It’s a powerful idea, and it’s one that our sages explored deeply. There's a fascinating passage in Vayikra Rabbah 11 that tackles just this – the idea that God interacts with us in a way that reflects our own behavior.
The passage opens with a quote from Psalms 18:26-27: “With the pious, act piously, with a wholehearted man, act wholeheartedly, with the pure, act purely, and with the crooked, act deviously.” It's a pretty straightforward statement, right? But the rabbis, as they often did, delved deeper, seeking to understand how this principle plays out in the lives of our patriarchs and leaders.
Rabbi Yehuda and Rabbi Neḥemya both offer interpretations, focusing on Abraham and Moses respectively. Rabbi Yehuda starts with Abraham, examining instances where Abraham's actions were met with a corresponding response from God.
Think about when Abraham says, “Please do not pass from upon Your servant” (Genesis 18:3), essentially interrupting his communion with God to welcome guests. This act of chesed, of loving-kindness, is seen as an act of piety. And what happens? As Vayikra Rabbah points out, “Abraham was still standing before the Lord” (Genesis 18:22). Rabbi Simon even suggests this is a scribal emendation, implying the Divine Presence was awaiting him! The Etz Yosef explains that the verse is phrased to preserve God's honor, but the message is clear: Abraham’s piety was met with a divine patience and respect.
Or consider when Abraham, with heartfelt concern, bargains with God to save Sodom and Gomorrah, saying, “Perhaps the fifty righteous people will lack five” (Genesis 18:28). What’s written? “He said: I will not destroy if I find there forty-five” (Genesis 18:28). Abraham’s wholeheartedness is met with divine responsiveness.
But what about when Abraham expresses doubt, saying, “I go childless” (Genesis 15:2)? The response, according to Vayikra Rabbah, is that God addresses this concern indirectly, promising an heir who will emerge from his own loins (Genesis 15:4). And when Abraham asks, “How will I know that I will inherit it?” (Genesis 15:8), seeking clarification, God reveals the difficult future of the Israelite people in Egypt (Genesis 15:13).
Then Rabbi Neḥemya turns to Moses. He highlights how Moses, too, experiences this mirrored interaction with the Divine. When Moses asks, “Show me, please, Your glory” (Exodus 33:18), what’s the response? "He said: “I will pass My goodness before you” (Exodus 33:19). Moses's pious request is met with a revelation of divine goodness.
When Moses wonders “Why will the bush not burn?” (Exodus 3:3), the response is that God’s glory is present within it. When Moses asks what God's name is, anticipating the questions of the Israelites ("They will say to me: What is His name; what shall I say to them?” - Exodus 3:13), God offers the enigmatic, “I will be what I will be” (Exodus 3:14), a name that is both a revelation and a mystery.
And when Moses expresses reluctance, saying, “Please…send by means of whom You will send” (Exodus 4:13), and later, “Since I came to Pharaoh [to speak in Your name he has harmed this people and You have not saved Your people]” (Exodus 5:23), God responds with a promise of future redemption: “Now you will see [what I will do to Pharaoh; for with a powerful hand he will send them forth and with a powerful hand he will drive them from his land]” (Exodus 6:1).
So, what can we take away from this? Is it simply a cosmic "you get what you give"? Perhaps. But it's also a profound statement about the nature of our relationship with the Divine. It suggests that God isn't some distant, uninvolved force, but rather an active participant in our lives, responding to our piety, our doubts, our questions, and even our indirections. It invites us to be mindful of our actions and intentions, knowing that they may, in some way, shape our experience of the world and our connection to something greater than ourselves.