This very human experience echoes in the ancient texts, specifically in a powerful passage from Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus.
The passage opens with a poignant divine lament: "I appeared to Abraham." God, blessed be He, is speaking to Moses, expressing a sense of... well, almost loss. "Alas for those who are lost and are not present," the text says, an expression usually reserved for mourning the deceased. But here, it's applied to the patriarchs. What's going on?
God continues, "Many times I have revealed Myself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as God Almighty, but I did not make known to them that My name is the Lord as I made known to you, yet they did not question My ways."
Think about that for a moment. God is pointing out that while He revealed Himself to the patriarchs in a certain way, they didn't demand to know the full picture. They didn't challenge the divine plan in the same way Moses does.
The text provides examples. God tells Abraham to walk the length and breadth of the land, promising it to him (Genesis 13:17). Yet, Abraham struggles to even find a burial plot for Sarah, eventually having to purchase one. Did he question God? No.
Similarly, Isaac is promised the land (Genesis 26:3), but he faces conflict over water rights. "The shepherds of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's shepherds," the text reminds us (Genesis 26:20). Did Isaac question God’s promise? Again, no.
And Jacob, promised the very ground he lay upon (Genesis 28:13), had to buy a place to pitch his tent. Did he question God? He did not. As we find in Shemot Rabbah, they accepted their lot without demanding explanations, without questioning God's methods. They didn't ask, as Moses did, "What is Your name?"
But Moses? He questions God right from the start, asking about His name. And later, after speaking to Pharaoh, he cries out, "Since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has harmed this people, and You did not deliver Your people!" (Exodus 5:23).
So, what's the point of this comparison? Is God rebuking Moses? Not exactly. The passage isn't about criticizing Moses, but about highlighting the different relationships God had with each generation.
The text continues by emphasizing God's covenant with the patriarchs: "I have also established My covenant to give them the land of Canaan" (Exodus 6:4). Because they didn’t question, God remembered His promise. "Moreover, I have heard the cry of the children of Israel," the text says (Exodus 6:5). Even though the Israelites in Moses' time weren't always behaving perfectly, God heard their cries because of the covenant He made with their ancestors. "And I have remembered My covenant," (Exodus 6:5) it is written.
This leads to the famous verses where God promises redemption: "Therefore say to the children of Israel: I am the Lord, and I will take you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians..." (Exodus 6:6-7). The word "therefore" (lakhen in Hebrew) is key here. Shemot Rabbah equates lakhen with oath-taking, referencing 1 Samuel 3:14. God is swearing that He will redeem them.
According to Shemot Rabbah, the four promises of redemption – "I will take out…I will deliver…I will redeem…I will take" – correspond to the four decrees Pharaoh made against the Israelites. And, as many know, these four promises are mirrored in the four cups of wine we drink at the Passover Seder, fulfilling the verse, "I will raise the cup of salvation and call upon the name of God" (Psalms 116:13).
The passage concludes with God reiterating His promise to bring the Israelites into the land, fulfilling the oath He made to their forefathers. "I will do for them what I said to your ancestors – that I would give them the Land, and they would inherit it by their merit."
So, what can we take away from this? Perhaps it's a reminder that faith manifests in different ways across generations. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob showed faith through acceptance and unwavering trust, even in the face of hardship. Moses, on the other hand, showed faith through questioning and demanding justice. Both approaches, it seems, are valid and ultimately lead to fulfilling God's promises. It’s a powerful reminder that our relationship with the Divine can be complex, nuanced, and deeply personal. And maybe, just maybe, our questions are as important as our unwavering faith.