How Do We Learn from the Torah That Hashem Loves Us? Part 1

Evyatar asks:

"Hello. I see everything Hashem has given us and believe wholeheartedly that He is merciful and gracious, but in the holy Torah I come across frightening verses like 'and He will destroy you,' harsh curses, and the like. It's hard for me to understand this, and it causes me distress. I want to strengthen my faith in Hashem's love and mercy through learning the Torah."

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Hello Evyatar, and thank you for your question.

Let's begin by saying that love is expressed through actions. Hashem has saved the people of Israel countless times throughout history from total destruction, performing miraculous deeds for them that He did not do for any other nation. He subdued our strongest enemies underfoot: "And Hashem saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore" (Exodus 14:30).

Imagine, Hashem saved a nation of impoverished and oppressed slaves subdued under the mighty Egyptian empire. He performed visible signs and wonders for them across the land, avenged their wicked enemies, gave them Egypt's spoils, and then fed and sustained them in the wilderness for 40 years through miracles, appeared before them at Mount Sinai, and delivered into their hands all the nations pursuing them to destroy them. He turned Balaam's curse into blessings upon them and gave them the Torah of Life! Is there a greater love from Hashem to His people?

"You have seen what I did to Egypt, and I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to Myself... and you shall be to Me a treasured possession among all peoples" (Exodus 19:4).

Imagine a king finding a deserted child on the street, rescuing him from hunger and poverty, taking him to his palace, dressing him in royal clothing, and transforming him into a prince taught in wisdom, law, and morality. How immense should be the child's gratitude to the king?

Not only did Hashem save us from the Egyptians, but He also gave us a land flowing with milk and honey—a gift beyond our own capability to acquire. We were a nation of weak and timid slaves, wanderers in the desert without any military training or resources, yet He brought us victory over nations stronger than us, who had been established in their lands for centuries, kings with seasoned warriors and fortified cities. To slaves, He gave a home, and saved us repeatedly from annihilation over thousands of years.

"We are unable to thank before You, Hashem, our God and God of our ancestors, to bless Your name, our King, for one of the thousands of thousands and the millions of millions of favors, miracles, and wonders that You have performed for our forefathers and for us" (Nishmat Kol Chai).

A king might chastise his son with the harshest words, yet the son knows his father loves him deeply, for he gave him everything and did not abandon him despite his rebellion. Hashem's acts demonstrate His evident love for the people of Israel.

Even though the Israelites frequently failed to keep the commandments, whenever they implored Him, they were saved from all their enemies and suffering. The entire book of Judges repeats this cycle. A human father may despair of a rebellious son, but Hashem extends His hands to us and does not give up. History proves that in every generation they rise against us to destroy us, and Hashem saves us from their hand.

This is the fact: all the nations of the Middle East vanished as if they never were, all the ancient Canaanite peoples and all the mighty empires that ruled it. We are the only people in the Middle East who have maintained our identity for 3300 years and have not perished. No empire succeeded in annihilating us; we survived despite them. Our small nation witnessed the fall of the Egyptian empire, Babylonian empire, Persian empire, Greek empire, and Roman empire! We were the weakest nation, but we survived under the protection of the mightiest king only because He loves us. Therefore, Hashem's love is expressed through actions.

Now let us ask a key question: why did Hashem give us the Torah, and why does He rebuke us for our deeds?

It is clear that Hashem gains nothing from His love, for what can a human offer to the King of Kings? He is the Creator of the universe; everything is His and under His dominion. From here we learn a fundamental principle: Hashem's love is unconditional.

Hashem gave us the holy Torah not for His benefit, but for ours—so that we would experience unimaginable happiness. Thus, there is no more precious gift: "to keep the commandments of Hashem and His decrees, which I am commanding you today for your good" (Deuteronomy 10:13). Hashem wished for us to be good, thereby granting us eternal closeness to Him, the greatest happiness in existence and the greatest pleasure of all possible delights. He gave us Torah and mitzvot to refine our hearts, as the sages said: "For what difference does it make to Hashem whether one slaughters from the throat or from the nape? Rather, the mitzvot were given to refine people through them."

From this, we understand clearly that all the verses of rebuke in the Torah were said from love and for a complete good.

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Thus, we have learned about Hashem's deeds, miracles, and salvations which testify to the greatness of His love for the people of Israel. It is also important to know that alongside the verses of rebuke in the Torah, the Tanakh contains many verses of clear love.

(Deuteronomy 4:4): "But Hashem your God chose you to be His treasured people from all the peoples on the face of the earth. Not because you were more numerous than all the peoples did Hashem delight in you and choose you, for you are the fewest of all peoples."

(Deuteronomy 7:8): "Because Hashem loves you."

(Deuteronomy 11:13): "Hashem desired to love them."

(Deuteronomy 23:6): "Because Hashem your God loves you."

