Want Proof That God Watches Over Us? Here Are Five Reasons

Itzik asks: "I believe there is a Creator of the world who watches over us, but I would like to know the proof of this. Is it possible that Hashem just pressed the 'on button' that created the world and left, similar to how a person can build a chair or table and leave them behind? So how is the world different?"

* * *

Hello and blessings Itzik, and thank you for your question.

I will answer with several responses that complement each other.

1. The Philosophical Answer: God is Infinite - He is everywhere, and therefore does not leave us for a moment.

As our sages said: "Why do they call the Holy One, blessed be He, 'The Place'? Because He is the place of the world, and the world is not His place" (Bereishit Rabbah 68:9). This profound saying teaches us that Hashem is not an entity within the universe ("the world is not His place"), but the entire universe exists within God ("He is the place of the world"). In other words, Hashem is the space within which our world exists! He is the ultimate reality, the Cause of all causes, and from Him alone our material reality exists.

God does not have a body and is not like a person with hands and feet moving from place to place. God is infinite, unlimited, and thus exists everywhere and at all times. He is with the smallest atom just as He is with the largest galaxy. He is blessed; He fills the entire world and never abandons us. Anyone who truly understands this profound concept cannot imagine a reality without supervision.

2. The Scientific Answer: The universe cannot continue to exist without God.

Is there anything real apart from God? God must exist because He is the infinite, the Cause of causes. But everything else in reality does not have to exist. Our world is not like a chair or table - which exist within reality and can exist without their creator. An object, as known, is composed of existing materials, which would continue to exist even without the person who assembled them. For instance, an artist can sculpt a creation from stone and leave it behind. Only because the stone existed before the artist, it can continue to exist even after the artist leaves his creation. The stone never needed the artist to maintain it.

This is not the case with nature: fundamentally, nature was created ex nihilo and did not always exist. The very appearance and existence of the entire creation depend solely on the will of the Creator who chooses to maintain them. There is no other reason beyond God that necessitates the existence of matter. Since creation does not exist by its own merit, the Creator must continuously maintain the universe with His constant will and never abandon it, not even for a moment. This is why we say in prayer every morning: "Who renews in His goodness, every day, continuously, the work of Creation". God renews creation every single day with His constant will - without Him, the universe would revert to chaos and void.

The laws of nature can be compared to electricity flowing to the bulb in your house. Without the electric company, the bulb would immediately go out. So are the laws of nature (responsible for the structure of atoms, molecules, the water cycle, the electromagnetic force, the cosmic fabric, the rotation of stars, gravity, and more). Without the Creator who continues to sustain them, they would cease their operation, and the universe would "go out" immediately.

As we saw in the previous answer, the Creator, blessed be He, is the place of the world - the foundation of all our existence. Therefore, it is clear why without Him, the world would disappear instantly. The very fact that the world continues to operate as usual is also the scientific proof of divine supervision over it. God is with us every moment to preserve creation.

3. The Logical Answer: It makes no sense to create a world and abandon it.

Logic teaches us that a wise person builds for a purpose. For instance, a carpenter builds a chair so that it can be sat upon. A wise person would not build a chair to throw it away and leave. Unlike wisdom, building something purposeless to abandon it.

The Creator who created the universe undoubtedly possesses the highest wisdom there is, and therefore it is clear that He created creation for a great and unparalleled purpose. This purpose cannot be abandonment, for then the universe would be meaningless - contradicting the wisdom of God. As King David taught: "Understand you senseless among the people, and fools, when will you be wise? He who planted the ear, shall He not hear? If He fashioned the eye, shall He not see? He who instructs nations, shall He not rebuke? He who teaches man knowledge! Hashem knows the thoughts of man..." (Psalms 94). Similarly, the prophet says: "He did not create it a waste, He fashioned it to be inhabited" (Isaiah 45:18), and Metzudat David explains: "When He created the earth, He did not create it to be a waste"! Anyone who deeply contemplates the wisdom of creation and studies science and the human body will recognize this simple fact, indicating that the Creator has not forsaken creation.

4. The Spiritual Answer: Man is the crown of creation and not an "object".

One cannot compare a human to a chair or table. A human has a divine soul, possessing a deep, spiritual inner essence; in this, humans differ from any natural force or animal, in their ability to understand the universe, be aware of their creation, and seek God. The Creator, blessed be He, created humans with a spiritual essence and religious sentiments to recognize Him and connect. Therefore, man is in the status of "a child" of Hashem and not in the category of an object or product. Just as no father would abandon his children, so Hashem has not forsaken humanity. The holy Torah teaches us: "And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him" (Genesis 1:27), "You are children of Hashem your God" (Deuteronomy 14:1), "And you shall know with your heart, that as a man chastises his son, so does Hashem your God chastise you" (Deuteronomy 8:5). Hashem is the one who ingrained in our hearts the recognition of the immense love between a parent and the offspring, and He who infused our bodies with a divine soul that originated from the heavens. Therefore, the very existence of humanity proves that the Creator did not abandon creation.

5. The Torah Evidence: The supernatural history of the Jewish people.

As a descendant of the Jewish people, you have countless historical proofs of divine monitoring: the Exodus from Egypt, the Sinai Revelation, the giving of the Torah, and the supernatural preservation of our people from annihilation for 3300 years. All these and more were written in the prophecies of the Tanakh in advance and thus constitute evidence of the direct and supernatural supervision of Hashem over the world and us, as it is said: "For Hashem will not cast off His people, nor will He abandon His heritage" (Psalms 94:14). Through them, we also learn how Hashem directs the entire creation toward the purpose of complete redemption. These evidences and more will prove to you how precious and important the world created for man is. God is always with us.