Philosophy:Theodicy – צדיק ורע לו/2

Theodicy – צדיק ורע לו

Exegetical Approaches

This topic has not yet undergone editorial review

Just Compensation in This World

Everyone gets their appropriate due in this world.  Though it sometimes seems as if innocent people are being punished or wicked people are being rewarded, this is only because outsiders often over or under evaluate the righteousness of a person, or misunderstand the nature of the compensation.

Misperception of Righteousness

A so-called wicked or righteous person might not always be what they seem.  Thus, wrong-doers might have merits that justify their rewards, while the righteous might have committed sins which justify their punishment.

Sources:Bavli BerakhotBerakhot 7aBerakhot 7bAbout the Bavli, first opinion in R. Saadia GaonHaEmunot VeHaDeiot 5:2-3About R. Saadia Gaon, first opinion in Chovot HaLevavot4:3About R. Bachya ibn Pakuda,¹ RambanTorat HaAdam Shaar HaGemulDevarim 11:13About R. Moshe b. Nachman,

צדיק ורע לו – As outsiders, we can never truly know whether a person is totally righteous.  In these cases he must not be truly innocent, and Hashem is punishing him for the few sins that he committed, even if the majority of his actions were right.²

• R. Bachya suggests that their sin could be in not convincing their generation to repent, even if they themselves did not commit any sins.
• On the other hand, Ramban says suffering can come as a punishment for a sin committed accidentally.

רשע וטוב לו – The wicked man also performed some good deeds in his life, for which he is being rewarded.  R. Saadia, followed by R. Bachya, accounts for some cases where it doesn't seem as clear that good deeds were done, by saying Hashem is rewarding the wicked man since there is always a possibility that he will repent and be worthy of the reward in the future.

Moral justification – This approach claims that almost all humans are neither perfect nor terrible, rather everyone is somewhere in the middle, and that is how one can have a seemingly pious person who is being punished and the opposite as well.  However, this approach does not account for the many cases where the compensation does not seem exact, and a man who might have committed just one small sin, seems to be punished for far more than that.

Hashem's providence – This approach maintains that Hashem provides for every individual, and not just on a national level.  These sources say that justice works the way Torah describes it, every man is punished for all his sins and rewarded for all his positive deeds.

World to come – These commentators hold that no undeserved retribution is given in this world, however, the deserved retribution sometimes is only given in the world to come.  Therefore, in some cases, already in this world Hashem ensures to pay off for any good deeds performed, so in the world to come they will be worthy of only punishments.

Afflictions of love – Ramban understands that all affliction of love come as a punishment for a sin.

Prophetic complaints – Ramban explains that the prophets were not questioning whether Hashem was acting justly, rather it was a way of complaining about their fate.³

Iyyov – The story of Iyyov seems to contradict this approach, since we don't hear from the book that Iyyov committed any sins.  Ramban understands

Collective punishment – This approach believes that every man is punished for his own sins.  The fact one person might have done something wrong does not require anyone else besides himself to be punished.

"פֹּקֵד עֲוֺן אָבוֹת עַל בָּנִים"

Misperception of Retribution

What appears to be a reward or a punishment might actually be the opposite. As such, what is construed as unjust retribution is really not so.

Sources:Third opinion in RalbagMilchamot HaShem 4:5Milchamot HaShem 4:6About R. Levi b. Gershom, ShadalShemot 20:4About R. Shemuel David Luzzatto,

צדיק ורע לו

• Sometimes Hashem causes the righteous to suffer a little in order to avoid him from suffering a lot.

רשע וטוב לו

• Sometimes Hashem keeps the wicked person alive in order for them to witness an even worse punishment than they would have witnessed.
• In some cases, the good is a cause for bad, and the whole purpose really is the punishment.  For example by Paroh, Hashem did not punish him in order so he will experience the splitting of the sea which was a harsher punishment than he would have received.

Moral justification

Hashem's providence – According to this approach, not all good and evil in life is necessarily a punishment or a reward.

World to come

Afflictions of love

Prophetic complaints – R. Saadia suggests the prophets trusted Hashem he is directing the world justly, rather they were just asking how and for what purpose he was doing what looks to be unjust.⁴

Iyyov

Just Compensation in the World to Come

People do not get their just compensation in this world.  It is only in the world to come, that Hashem gives everyone their appropriate due.

