q&a: Omniscience
CBC asked:
"G d is the knower, the object of knowledge, and the knowledge itself. So He knows all, past , future, present. He can't help but know. And yet we have some limited degree of free will. And yet because He is the knower, of course He knows what we will choose. And we often choose wrongly. It all breaks down for me about here. Is it that G d knows what we will choose and yet hopes he is wrong? It sounds ridiculous."
Dear CBC,
I love a thoughtful question. Thank you.
First, G-d’s knowledge extends to all existence, past, present, and future. This is because all existence derives from G-d’s personal attention. Hence if He is constantly creating everything He must also be aware of it.
Secondly, past, present and future are all part of what He creates. He is creating the future or has already created the future.
Now, if you say that He knows the future, you don’t mean that He is predicting the future like some soothsayer. Rather, that He knows the future. How can He know the future if it hasn’t happened yet? There is nothing to know! So knowing the future assumes that a future exists, has already happened and that this is something to know. He already knows it. We won’t know until we get there.
In other words: He doesn’t know what will happen, He sees the future already ‘happened’. He knows what you will choose only because you have already made your choice. He sees you choosing it and it is your free choice that He is observing – He knows your choice now because you have already chosen – in the future, which is for Him, the same as the past.
Your choice, therefore, does not come from His knowledge; His knowledge comes from your choice.
Thanks again for the question
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"G d is the knower, the object of knowledge, and the knowledge itself. So He knows all, past , future, present. He can't help but know. And yet we have some limited degree of free will. And yet because He is the knower, of course He knows what we will choose. And we often choose wrongly. It all breaks down for me about here. Is it that G d knows what we will choose and yet hopes he is wrong? It sounds ridiculous."
Dear CBC,
I love a thoughtful question. Thank you.
First, G-d’s knowledge extends to all existence, past, present, and future. This is because all existence derives from G-d’s personal attention. Hence if He is constantly creating everything He must also be aware of it.
Secondly, past, present and future are all part of what He creates. He is creating the future or has already created the future.
Now, if you say that He knows the future, you don’t mean that He is predicting the future like some soothsayer. Rather, that He knows the future. How can He know the future if it hasn’t happened yet? There is nothing to know! So knowing the future assumes that a future exists, has already happened and that this is something to know. He already knows it. We won’t know until we get there.
In other words: He doesn’t know what will happen, He sees the future already ‘happened’. He knows what you will choose only because you have already made your choice. He sees you choosing it and it is your free choice that He is observing – He knows your choice now because you have already chosen – in the future, which is for Him, the same as the past.
Your choice, therefore, does not come from His knowledge; His knowledge comes from your choice.
Thanks again for the question
RMF
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posted by Scruz | 6:13 PM
8 Comments:
but HE made me choose that choice HE still knows wat i chose... wats the diffrence than between free choice and hashgocho protis.? so if you did end up choosing the wrong choice then its hashgocho protis right? so then really nothing is wrong or bad?
Rabbi Friedman:
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my question. I really appreciate it.
CBC
Dear Esther:
What is "hashgocho protis?"
Thank you,
CBC
it means devine providence... that everything that happends is for the good!
Dear Esther,
Chazal say, "Everything is in the hands of heavan except for the fear of heaven."
That means that Hashem (G-d) removes His hand from the choices we must make if the choice involves our fear of heaven, or the lack thereof.
ok but he still knows what were going to choose and the fact that we chose the right or wrong choice is hashgacho protis...
I don't think choosing right from wrong is determined by divine providence. Perhaps most other things are, like where we live, who we marry, the work we do, most everything else. In fact just about the ONLY thing we have real choice about is right and wrong. That's how i understand it.
CBC
well then everything in this world is not for the good? and that means that not everything is forr the good?
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