Me as did My servant Job.” (9) Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the LORD had told them, and the LORD showed favor to Job. (10) The LORD restored Job’s fortunes when he prayed on behalf of his friends, and the LORD gave Job twice what he had before. (11) All his brothers and sisters and all his former friends came to him and had a meal with him in his house. They consoled and comforted him for all the misfortune that the LORD had brought upon him. Each gave him one kesitah and each one gold ring. (12) Thus the LORD blessed the latter years of Job’s life more than the former. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand she-asses. (13) He also had seven sons and three daughters. (14) The first he named Jemimah, the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch. (15) Nowhere in the land were women as beautiful as Job’s daughters to be found. Their father gave them estates together with their brothers. (16) Afterward, Job lived one hundred and forty years to see four generations of sons and grandsons. (17) So Job died old and contented.

Rav Ami said: There is no death without sin; were a person not to sin, he would not die. And there is no suffering without iniquity. ...

The Gemara raises an objection from what was taught in the following baraita: Four people died due to Adam’s sin with the serpent, in the wake of which death was decreed upon all of mankind, although they themselves were free of sin. And they are: Benjamin, son of Jacob; Amram, father of Moses; Yishai, father of David; and Kilab, son of David. ...Learn from it that there is death without sin and there is suffering without iniquity, and this is a conclusive refutation of the opinion of Rav Ami. The Gemara concludes: Indeed, it is a conclusive refutation.

(3) The third class of evils comprises those which every one causes to himself by his own action. This is the largest class, and is far more numerous than the second class. It is especially of these evils that all men complain, only few men are found that do not sin against themselves by this kind of evil. Those that are afflicted with it are therefore justly blamed in the words of the prophet, "This hath been by your means" (Mal. 1:9); ... This class of evils originates in man's vices, such as excessive desire for eating, drinking, and lovemaking; indulgence in these things in undue measure, or in improper manner, or partaking of bad food. This course brings diseases and afflictions upon body and soul alike. The sufferings of the body in consequence of these evils are well known; ... the soul, when accustomed to superfluous things, acquires a strong habit of desiring things which are neither necessary for the preservation of the individual nor for that of the species. This desire is without a limit, whilst things which are necessary are few in number and restricted within certain limits; but what is superfluous is without end--e.g., you desire to have your vessels of silver, but golden vessels are still better: others have even vessels of sapphire, or perhaps they can be made of emerald or rubies, or any other substance that could be suggested, Those who are ignorant and perverse in their thought are constantly in trouble and pain, because they cannot get as much of superfluous things as a certain other person possesses. They as a rule expose themselves to great dangers, e.g., by sea-voyage, or service of kings, and all this for the purpose of obtaining that which is superfluous and not necessary. When they thus meet with the consequences of the course which they adopt, they complain of the decrees and judgments of God; they begin to blame the time, and wonder at the want of justice in its changes; that it has not enabled them to acquire great riches, with which they could buy large quantities of wine for the purpose of making themselves drunk, and numerous concubines adorned with various kind of ornaments of gold, embroidery, and jewels, for the purpose of driving themselves to voluptuousness beyond their capacities, as if the whole Universe existed exclusively for the purpose of giving pleasure to these low people. The error of the ignorant goes so far as to say that God's power is insufficient, because He has given to this Universe the properties which they imagine cause these great evils, and which do not help all evil-disposed persons to obtain the evil which they seek, and to bring their evil souls to the aim of their desires, though these, as we have shown, are really without limit. The virtuous and wise, however, see and comprehend the wisdom of God displayed in the Universe. Thus David says, "All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep His covenant and His testimonies" (Ps. 25:10). ... Forced by the claims of the body, they seek also that which is necessary for the preservation of the body, "bread to eat and garment to clothe," and this is very little; but they seek nothing superfluous: with very slight exertion man can obtain it, so long as he is contented with that which is indispensable.

Moses requested that the ways in which God conducts the world be revealed to him, and He granted it to him, as it is stated: “Show me Your ways and I will know You” (Exodus 33:13).
Moses said before God: Master of the Universe. Why is it that the righteous prosper, the righteous suffer, the wicked prosper, the wicked suffer?
God said to him: Moses, the righteous person who prospers is a righteous person, the son of a righteous person. The righteous person who suffers is a righteous person, the son of a wicked person. The wicked person who prospers is a wicked person, the son of a righteous person. The wicked person who suffers is a wicked person, the son of a wicked person.

