The scene: God, in Genesis 17:1, reveals Himself to Abraham, saying "I am God Almighty [Shadai]." But what does Shadai really mean? The Rabbis, in Bereshit Rabbah 46, unpack this with layers of meaning, playing on the Hebrew word dai (די), meaning "enough" or "sufficient."
God essentially tells Abraham: "It is dai – sufficient – that you and I are in the world.” Imagine the weight of that! Just you and the Divine. You’re enough. According to this Midrash, God says, "Only you have come to recognize My existence. It would be sufficient for Me if you were the only person in the world." That’s a pretty incredible affirmation, right?
But there's a condition. God continues, tying this feeling of "enoughness" to the covenant of circumcision. "If you do not accept upon yourself to be circumcised, My world [as it has existed] to this point is sufficient [dai] for Me." Whoa. Heavy stuff. It's like God is saying, "I could end it all right here. It's been enough."
The text continues, "It is sufficient [dai] for the foreskin [to exist] until this point... The time has now arrived for it to be removed. And it is sufficient [dai] for [the precept of] circumcision to have been forsaken until this point.”
Abraham, understandably, has concerns. "Even before my circumcision, people would come and confront me [in battle]. Certainly after I am circumcised they will come and confront me!" He worries about vulnerability, about appearing weak.
But God reassures him: "Abraham, it is sufficient [dai] for you that I am your God, it is sufficient [dai] for you that I am your guardian. You have nothing to fear from them. And not for you alone, but it is sufficient [dai] for My world that I am its God, it is sufficient [dai] for My world that I am its guardian.” God’s got his back, and the world's back, too.
Then, the Rabbis – Rabbi Natan, Rabbi Aḥa, and Rabbi Berekhya, citing Rabbi Yitzḥak – offer another interpretation of Shadai. "I am God Almighty [Shadai] – it is I who said to My world and to the heavens: ‘Enough [dai]’ [and] to the earth: ‘Enough [dai],’ as had I not said to them: ‘Enough,’ even now they would be continuously expanding.” Think about that image – a universe constantly expanding until God says, "Enough!" Shadai, in this view, is the power that sets limits, that brings definition to the infinite.
And it doesn't stop there! Rabbi Elazar ben Yaakov adds yet another layer: "[God said:] ‘It is I for whom the world and all its contents are not sufficient [dai] for My Godliness.’” The Divine is beyond measure, beyond containment. Even the entire cosmos can't fully express God's essence.
Interestingly, the text also mentions Akilas, who translated Shadai into Greek as "Eternal and powerful." Akilas, by the way, created a Greek translation of the Torah.
So, what does all this mean? Is God saying "enough!" to the universe's expansion? Or to the existence of the foreskin? Or is God saying that He is enough for Abraham? And is He saying that even the whole world isn't enough to contain His Godliness?
Maybe it's all of the above. Maybe dai, and therefore Shadai, is about balance. It's about knowing when to stop, when to trust, and when to recognize the divine presence in our lives. It's a reminder that even when we feel like we're carrying the weight of the world, we are, perhaps, enough. Just as we are.