Sources:Targum OnkelosDevarim 7:10About Targum Onkelos, Sifre Devarim11:26About Sifre Devarim, YerushalmiChagigah 2:1About the Yerushalmi, BavliShabbat 30bTaanit 11aKiddushin 40bChulin 142aAbout the Bavli,⁵ Targum Pseudo-JonathanDevarim 7:10About Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, second opinion in R. Saadia GaonHaEmunot VeHaDeiot 5:2-3About R. Saadia Gaon,⁶ second opinion in Chovot HaLevavot4:3About R. Bachya ibn Pakuda, RashiDevarim 32:4Berakhot 5aAbout R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, Kuzari3:196:1About R. Yehuda HaLevi, RadakHoshea 14:10About R. David Kimchi, RanDerashot HaRan 8About R. Nissim Gerondi, Sefer HaIkkarim4:74:124:13About R. Yosef Albo, AbarbanelDevarim 4:15-24Devarim 32:1About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel,⁷

צדיק ורע לו – The righteous man is suffering in this world unjustly, so in the world to come he will get an abundance of good.

רשע וטוב לו – The wicked man being part of a nation who is worthy of good, receives good as well, even though he does not deserve it.

Moral justification – In the world to come, Hashem will give the real reward to the righteous and the real punishment to the wicked.

Hashem's providence – According to this approach, Hashem provides on a national level, and not for each individual person.

Why does Hashem do this?

• Natural order – Hasehm does not purposely wrong people, rather he lets the world act on its own, and therefore some people in this world do not deserve what happens to them.
• Test – R. Saadia explains Hashem's purpose to be a test in order to publicize the commitment of the righteous man even with all the troubles he goes through, and seeing the unworthy retribution the wrongdoer received.  Hashem is testing the righteous man to see if he will continue to follow the right path even though he is compensated wrongly.  He knows they will tolerate the punishment they don't deserve, and later on in their life or in the world to come, He gives them an abundance of good. 
• Hashem is using the wicked man for a different purpose before he punishes him, such as to fight with a different nation.
• The righteous man is suffering over the sins of his generation, or of his ancestors, and not his own sins.

Iyyov – R. Saadia understands Iyyov's suffering to be a test,⁸ and as we read at the end of the book, Iyyov got an abundance of good at the end of his life.⁹

Purposes of the Egyptian bondage – This approach can understand the Egyptian bondage to have an educative or formative purpose rather than being a punishment for a sin.

"פֹּקֵד עֲוֺן אָבוֹת עַל בָּנִים"

World to come – This approach is based heavily on the idea of retribution being given in the world to come, however, the whole concept of the world to come is not explicated in the Torah at all.¹⁰

Afflictions of love – This approach understands that Hashem sometimes afflicts out of love to the person in order to multiply their reward, and not as a punishment over a sin.

Not All Receive Just Compensation

People who do not merit Divine providence might not get  just compensation.  As their lives are ruled by nature, sometimes rewards or punishments are given to the undeserving.

Sources:Ralbag?

¹ R. Bachya brings the same options brought by R. Saadia Gaon and was influenced by him.  Though R. Bachya develops the third approach further.

² See also Bavli BerakhotBerakhot 5aAbout the Bavli which suggests that if bad comes on you and you cant figure out why, one should look at their deeds to see if they have done something wrong.

³ The Bavli already notes that Chavakkuk is asking Hashem about the evil swallowing relatively righteous people.  However the nation, was not even near to being perfect, and Chavakkuk was not doubting Hashem's justice.

⁴ R. Saadia explains that by Yirmeyahu Hashem responded later in 12:7 saying that he will give a harsher punishment in the future.

⁵ According to the Bavli in Taanit, the seemingly wrong retribution is given rightfully because of minute sins or mitzvot performed, and the retribution they do deserve which is missing, will be given to them in the world to come.

⁶ R. Saadia Gaon suggests that the true compensation might occur later in life in this world, and does not explicitly say in the world to come.  He brings as examples Iyyov and Paroh who both received at the end of their life, a reward or a punishment, respectively.

⁷ It is not so clear from Abarbanel if a person might get an unworthy retribution in this world, or if a person only does not get all his worthy retribution (being punished only and not rewarded), similarly to the first opinion.

⁸ That seems to be the simple reading of the verses, that the Satan wanted to test Iyyov to see if he will continue to worship Hashem even with all his kids dying and his possessions taken.

⁹ See Iyyov 42:12, "וַי"י בֵּרַךְ אֶת אַחֲרִית אִיּוֹב מֵרֵאשִׁתוֹ".

¹⁰ R. Chasdai Crescas accounts for this question by saying that the nation coming out of Eygpt knew about the world to come and there was no reason to explicate it.