- God is Our Keeper
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- Rivka Olenick
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- "The Lord will keep you from all evil; He will keep your
soul." Psalm 121:7
- How can the Lord keep anyone from all evil if a person can choose
evil? What is meant by: "He will keep your soul?" What is
intended by the word: will? "He will keep" means he doesn't
keep now. "Will keep" is dependent on how we should live in
order to merit God as our "keeper."
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- All the evil that God will keep you from is evil that people bring
on themselves and each other, since God does not cause evil. "No
evil comes down from above." (Bereshis Rabba Chapter I). Most
evil is caused by peoples intentions, desires and opinions regarding
religious beliefs and stem from ignorance, not wisdom. The greater a
person's ignorance the greater the evil one causes to oneself and
others. A person who lives a life dedicated to truth removes
him/herself from hatred of the self and the hatred of others.
Knowledge of God, which is truth, also removes a person from the
hatred that instigates war. In order for The Lord to keep you from all
evil, one's life has to be directed to and immersed in truth by being
involved in the will of God. Each person has to be cognizant of God at
all times, and in all activities. Every person has the ability to use
their free will and choose truth or the good, rather than ignorance,
which produces evil. We all have the ability to live a life that
adapts itself to the highest moral standard. As Jews we were chosen to
be the nation that exemplifies this moral standard that the rest of
the world must observe. Being kept from all evil is that through our
actions and speech we are to cling to and internalize all possible
knowledge of God. As His chosen nation we are to teach the world that
truth, which in essence, is God can remove a person entirely from
evil. God will keep us from evil when our lives are committed to Torah
knowledge and the mitzvoth that He gave us and commanded us in. We
will not stray from what is good, which is His will. We will not
choose evil, which is the absence of good, the absence of His will. We
have the ability to always turn to God for assistance and help. We
should not allow ourselves to be dependent on or be afraid of man's
powers in the world. It is God that created the entire world, which is
subject to His continuous, ongoing rule. Even when we feel estranged
from God, we should always remember that He created us to obey His
laws. He provides everything that is needed for all His created beings
and His creatures, continuously. "The earth is the Lord's"
(Exodus 9:29). Our existence and desires are completely subject to and
dependent on His rule, not man's rule. As we live our lives we should
remember that our soul is His. Meaning, that the knowledge we acquire
is His knowledge and He will keep our soul as long as we keep His
knowledge. The Rambam says: "The wise and virtuous see and
understand the wisdom of God in the world." "All the paths
of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep His covenant and His
testimonies." Psalms 25:10.
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- The definition of "soul" is often misunderstood and
thought to be something mystical, it is not. The wisdom or chachma
that we acquire for our soul through Torah study is what brings us
closer to the understanding of what God wants from us and for us.
Ideally, our soul, which is also our intellect manifests itself in
obtaining wisdom, and to the best of each person's ability, allows
each of us to be involved in our own perfection. When we keep our
commitment to the commandment of acquiring knowledge, we will want to
do the actions of kindness, justice and charity. This is a natural
result of understanding God's laws. This is being involved in one's
own perfection and being worthy of God's protection. This is what:
"He will keep your soul," means, that each person; through
the use of their intellect can search for and obtain the knowledge
that is essential for perfection. In Bereshis Rabba: "In one
place Scripture says: And all things that are desirable are not to be
compared to her (Proverbs 8:2); and in another place, And all things
that thou desirest are not to be compared unto her By "things
that are desirable" the performance of the Divine precepts and
good deeds is to be understood, whilst "things that thou
desirest" refer to precious stones and pearls. Both- things that
are desirable, and things that thou desirest - cannot be compared to
wisdom, but "in this let him that glorieth glory, that he
understandeth and knoweth me." The Rambam adds: "God is near
to all who call Him, if they call Him in truth, and turn to Him. He is
found by everyone who seeks Him, if he always goes towards Him, and
never goes astray."
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