[Avodah] Changing God's Mind

[Michael Makovi]

> Let's define change.
>
> Change is what we call it when the state of something at one point in
> time is different than it was at an earlier one.
>
> The Borei created time, He is not within it. Thus, no two points of time
> in which to change His state. It's not simply that He's unchanging, it's
> that there is no way to even define change WRT the A-lmighty.
>
> Similarly, Hashem seeing "now" what will happen, or His choosing not to,
> is meaningless. Hashem -- now?
>
> Tir'u baTov!
> -Micha

This is true, but also not true, IMO.

True, G-d is outside of time; He sees all of time at one glance, the
as one can see an entire scene and all its details in one view.

Nevertheless, when He actually interacts with the world, He *must*
interact with that particular slice of time and place. When He talks
to a prophet, for example, He is talking to the prophet at that
moment; not an hour before and not an hour later, and not a mile in
front and not a mile in back.

I believe I saw this somewhere, but I forget where. I have an deep
feeling that it was somewhere in Rav Hirsch, but I cannot be sure.

Therefore, when our conduct changes at some particular point in time,
then Hashem will change His behavior accordingly.

This would be b'shlama with one who says that Hashem limits His
omniscience and foreknowledge as part of tzimtzum, but it's not
necessary to invoke this. It could just as well be that He absolutely
does know what will happen, but He bases what He does on the
conditions of that time and place and His actual deed takes place at
that time and place.

I feel the Midrash of Yishmael's descendants being murderers (and the
angels saying kill him therefore) but his present being good, and
Hashem judging him based on the present, is a striking support - if
Hashem operates exclusively in timelessness and infinity, then what
was the "now" to which Hashem referred in His question to the angels?
What does "How is Yishmael now, tzadik or rasha?" mean if Hashem
doesn't go by our temporal timeline in His dealings with us?

Mikha'el Makovi