For God does not directly punish children for the sins of their fathers, for this would be unjust. However, it is possible - without injustice - for some punishment to incidentally extend to children on account of their father's sin, and this would not constitute an injustice at all.

For example, if a person committed a crime against the government and was fined as a penalty, this punishment would also affect his children, since they would then be poor.

When Rav Yosef reached this verse, he cried: “But there are those swept away without justice” (Proverbs 13:23). He said: Is there one who goes before his time and dies for no reason? The Gemara answers: Yes, like this incident of Rav Beivai bar Abaye, who would be frequented by the company of the Angel of Death and would see how people died at the hands of this angel. The Angel of Death said to his agent: Go and bring me, i.e., kill, Miriam the raiser, i.e., braider, of women’s hair. He went, but instead brought him Miriam, the raiser of children. The Angel of Death said to him: I told you to bring Miriam, the raiser of women’s hair. His agent said to him: If so, return her to life. He said to him: Since you have already brought her, let her be counted toward the number of deceased people. Apparently, this woman died unintentionally. Rav Beivai asked the agent: But as her time to die had not yet arrived, how were you able to kill her? The agent responded that he had the opportunity, as she was holding a shovel in her hand and with it she was lighting and sweeping the oven. She took the fire and set it on her foot; she was scalded and her luck suffered, which gave me the opportunity, and I brought her.

Rava said: Length of life, children, and sustenance do not depend on one’s merit, but rather they depend upon luck. As, Rabba and Rav Ḥisda were both pious Sages; one Sage would pray during a drought and rain would fall, and the other Sage would pray and rain would fall. And nevertheless, their lives were very different. Rav Ḥisda lived for ninety-two years, whereas Rabba lived for only forty years. The house of Rav Ḥisda celebrated sixty wedding feasts, whereas the house of Rabba experienced sixty calamities. In the house of Rav Ḥisda there was bread from the finest flour [semida] even for the dogs, and it was not asked after, as there was so much food. In the house of Rabba, on the other hand, there was coarse barley bread even for people, and it was not found in sufficient quantities. This shows that the length of life, children, and sustenance all depend not upon one’s merit, but upon luck.

My opinion on this principle of Divine Providence I will now explain to you. In the principle which I now proceed to expound I do not rely on demonstrative proof, but on my conception of the spirit of the Divine Law, and the writings of the Prophets. The principle which I accept is far less open to objections, and is more reasonable than the opinions mentioned before. It is this: In the lower or sublunary portion of the Universe Divine Providence does not extend to the individual members of species except in the case of mankind. It is only in this species that the incidents in the existence of the individual beings, their good and evil fortunes, are the result of justice, in accordance with the words, "For all His ways are judgment." But I agree with Aristotle as regards all other living beings, and à fortiori as regards plants and all the rest of earthly creatures. For I do not believe that it is through the interference of Divine Providence that a certain leaf drops [from a tree], nor do I hold that when a certain spider catches a certain fly, that this is the direct result of a special decree and will of God in that moment; it is not by a particular Divine decree that the spittle of a certain person moved, fell on a certain gnat in a certain place, and killed it; nor is it by the direct will of God that a certain fish catches and swallows a certain worm on the surface of the water. In all these cases the action is, according to my opinion, entirely due to chance, as taught by Aristotle. Divine Providence is connected with Divine intellectual influence, and the same beings which are benefited by the latter so as to become intellectual, and to comprehend things comprehensible to rational beings, are also under the control of Divine Providence, which examines all their deeds in order to reward or punish them. It may be by mere chance that a ship goes down with all her contents, as in the above-mentioned instance, or the roof of a house falls upon those within; but it is not due to chance, according to our view, that in the one instance the men went into the ship, or remained in the house in the other instance: it is due to the will of God, and is in accordance with the justice of His judgments, the method of which our mind is incapable of understanding....

