The Paradox Of Free Will
Introduction
In the third perek of Pirkei Avos (Ethics of the Fathers), the mishna states, “הַכֹּל צָפוּי, וְהָרְשׁוּת נְתוּנָה” – “Everything is foreseen, and free will is given.” Most commentaries understand this mishna to be referring to the philosophical paradox of free will and divine foreknowledge.
Thus, this statement of the mishna, that “Everything is foreseen” and that “free will is given” is seemingly based upon the following underlying assumptions: (1) that Hashem is indeed omniscient and knows the future and (2) that free will is indeed given to man.
The first assumption, Hashem’s omniscience, is a matter that comes up many times throughout Tanach. In Iyov (29:23-24), the pesukim state, “אֱלֹקים הֵבִין דַּרְכָּהּ וְהוּא יָדַע אֶת־מְקוֹמָהּ: כִּי־הוּא לִקְצוֹת־הָאָרֶץ יַבִּיט תַּחַת כָּל־הַשָּׁמַיִם יִרְאֶה” – “God understands the way to it; He knows its source; For He sees to the ends of the earth, observes all that is beneath the heavens.” Later on in Iyov (37:16), the pasuk states, “הֲתֵדַע עַל־מִפְלְשֵׂי־עָב …show more content…
In Yirmiyahu (32:27), the pasuk states, “הִנֵּה אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵי כָּל־בָּשָׂר הֲמִמֶּנִּי יִפָּלֵא כָּל־דָּבָר” – “Behold I am the Lord, the G-d of all flesh. Is anything too wondrous for Me?” On this pasuk, Rashi explains that when Hashem asks “Is anything too wondrous for Me?,” He is rhetorically referring to the future, implying that, of course, Hashem knows the future.
What about the second assumption, that free will is indeed given to man? In Parshas Nitzavim (Deuteronomy 30:15-19), the pesukim state the
In the third perek of Pirkei Avos (Ethics of the Fathers), the mishna states, “הַכֹּל צָפוּי, וְהָרְשׁוּת נְתוּנָה” – “Everything is foreseen, and free will is given.” Most commentaries understand this mishna to be referring to the philosophical paradox of free will and divine foreknowledge.
Thus, this statement of the mishna, that “Everything is foreseen” and that “free will is given” is seemingly based upon the following underlying assumptions: (1) that Hashem is indeed omniscient and knows the future and (2) that free will is indeed given to man.
The first assumption, Hashem’s omniscience, is a matter that comes up many times throughout Tanach. In Iyov (29:23-24), the pesukim state, “אֱלֹקים הֵבִין דַּרְכָּהּ וְהוּא יָדַע אֶת־מְקוֹמָהּ: כִּי־הוּא לִקְצוֹת־הָאָרֶץ יַבִּיט תַּחַת כָּל־הַשָּׁמַיִם יִרְאֶה” – “God understands the way to it; He knows its source; For He sees to the ends of the earth, observes all that is beneath the heavens.” Later on in Iyov (37:16), the pasuk states, “הֲתֵדַע עַל־מִפְלְשֵׂי־עָב …show more content…
In Yirmiyahu (32:27), the pasuk states, “הִנֵּה אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵי כָּל־בָּשָׂר הֲמִמֶּנִּי יִפָּלֵא כָּל־דָּבָר” – “Behold I am the Lord, the G-d of all flesh. Is anything too wondrous for Me?” On this pasuk, Rashi explains that when Hashem asks “Is anything too wondrous for Me?,” He is rhetorically referring to the future, implying that, of course, Hashem knows the future.
What about the second assumption, that free will is indeed given to man? In Parshas Nitzavim (Deuteronomy 30:15-19), the pesukim state the