Good People Bring out the Worst in Us

Rabbi Moshe Ben-Chaim

Sodom was slated for destruction and God sent the angels to Sodom to save Abraham's nephew Lote. Lote said to the angels: “You have been so gracious to your servant, and have already shown me so much kindness in order to save my life; but I cannot flee to the hills, lest the disaster overtake me and I die.”  Rashi commented: 

[Lote said] While I was with the people of Sodom, the Holy One, blessed be He, compared my deeds with the deeds of the people of my city and I seemed to be righteous and deserving to be saved. When, however, I come to the righteous man Abraham (dwelling in the hills) I will be regarded as wicked by comparison to him. Thus, too, did the woman of Zarefath say to Elijah (1 Kings 17:18) “Art thou come to bring my sin in remembrance?” Before you came to me the Holy One, blessed be He, compared my doings with the doings of my people and I was regarded as a righteous woman amongst them, but now that you have come to me, in comparison with your deeds, I am wicked.” 

When it comes to God judging our intrinsic value, how do others play any role? 

Although Abraham and Elijah existed, it was not until they came in proximity with others that those others—like Lote—would be judged more exactingly. That indicates that it is due to our proximity to greater people, that our faults are suddenly made culpable. Now of course, God knows the person's faults even before the righteous person comes in close proximity. But it is because that righteous person enters our proximity, and we fail to learn from him or her to improve ourselves, that generates punishment. Meaning, when confronted with a righteous person and we don't learn from him and improve ourselves, we are held accountable. The same is the case with Ninveh: once they would repent and the Jews would not, this means the Jews would further disregard a model example of how they could improve too. That makes the Jews liable, and why Jonah fled so as not to warn Ninveh to repent.

Rabbi Chait quoted Chazal who said, “A person is judged based on his generation,” meaning we are judged relative to our peers. Similarly, Talmud Sabbath says that one is culpable based on his knowledge. If one is ignorant that Sabbath exists, for all of the Sabbaths that he violates, he only needs only one atonement. If one is aware of the Sabbath, he is punishable for each Sabbath he violated. If one knows that today is Sabbath, he is possible for each labor he violated (Misha Sabbath, 7:1). With greater knowledge comes greater culpability.