... The relation of Divine Providence is therefore not the same to all men; the greater the human perfection a person has attained, the greater the benefit he derives from Divine Providence. This benefit is very great in the case of prophets, and varies according to the degree of their prophetic faculty: as it varies in the case of pious and good men according to their piety and uprightness. For it is the intensity of the Divine intellectual influence that has inspired the prophets, guided the good in their actions, and perfected the wisdom of the pious. In the same proportion as ignorant and disobedient persons are deficient in that Divine influence, their condition is inferior, and their rank equal to that of irrational beings: and they are "like unto the beasts" (Ps. 49:21). ...

(1) The pronouncement made by the prophet Habakkuk. (2) How long, O LORD, shall I cry out And You not listen, Shall I shout to You, “Violence!” And You not save? (3) Why do You make me see iniquity [Why] do You look upon wrong?— Raiding and violence are before me, Strife continues and contention goes on. (4) That is why decision fails And justice never emerges; For the villain hedges in the just man— Therefore judgment emerges deformed. (5) “Look among the nations, Observe well and be utterly astounded; For a work is being wrought in your days Which you would not believe if it were told. (6) For lo, I am raising up the Chaldeans, That fierce, impetuous nation, Who cross the earth’s wide spaces To seize homes not their own. (7) They are terrible, dreadful; They make their own laws and rules. (8) Their horses are swifter than leopards, Fleeter than wolves of the steppe. Their steeds gallop—their steeds Come flying from afar. Like vultures rushing toward food, (9) They all come, bent on rapine. The thrust of their van is forward, And they amass captives like sand. (10) Kings they hold in derision, And princes are a joke to them; They laugh at every fortress, They pile up earth and capture it. (11) Then they pass on like the wind, They transgress and incur guilt, For they ascribe their might to their god.” (12) You, O LORD, are from everlasting; My holy God, You never die. O LORD, You have made them a subject of contention; O Rock, You have made them a cause for complaint. (13) You whose eyes are too pure to look upon evil, Who cannot countenance wrongdoing, Why do You countenance treachery, And stand by idle While the one in the wrong devours The one in the right? (14) You have made mankind like the fish of the sea, Like creeping things that have no ruler. (15) He has fished them all up with a line, Pulled them up in his trawl, And gathered them in his net. That is why he rejoices and is glad. (16) That is why he sacrifices to his trawl And makes offerings to his net; For through them his portion is rich And his nourishment fat. (17) Shall he then keep emptying his trawl, And slaying nations without pity? (1) I will stand on my watch, Take up my station at the post, And wait to see what He will say to me, What He will reply to my complaint. (2) The LORD answered me and said: Write the prophecy down, Inscribe it clearly on tablets, So that it can be read easily. (3) For there is yet a prophecy for a set term, A truthful witness for a time that will come. Even if it tarries, wait for it still; For it will surely come, without delay: (4) Lo, his spirit within him is puffed up, not upright, But the righteous man is rewarded with life For his fidelity. ... (14) For the earth shall be filled With awe for the glory of the LORD As water covers the sea. ...

(9) Know, therefore, that only the LORD your God is God, the steadfast God who keeps His covenant faithfully to the thousandth generation of those who love Him and keep His commandments, (10) And He repays them that hate Him to their face in order to make them perish—never slow with those who reject Him, but requiting them instantly.

ומשלם לשנאיו אל פניו AND HE REPAYETH THEM THAT HATE HIM TO THEIR FACE [IN ORDER TO MAKE THEM PERISH] — i.e. during their lifetime he repays them for their good deeds, in order to banish them from the future world.

Rava, and some say Rav Ḥisda, said: If a person sees that suffering has befallen him, he should examine his actions, as it is stated: “We will search and examine our ways, and return to God” (Lamentations 3:40). If he examined his ways and found no transgression for which that suffering is appropriate, he may attribute his suffering to dereliction in the study of Torah, as it is stated: “Happy is the man whom You punish, Lord, and teach out of Your law” (Psalms 94:12). This verse teaches us that his suffering will cause him to return to Your law. And if he did attribute his suffering to dereliction in the study of Torah, and did not find this to be so, he may be confident that these are afflictions of love, as it is stated: “For whom the Lord loves, He rebukes, as does a father the son in whom he delights” (Proverbs 3:12).