(Deuteronomy 4:37): "And because He loved your fathers."

(Deuteronomy 14:1): "You are children to Hashem your God."

(Deuteronomy 8:5): "Know in your heart that just as a man chastises his son, so Hashem your God chastises you."

(Hosea 11:4): "I drew them with human cords, with bands of love."

(Malachi 1): "I have loved you, says Hashem."

Hashem asks each of us: "You shall love Hashem your God with all your heart" (Deuteronomy 6:5). We see that love is very important to our God. One who desires our love undoubtedly loves us as His children. Thus, the Torah compares us in many parables to the children of a loving father who cares for his children and wants to see them prosper and succeed—even when he rebukes them sternly.

You mentioned the curses, but against those harsh curses, there are wonderful blessings of opposite intensity:

"So that you may be strong and enter and possess the land that you are crossing into to possess, and that you may prolong your days on the land which Hashem swore to your fathers to give to them and to their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey... A land of hills and valleys drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land which Hashem your God cares for constantly, His eyes are on it from the beginning of the year to its end... And I will give the rain of your land in its season, the early rain and the late rain, and you will gather your grain, your wine, and your oil, and I will provide grass in your fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied" (Deuteronomy 11:8).

"And it shall be if you diligently listen to these judgments and keep and do them, Hashem your God will keep with you the covenant and the kindness that He swore to your forefathers, and He will love you, bless you, and multiply you, bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your wine and your oil, the increase of your herds and flocks of your sheep on the land which He swore to your forefathers to give you. Blessed shall you be above all peoples; there shall not be a barren male or female among you or your livestock, and Hashem will remove from you all sickness and put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which you knew, upon you, but lay them upon all who hate you" (Deuteronomy 7:12).

"And if you say, 'What shall we eat in the seventh year, since we shall not sow nor gather in our produce?' Then I will command My blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth produce for three years" (Leviticus 25:20).

After observing so many verses of love and blessing, we can understand the verses of rebuke correctly. For instance, when the Torah says "A foolish and unwise people," it certainly doesn't mean to imply that the people of Israel are foolish. We have prior knowledge: we know the context in which the verse was stated, understanding through the parable that a father wants to jolt his son with sharp language to return from his wrong ways, as evidenced in the full verse: "Is this how you repay Hashem, O foolish and unwise people? Is He not your Father, your Creator, who made and established you? Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations. Ask your father, and he will declare to you, your elders, and they will tell you" (Deuteronomy 32:6).

In the full context, the expression is understood, as it did not come out of its context, but sometimes the context needs to be understood in relation to the whole Torah, from the promises made to our ancestors to the prophecies of the end of days!

The reader might misinterpret harsh and difficult words of rebuke if taken out of their overall context. For example, Moses and Aaron were harshly told, "Because you did not believe in Me, to sanctify Me" (Numbers 20:12), but could it be thought that the greatest prophet lacked faith, simply because he struck the rock instead of continuing to speak to it? Clearly, this is exaggerated language, pointing out that Hashem holds the righteous to a very exacting standard (Baba Kamma 50a).

In historical debates, Christians attempted to distort scriptures by presenting verses of rebuke 'against' the people of Israel to claim that God had abandoned His people, saying that Israel was sinful and beyond repair, God forbid. But against verses taken out of context in the Tanakh, it was enough to show them opposite verses such as: "For you are a holy people to Hashem your God, and Hashem has chosen you to be His treasured people among all the peoples on the face of the earth" (Deuteronomy 14:2), "Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people" (Deuteronomy 4:6), "You are children to Hashem your God" (Deuteronomy 14:1), etc., which testify that the Father does not hate His children, God forbid, and will never abandon them: "Yet even so, while they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject or abhor them to utterly destroy them and break My covenant with them, for I am Hashem their God" (Leviticus 26:44).

The logic here is simple: the difficult verses of rebuke can be interpreted in various ways, but the love and mercy statements cannot be interpreted in any way other than revealing love and mercy! A father may hide his love by showing an angry face, but a father who shows open affection certainly does not hide behind them anger and hatred.

"Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people"—it was never expected from a foolish and stupid people; "and you shall be to Me a treasured possession" would not have been said to a people unworthy of such sublime holiness; "Not because you were more numerous than all the peoples did Hashem desireyou and choose you" (Deuteronomy 7:7) testifies that Hashem desires the people of Israel—expressions of intense love that cannot be interpreted otherwise.

Therefore, anyone who knows the verses of love can never take the harsh rebuke verses out of context.

It was important to mention Hashem’s kindness and the verses indicating His evident love for the people of Israel so that you can establish in your mind this primary knowledge before delving into the verses of rebuke. Do not forget this great principle—clearly learned from the Torah. In the next article, I will discuss, God willing, the purpose of rebuke and its importance.