Biblical Parallels Index – Shemot 34/0

Biblical Parallels Index – Shemot 34

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Divine Attributes of Mercy and Justice

A list of Divine attributes, commonly referred to as "thirteen divine attributes" appears in Shemot 34:6-7.  Though often thought of as attributes of mercy, they in fact reflect both mercy and judgment. Various versions of this list of attributes appear throughout Tanakh. Sometimes these lists are partial, focusing more on mercy or more on justice, leading commentators to question the reasons for the different formulations.

Tools

• See Makbilot BaMikra for links to the many place where lists of Divine attributes appear in Tanakh, including Shemot 20, 34, Bemidbar 14, Devarim 7, Yirmeyahu 32, Yonah 4, Nachum 1 and more.
• Use the Tanakh Lab to compare any of the above to each other.  For example, see how the attributes on the Tablets compare to those said to Moshe after the sin of the golden calf here.

Primary Sources

• See Ramban on Bemidbar 14:17-20, who seeks to understand why Moshe includes only some of the attributes in his prayer after the sin of the spies.

Articles

• See Can There Be Compassion Without Justice?, by R. Jonathan Sacks, for discussion of the relationship between mercy and judgment in the 13 Attributes. He points to studies that demonstrate that societies need justice alongside mercy, for without belief in a punitive God (or in secular societies,in a sytem of justice) there is both more crime and less human forgiveness.
• In The 13 Midot of Rachamim,¹ R. Menachem Leibtag notes how the characteristics of Hashem’s judgment, described in Shemot 20:4-6, are transformed into qualities of mercy in Shemot 34:6-7, in the wake of the sin of the calf.  The wilderness period is marked by God's instantaneous punishment of the sinful, stemming from His direct presence in the nation's midst. After the sin, Hashem recognized that this was potentially disastrous and therefore decided to remove His presence. Moshe, uncomfortable with the solution, suggested a compromise, that Hashem mix justice with mercy and allow for non-immediate retribution, and, hence, repentance and pardon. The thirteen attributes attest to this new type of providence, one in which Hashem is no longer a "vengeful God" but a "God of mercy",  no longer "filled with anger" but "long to anger", and no longer "עשה חסד" but "נוצר חסד" etc.²
• Makbilot Bamikra points out the various verses in Tanakh that refer to whether children are punished for their parents’ sins.  See Are Children Punished for Parents’ Sins?, which analyzes the many Biblical passages that take different approaches to this issue and gives an overview of commentators’ interpretations and resolutions of the seeming contradictions. 

Avraham and Moshe

Perhaps surprisingly, a comparison of Hashem's revelation to Avraham in Bereshit 18 reveals much in common with Hashem's revelation to Moshe after the sin of the calf in Shemot 33-34.

Tools

• To see the linguistic parallels between the stories, compare them in the Tanakh Lab.

Articles

• See The Revelations to Avraham and Moshe, by R. Tamir Granot, for analysis of the many parallels between Hashem’s revelation to Avraham in Bereshit 18 and to Moshe in Shemot 33-34, both taking place at "the entrance to the tent". The stories highlight how these  leaders were chosen by God, who "knows" them intimately; they in turn, each know/are taught the "ways of God". The parallels emphasize the willingness of both leaders to plead with Hashem on behalf of a sinful people, perhaps the reason for their choice. Finally, both stories represent a new beginning for the Jewish people: Avraham becomes their genealogical father, while Moshe becomes their metaphysical father when he saves them from annihilation.

Moshe and Eliyahu Many sources have noted parallels between the figures of Moshe and Eliyahu.  Each  witnesses the nation affirm their belief in God only to have them revert to idolatry soon after, and each significantly receives personal divine revelation at Chorev.

Tools

• Tanakh Lab – A comparison of the various revelations to Moshe at Sinai (in Shemot 3, 24, and 33-34) with Melakhim I 19, which describes Hashem's revelation to Eliyahu, reveals that, despite significant similarity in content, there is not much linguistic overlap between the stories. One notable exception is the phrase "אַרְבָּעִים יוֹם וְאַרְבָּעִים לַיְלָה".

Primary Sources

• See Seder EliyahuZuta 8About Seder Eliyahu, RadakMelakhim I 19:7-21About R. David Kimchi, and MalbimMelakhim I 19:9-16About R. Meir Leibush Weiser who all note parallels between the figures, some reading into them praise of Eliyahu and others reading into them condemnation.

Articles

• See Moshe and Eliyahu at Sinai for an exploration of the parallels and contrasts between the stories of Hashem’s revelations to Moshe and Eliyahu at Sinai. Some commentators understand this comparison as an implicit rebuke to Eliyahu, who does not defend the Jewish people as Moshe does, while other interpret it as a sign of Eliyahu’s exalted stature that is akin to Moshe’s.
• For other articles which similarly compare the figures, see  The Double Revelation of God’s Angel to Eliyahu and  “He Announced Rebuke at Sinai, and Judgments of Vengeance at Horev,” by R. Elchanan Samet and Prophet in Distress, by R. Alex Israel.  Both suggest that the comparison paints Eliyahu negatively as he, unlike Moshe, comes to Chorev not to ask for mercy for the nation despite their sins, but to accuse.

¹ See, similarly, his article, Ki Tisa: Chet HaEgel and the 13 Midot of Rachamim.

² See also The First Tablets and the Second Tablets: The Differences Between Mishpatim and Ki Tisa, by R. Yoel Bin-Nun, for a theory about why the words on the second tablets do not reflect this change from judgment to mercy.