Why God Judges the Heavenly Prince Before the Nation Below

Midrash Shmuel 18:1

Curated by Arthur·Translated by Maggid (Beta)·

"Therefore He takes knowledge of their works, and He overturns them in the night, so that they are crushed" (Job 34:25). Rabbi Chanina said: The Holy One, blessed be He, never exacts punishment from a nation first, until He has first exacted punishment from its prince above. This is what is written: "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall visit [yifkod] upon the host on high, on high" (Isaiah 24:21), and afterward "and upon the kings of the earth, upon the earth" (ibid.). So too, at first "the sons of God saw the daughters of men" (Genesis 6:2), and afterward "And the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great" (ibid. 6:5), and afterward "And the LORD said: I will blot out man" etc. (ibid. 6:7). So too, at first "Amalek came" (Exodus 17:8), and afterward "Remember what Amalek did to you" (Deuteronomy 25:17), and afterward "Thus says the LORD of hosts: I have remembered [pakadti] what Amalek did to Israel" (1 Samuel 15:2). Rabbi Acha said: I am a keeper of deposits. Sarah deposited with me a bundle of commandments [mitzvot]; therefore "And the LORD remembered [pakad] Sarah" (Genesis 21:1). But Amalek deposited with me a bundle of thorns; therefore "Thus says the LORD of hosts: I have remembered [pakadti what Amalek did to Israel]" (1 Samuel 15:2).

Themes

Divine JusticeJudgesHeavenRoyaltyJudgment

Biblical References

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Legends of the JewsThe Wicked Judges of Sodom Gomorrah and AdmahFire and brimstone, a pillar of salt, and some very unhappy angels. But the details… the details are truly something else. The Ginzberg’s Legends of the Jews saLegends of the JewsSun and Moon Stood Still in Heaven as a Sign of PowerThe ancient texts paint a picture of moments exactly like that. Moments of such intense divine power, they literally reshape the cosmos. to one of those momentsKalach Pitchei ChokhmahThe Reward That Goes Beyond a Gold StarKalach Pitchei Chokhmah turns to The Reward That Goes Beyond a Gold Star. The idea of complete repair is central to Jewish thought. But what happens when that wTikkunei ZoharGod Judges the World Through Chaos, Void, and AbyssIt's woven right into the fabric of creation itself. The passage But not in some detached, courtroom-in-the-sky kind of way. Instead, this judgment is enclothedMekhilta DeRabbi YishmaelHe devoted his life to the judges, and they were called byThe Mekhilta DeRabbi Yishmael, the early halakhic midrash on Exodus from the school of Rabbi Yishmael, reads a striking lesson out of a single word. The verse cMekhilta DeRabbi YishmaelI Shall Sing to the Lord, Who Is a Judge"I shall sing to the Lord," who is a Judge. After celebrating God as powerful, rich, wise, and merciful, the Mekhilta arrives at the attribute that ties all the