Jewish tradition grapples with this question, especially when it comes to the timing of pivotal moments in our history. And sometimes, the answers are more surprising than you'd expect.
Take the creation of Abraham, for example. According to Kohelet Rabbah, the collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes, Rabbi Bon presents a fascinating idea: Abraham was worthy of being created before Adam, the first man! But the Holy One, blessed be He, had a plan. God reasoned that if Abraham were created first and then sinned, there would be no one to rectify his actions. Instead, Adam was created first. And if Adam faltered, Abraham would arrive later to set things right. As the verse says, "He made everything beautiful in its time" (Ecclesiastes 3:11).
Rabbi Bon offers another source for this idea, referencing (Joshua 14:15): “The greatest man among the giants.” This, he suggests, is a reference to Abraham. He was "greatest" because he deserved to be created first. But again, God's wisdom prevailed.
Rabbi Abba bar Kahana offers a parable to illustrate this point. Imagine someone with a massive, sturdy beam for their house. Where would they place it? In the center of the great hall, of course! That way, it can support the beams both in front of it and behind it. Similarly, God created Abraham in the "middle" – to support the generations that came before him and those that followed.
Rabbi Levi uses a different analogy: you bring a proper wife into the house of an improper one, not the other way around. Abraham was created after Adam to positively influence a world already tarnished. Had Abraham come first, Adam might have undone all the good he accomplished.
These aren't just abstract ideas, though. They speak to the very nature of our relationship with the Divine.
The Rabbis continue, pondering other "what ifs." Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Simon suggests that Adam was even worthy of receiving the Torah! After all, (Genesis 5:1) says, "This is the book of the generations of Adam." The midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), or interpretation, sees the word "book" as a reference to the Torah itself. God considered it: "Adam is my handiwork, shouldn't I give him the Torah?" But then, God realized that if Adam couldn't keep even the six commandments he was given, how could he possibly keep all 613 – the 248 positive commandments and 365 prohibitions? So, God decided to give the Torah not to Adam himself, but to his descendants.
Rabbi Yaakov of Kefar Ḥanan takes a similar line of reasoning. Adam was worthy of having twelve tribes descend from him. The gematria, or numerical value, of the Hebrew words "zeh sefer toldot Adam" ("this is the book of the generations of Adam") equals twelve. But God knew that if Adam, who had two sons and one killed the other, had twelve sons, things could be far worse. So, the twelve tribes were given to Jacob, the righteous one.
Even the giving of the Torah at Sinai wasn't simply a matter of divine decree, according to Rabbi Yitzchak. The Israelites, fresh out of Egypt, were worthy of receiving the Torah immediately. But God saw that "the radiance of My children has not yet come." They were still recovering from the trauma of slavery. It’s like a king whose son is recovering from illness. You wouldn't send him straight to the academy, would you? You'd let him rest and recover first. Similarly, God allowed the Israelites time to adjust, providing them with manna, water, and quail before giving them the Torah in the third month.
Rabbi Yitzchak further suggests that the Israelites were initially worthy of entering the Promised Land immediately after the Exodus. However, the trees in Canaan were old, dating back to Noah's time. God didn't want to bring them into a wasteland. Instead, He led them through the wilderness for forty years, giving the Canaanites time to clear out the old trees and plant new ones. That way, the Israelites would enter a land filled with blessings.
Finally, Rabbi offers a startling thought: "Even for matters of transgression, it is 'beautiful in its time.'" Even sin, in a strange way, has its place in the divine plan. “He made everything beautiful in its time” alludes to the fact that even the effect of a transgression is influenced by its timing.
What does all this mean? Perhaps it's a reminder that things aren't always as they seem. That even in moments of apparent chaos or delay, there's a deeper wisdom at work. That the timing of events, even the most challenging ones, might just be part of a larger, more beautiful design. It challenges us to trust in a plan that we may not fully understand, but one that ultimately aims for harmony and balance. And isn't that a comforting thought?