Sufferings are chastenings of love: God makes people suffer in the this world even if they are free of sin in order to increase their reward in the world to come - so that they will receive more than their actions merit.

Once he [Elisha ben Avuya] was sitting and studying in the Ginosar valley, when he saw someone climb to the top of a date-palm, remove the mother from its chicks, and then climb down in peace. The next day he saw another person climb to the top of the palm, take the chicks and send off the mother, and then climb back down, only to be bitten by a snake and die. He said: "It is written: 'You shall surely let the mother go, and take the young to you; that it may be good with you, and that you may prolong your days' (Devarim 22:7). Where is this one's good, where is this one's prolonged days?" And he was unaware that Rabbi Ya'akov had already interpreted the verse: "'That it may be good with you' – in the world-to-come, which is entirely good; 'and that you may prolong your days' – in the future that is entirely prolonged."

It is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Ya’akov, who says: There is no reward for performance of a mitzva in this world, as one is rewarded for mitzvot only World-to-Come.

...Just as we say of him who puts out the light at night that he has produced darkness, so we say of him who destroyed the sight of any being that he produced blindness, although darkness and blindness are negative properties, and require no agent. In accordance with this view we explain the following passage of Isaiah: "I form the light and create (borei) darkness: I make peace, and create (bore) evil" (Isa. 45:7), for darkness and evil are non-existing things. Consider that the prophet does not say, I make (‘oseh) darkness, I make (‘oseh) evil, because darkness and evil are not things in positive existence to which the verb "to make" would apply; the verb bara "he created" is used, because in Hebrew this verb is applied to non-existing things e.g., "In the beginning God created" (bara), etc.; here the creation took place from nothing. ...

After this explanation you must recall to memory that, as has been proved, the [so-called] evils are evils only in relation to a certain thing, and that which is evil in reference to a certain existing thing, either includes the nonexistence of that thing or the non-existence of some of its good conditions. The proposition has therefore been laid down in the most general terms, "All evils are negations." Thus for man death is evil: death is his non-existence. Illness, poverty, and ignorance are evils for man: all these are privations of properties. If you examine all single cases to which this general proposition applies, you will find that there is not one case in which the proposition is wrong except in the opinion of those who do not make any distinction between negative and positive properties, or between two opposites, or do not know the nature of things,--who, e.g., do not know that health in general denotes a certain equilibrium, and is a relative term. The absence of that relation is illness in general, and death is the absence of life in the case of any animal. The destruction of other things; is likewise nothing but the absence of their form.

After these propositions, it must be admitted as a fact that it cannot be said of God that He directly creates evil, or He has the direct intention to produce evil: this is impossible. His works are all perfectly good. He only produces existence, and all existence is good: whilst evils are of a negative character, and cannot be acted upon. Evil can only he attributed to Him in the way we have mentioned. He creates evil only in so far as He produces the corporeal element such as it actually is: it is always connected with negatives, and is on that account the source of all destruction and all evil. Those beings that do not possess this corporeal element are not subject to destruction or evil: consequently the true work of God is all good, since it is existence. The book which enlightened the darkness of the world says therefore, "And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good" (Gen. 1:31). Even the existence of this corporeal element, low as it in reality is, because it is the source of death and all evils, is likewise good for the permanence of the Universe and the continuation of the order of things, so that one thing departs and the other succeeds....

I explain this theory in the following manner. The evils that befall an are of three kinds:--

(1) The first kind of evil is that which is caused to man by the circumstance that he is subject to genesis and destruction, or that he possesses a body. It is on account of the body that some persons happen to have great deformities or paralysis of some of the organs. This evil may be part of the natural constitution of these persons, or may have developed subsequently in consequence of changes in the elements, e.g., through bad air, or thunderstorms or landslips. We have already shown that, in accordance with the divine wisdom, genesis can only take place through destruction, and without the destruction of the individual members of the species the species themselves would not exist permanently. Thus the true kindness, and beneficence, and goodness of God is clear. He who thinks that he can have flesh and bones without being subject to any external influence, or any of the accidents of matter, unconsciously wishes to reconcile two opposites, viz., to be at the same time subject and not subject to change. If man were never subject to change there could be no generation: there would be one single being, but no individuals forming a species. ...

