We often think of God as all-knowing, all-seeing, but the Rabbis in Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of early Jewish interpretations of Genesis, dare to imagine a divine experience of discovery, a sense of joy akin to finding a lost treasure.
Rabbi Simon shares a beautiful teaching: The Holy One, blessed be He, found three precious things in the world: Abraham, David, and Israel. Think about that for a moment. God found them.
He bases this idea on verses from the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible). Regarding Abraham, it's written, "You found his heart faithful before You" (Nehemiah 9:8). With David, we read, "I found David, My servant" (Psalms 89:21). And about Israel, the prophet Hosea says, "Like grapes in the wilderness I found Israel" (Hosea 9:10). In each case, Rabbi Simon suggests, God rejoiced, like someone who stumbles upon a priceless gem.
Now, naturally, Rabbi Simon’s students had some questions. What about Noah? Doesn't the Torah say, "But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord" (Genesis 6:8)? Did God find Noah too?
Rabbi Simon offers a subtle but important distinction: Noah found favor, but the Holy One, blessed be He, did not find him. It’s a difference of perspective. God didn't rejoice over "finding" Noah in the same way as with Abraham, David, and Israel. Noah's righteousness was a personal achievement, a beacon of light in a dark world, but it didn't elicit the same divine joy of unexpected discovery.
And then comes another challenge: what about the verse in Jeremiah 31:2: "[Israel] found favor in the wilderness"? Doesn't that imply that God didn't "find" Israel?
Here, Rabbi Simon reframes our understanding. He suggests we read the verse differently, emphasizing the merit of the generation that wandered in the wilderness. It's not that Israel in the wilderness found favor, but that Israel found favor because of the merit of the generation of the wilderness. They were worthy. They were the "find."
According to the Yefe Toar, a commentary on Bereshit Rabbah, a later verse ("You found his heart faithful before You") doesn't quite belong here in the discussion. It might have been added later.
The key takeaway is this: the people of Jeremiah’s time, those who were being addressed in the prophet’s words, weren't worthy in and of themselves. They weren't considered "finds" by God. They only found favor through the merit of their righteous ancestors.
So, what does this all mean for us? It’s a reminder that our relationship with the Divine can be active. We can strive to be "finds" – people whose actions and character bring joy to the Holy One, blessed be He. And even when we fall short, we can draw strength from the merit of those who came before us, those who paved the way with their faith and dedication. Are we actively seeking to be found? Are we striving to be a source of joy, a treasure in the eyes of the Divine? It's a question worth pondering.