Rabbi Levi told a parable that holds three prophets in one sentence. Israel, he said, is like a noblewoman who had three friends. One knew her in her prosperity. One knew her in her dissipation. One knew her in her pollution.
Three friends, three moments, three ways of saying the same Hebrew word: Eichah — "How?"
First came Moses, who saw Israel in their glory just after Sinai. He was overwhelmed by their holiness and their numbers. He cried out, "How can I alone bear your cumbrance?" (Deuteronomy 1:12). His "How?" was the cry of a leader too small for a people too bright.
Then came Isaiah, who saw Israel in their moral dissipation. Prosperous, powerful, but tilting away from justice. He cried, "How is the faithful city become a harlot!" (Isaiah 1:21). His "How?" was a reproach mixed with grief — a prophet watching a beloved friend forget who she was.
Last came Jeremiah, who saw Israel after the city fell, alone among her ruins. He cried, "How doth the city sit solitary!" (Lamentations 1:1). His "How?" was a mourner's cry beside a body he had known in life.
Each prophet used the same word. Each prophet meant something different by it. And the whole history of Israel, Rabbi Levi hints, can be heard in the changing tone of a single syllable (Eichah Rabbah 1:1).
The lesson is that we do not get to choose which moment we meet our people in. We only get to choose whether we show up with love when we do.