ואתם לא תצאו וגו׳ AND NONE OF YOU SHALL GO OUT etc. — This tells us that once permission is given to the forces of destruction to wound (e.g. to punish a wicked nation) it makes no distinction between righteous and wicked [individuals] (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 12:22:2)

MEN frequently think that the evils in the world are more numerous than the good things; many sayings and songs of the nations dwell on this idea. They say that a good thing is found only exceptionally, whilst evil things are numerous and lasting. Not only common people make this mistake, but even many who believe that they are wise. Al-Razi wrote a well-known book On Metaphysics [or Theology]. Among other mad and foolish things, it contains also the idea, discovered by him, that there exists more evil than good. For if the happiness of man and his pleasure in the times of prosperity be compared with the mishaps that befall him,--such as grief, acute pain, defects, paralysis of the limbs, fears, anxieties, and troubles,--it would seem as if the existence of man is a punishment and a great evil for him. This author commenced to verify his opinion by counting all the evils one by one; by this means he opposed those who hold the correct view of the benefits bestowed by God and His evident kindness, viz., that God is perfect goodness, and that all that comes from Him is absolutely good. The origin of the error is to be found in the circumstance that this ignorant man, and his party among the common people, judge the whole universe by examining one single person. For an ignorant man believes that the whole universe only exists for him; as if nothing else required any consideration. If, therefore, anything happens to him contrary to his expectation, he at once concludes that the whole universe is evil. If, however, he would take into consideration the whole universe, form an idea of it, and comprehend what a small portion he is of the Universe, he will find the truth. For it is clear that persons who have fallen into this widespread error as regards the multitude of evils in the world, do not find the evils among the angels, the spheres and stars, the elements, and that which is formed of them, viz., minerals and plants, or in the various species of living beings, but only in some individual instances of mankind. ... What we have, in truth, to consider is this:--The whole mankind at present in existence, and a fortiori, every other species of animals, form an infinitesimal portion of the permanent universe. Comp. "Man is like to vanity" (Ps. 144:4); "How much less man, that is a worm; and the son of man, which is a worm" (Job 25:6); "How much less in them who dwell in houses of clay" (ibid. 4:19); "Behold, the nations are as a drop of the bucket" (Isa. 40:15). There are many other passages in the books of the prophets expressing the same idea. It is of great advantage that man should know his station, and not erroneously imagine that the whole universe exists only for him. ...

(2) The second class of evils comprises such evils as people cause to each other, when, e.g., some of them use their strength against others. These evils are more numerous than those of the first kind: their causes are numerous and known; they likewise originate in ourselves, though the sufferer himself cannot avert them. This kind of evil is nevertheless not widespread in any country of the whole world. It is of rare occurrence that a man plans to kill his neighbour or to rob him of his property by night. Many persons are, however, afflicted with this kind of evil in great wars: but these are not frequent, if the whole inhabited part of the earth is taken into consideration.

Rabbi Yannai said: it is not in our hands [to explain the reason] either of the security of the wicked, or even of the afflictions of the righteous.

And Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Yosei: Moses requested three things from the Holy One, Blessed be He, at that time, all of which were granted him. ...Lastly, Moses requested that the ways in which God conducts the world be revealed to him, and He granted it to him, as it is stated: “Show me Your ways and I will know You” (Exodus 33:13).
Moses said before God: Master of the Universe. Why is it that the righteous prosper, the righteous suffer, the wicked prosper, the wicked suffer?
... Rabbi Yoḥanan’s opinion, that God granted Moses all three of his requests, disagrees with that of Rabbi Meir, as Rabbi Meir said: Two of Moses’ requests were granted to him, and one was not granted to him. God did not reveal to Moses the ways in which He conducts the world. As it is said: “And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious” (Exodus 33:19); in His mercy, God bestows His grace upon every person, even though he is not worthy. Similarly, God says: “And I will have mercy upon whom I will have mercy,” even though he is not worthy. According to Rabbi Meir, the way in which God conducts the world and bestows grace and mercy was not revealed even to Moses.