Why Is the Universe So Vast? A Jewish Perspective on Humanity’s Place in Creation

While many agree that humanity stands at the center of creation, they may still ask: if the human being is the crown of creation, why is the universe so immense, while we are so small? Why didn’t God create a world more proportionate to our size and importance?

The Universe as the Palace of the King

Imagine the universe as a royal palace — grand, magnificent, and infinitely intricate — for it was built to honor the King of Kings. Such splendor befits only the Almighty. This vast palace, the universe, was not made to impress humanity but to glorify its Creator. This doesn’t diminish our value in the slightest, as we are the honored guests.

Just as a wise king pays attention not to the walls of his palace but to the guests he invites, so too does God focus on the souls who dwell within His universe. Each guest — each human being, can rejoice in knowing that the King loves him personally and grants him His attention amid all the majesty of creation.

Earth: The Chamber Prepared for Humanity

Like any gracious host, God prepared a special chamber — our planet Earth, for His honored guests. The Torah describes how the Earth was shaped step by step to become habitable: “And the earth was void and desolate… And God said, ‘Let the waters gather… and let the dry land appear’” (Bereishit 1:2,9). “And God blessed them and said, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it’” (Bereishit 1:28).

Before humanity appeared, the Earth was chaos and emptiness. God transformed it into a perfect dwelling — a masterpiece of life and balance, specifically designed for human beings.

The Talmudic Parable: The Palace and Its Guests

The sages compared this to a parable: “A king built a palace, furnished it, and prepared a banquet, and only afterward invited guests” (Sanhedrin 38a).

The same parable includes a lesson in humility: if the guest becomes arrogant, the King reminds him “a mere gnat preceded you in creation.” We must remember our smallness, even within the splendor prepared for us.

The Modern Worldview: Between Ego and Emptiness

In our age, two opposing worldviews compete for dominance:

1. The individualist and capitalist view — glorifies the self, treating the individual as the center of everything. Like a spoiled child, it demands that the universe revolve around personal comfort and recognition. This leads to pride, frustration, and ingratitude when reality refuses to comply.

2. The collectivist or communist view — in its extreme form, it erases the individual entirely, reducing each person to a mere cog in a vast, indifferent machine. This worldview breeds alienation, loss of meaning, and disregard for human life.

The Jewish Balance: Dignity and Humility

Judaism offers a profound middle path. It teaches that the individual has no independent significance apart from the Creator — yet in relationship to God, every individual becomes infinitely precious.
As the sages taught: “Beloved is man, for he was created in the image [of God]” (Pirkei Avot 3:14). And King David declared:
“The Lord is near to all who call upon Him — to all who call upon Him in truth” (Tehillim 145:18).

We are not random guests. We are the King’s own children: “You are children of the Lord your God” (Devarim 14:1). “I have loved you, says the Lord” (Malachi 1:2).

Two Pockets: The Wisdom of Rabbi Simcha Bunim

Rabbi Simcha Bunim of Peshischa taught that every person should carry two notes — one in each pocket. In one pocket: “For my sake was the world created.” In the other: “I am but dust and ashes.”

The art of living lies in knowing which note to take out at the right time. Use the first when you feel small and insignificant, to remind yourself that your life has meaning and divine purpose. Use the second when pride and self-importance threaten to take over, to recall how small we are before the infinite Majesty of the universe.

The Secret of Balance

When you feel tiny and lost within the vastness of creation, remember that you are God’s honored guest, beloved and seen. However, when you begin to feel inflated by your own importance, look up at the endless stars above, and remember how small we truly are within the King’s magnificent palace.

The balance between humility and dignity, is the essence of what it means to be human.