God Shares His Own Honors With the Righteous

(Exodus 7:1) "And the LORD said to Moses: See, I have made you a god to Pharaoh." This is what Scripture means: "Lift up your heads, O gates, and the King of glory shall come in" (Psalms 24:7), for He shares His glory with those who fear Him. How so? A king of flesh and blood does not let others sit on his throne, yet the Holy One, blessed be He, seated Solomon on the throne of the LORD. A king of flesh and blood does not let others ride on his horse, yet the Holy One, blessed be He, mounted Elijah upon His horse. And what is His horse? The storm and the tempest, as it is said, "The LORD has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm." A king of flesh and blood does not let others use his scepter, yet Moses used the scepter of the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said, "And Moses took the staff of God in his hand" (Exodus 4:20). A king of flesh and blood does not let others wear his crown, yet the Holy One, blessed be He, gave His crown to the King Messiah, as it is said, "You set a crown of fine gold upon his head" (Psalms 21:4). A king of flesh and blood does not let others wear his garment, yet Israel wore the garment of the Holy One, blessed be He, who gave it to Israel, as it is said, "The LORD will give strength to His people" (Psalms 29:11). A king of flesh and blood is not called by his title, such as Caesar, Augustus, Basileus, and if anyone is called by one of these, they put him to death; but the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses: Behold, I have made you like Myself to Pharaoh. I am called God, and by that name I created the world, as it is said, "In the beginning God created"; and by that very name, "See, I have made you a god to Pharaoh."