Another matter, “He made everything beautiful in its time” – Rabbi Bon stated two approaches regarding the following. Rabbi Bon said: Abraham was worthy to have been created before Adam, the first man, but the Holy One blessed be He said: If I create Abraham first, if he sins, there will be no one to come to make amends after him. Rather, I will create Adam, and if he sins, Abraham will come after him and make amends.42This is based on the verse: “He made everything beautiful in its time.” Rabbi Bon said another [source for this idea]: It is written: “The greatest man among the giants” (Joshua 14:15).43This is interpreted as a reference to Abraham. Abraham was worthy to have been created first, as it is stated: “The greatest man among the giants.” Why is he called “greatest”? It is because he was worthy to have been created first, but the Holy One blessed be He said: If I create Abraham first, if he sins, there will be no one to come after him to make amends. Rather, I will create Adam, the first man, and if he sins, Abraham will come and make amends after him. Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: Some cite a parable; to what is this matter analogous? [It is analogous] to one who had a substantial beam in his residence, in his house. Where would he place it? Would he not place it in the middle of the great hall, so that it would be able to support the beams in front of it and the beams that are behind it? So too, why did the Holy One blessed be He create Abraham our patriarch in the middle? So that he could provide support for the generations that preceded him and the generations that succeeded him. Rabbi Levi said: One brings a proper wife into the house of an improper wife, but one does not bring an improper wife into the house of a proper wife.44Similarly, Abraham was created after Adam in order to have a positive impact on the world that Adam had previously tarnished. Had Abraham been created first, Adam would have negated the positive impact that Abraham made on the world. Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Simon said: Adam the first man was worthy to have had the Torah given through him, as it is stated: “This is the book of the generations of Adam. [On the day that God created man, in the likeness of God He made him]” (Genesis 5:1).45The midrash interprets the “book” in the verse as a reference to the Torah. The Holy One blessed be He said: Adam is my handiwork, will I not give him the Torah so that he may toil in it? Then He said: If six mitzvot were given him and he was unable to keep them and observe them, were I to give him six hundred and thirteen mitzvot – two hundred and forty-eight positive commandments and three hundred and sixty-five prohibitions – all the more so will he not keep them. That is why it is written: “He said to Adam [la’adam]” (Job 28:28) – not Adam [lo adam], I will not give them to Adam. To whom will I give them? I will give them to his descendants. Rabbi Yaakov of Kefar Ḥanan said: Adam the first man was worthy of having twelve tribes emerge from him, as it is written: “This [zeh] is the book of the generations of Adam” (Genesis 5:1) – zayin – seven, heh –five, twelve tribes, this is the numerical value of “zeh is the book of the generations of Adam.” The Holy One blessed be He said: Adam is My handiwork, will I not give him twelve tribes? He then said: If I gave him two sons and one rose and killed his brother, had I given him twelve sons, all the more so. That is why it written: “He said to Adam [la’adam]” (Job 28:28), not Adam [lo adam], I will not give them to Adam. To whom will I give them? I will give them to Jacob the righteous. Rabbi Yitzḥak said: At the time when they departed from Egypt, The Israelites were worthy for the Torah to have been given to them immediately, but the Holy One blessed be He said: The radiance of My children has not yet come; they have emerged from the enslavement of mortar and bricks and cannot receive the Torah immediately. To what is this matter comparable? [It is comparable] to a king whose son arose from his illness and they said to him: ‘Let your son go to his academy.’ He said: ‘The radiance of my son has not yet come; rather, let him be indulged for two or three months with food and drink and recover, and then he will go to his academy.’ So too, the Holy One blessed be He said: ‘The radiance of my children has not yet come, they have emerged from the enslavement of mortar and bricks, and I will give them the Torah? Rather, let My children be indulged for two or three months with manna, a spring, and quails, and then I will give them the Torah.’ When? In the third month. Rabbi Beivai, Rabbi Aivu, and Rabbi Huna said in the name of Rabbi Yitzḥak bar Maryon: At the time when they departed from Egypt, the Israelites were worthy to enter the Land immediately, but the trees were ancient, from the days of Noah. The Holy One blessed be He said: Shall I bring the Israelites into a wasteland? Rather, I will take them on a circuitous path through the wilderness for forty years so that the Canaanites will rise and chop down the old ones and plant new ones, so [the Israelites] would enter the land and find it filled with blessings. Rabbi says: Even for matters of transgression it is “beautiful in its time.”46“He made everything beautiful in its time” alludes to the fact that even the effect of a transgression is influenced by its timing.
