Free Will Influences the Outcome of Life
If one plays dice, at long run he can expect that the ration of favorable versus unfavorable numbers can be equal. If however, he casts only unfavorable numbers, while someone else enjoys only favorable ones, we can suspect that there is an “inside job”, that is to say, the outcome has been predetermined. What do we mean by that? We will explain it in our study of the weekly Torah portion Va’yelech, “And he went out” (Deuteronomy 31:1-30).
Devarim, “Words” (“Deuteronomy” in the Christian Bibles), of Mosheh spans the last days of his life. Knowing that he would soon die, he understood that the time had now come for him to say his “Good-bye” to the people.
The first verse of Va’yelech, “And he went out”, tells us that Mosheh went out on this last day of his life and walked through the entire camps of Israel to bid farewell to the children of Israel and to them over his impending death. He wanted to assure them that they had nothing to fear after his death, but that they should support their new leader Yehoshua in his efforts to cleanse the Land they were about to enter from the idolatry of the heathens. These are the words of the last address of Mosheh to the nation uttered on the day of his death, saying,
I am a hundred and twenty years old this day. I can no longer go out and come in; and the Eternal has said to me: You shall not go over this Yarden. (Deuteronomy 31:2)
When Torah saw fit to tell us that Mosheh was 120 years old “this day” or “today”, it meant to say that this day was the exact day that his years have become complete. On this very day he was born, and on this day he died. Mosheh lived 120 years (Deu 34:7) and died on his 120th birthday. The people wept for him 30 days (Deu 34:8) and then entered the land.
It is possible interpret the lifespan of this great man the way the Sages did that the 120 years Mosheh lived corresponded to the 120 days he spent on Mount Sinai; a year for a day. During the first 40 days on the mountain, he received the first set of tablets of the Covenant. During the second 40 days, he pleaded for the Eternal to forgive the people the sin of the golden calf, and the third 40 days he spent with the Lord in order to receive the second set of tablets.
And the Eternal said to Mosheh,
Behold, the days have drawn near for you to die. Call Yehoshua, and present yourselves in the Tent of Meeting, so that I command him. And Mosheh and Yehoshua went and presented themselves in the Tent of Meeting. (Deuteronomy 31:14)
Up to this moment, Mosheh was leading the people through the desert for 40 years. He knew, however, that he would not lead the nation into the Promised Land, because he lost his temper at the Rock. And now the leadership of the nation had passed from Mosheh to his disciple Yehoshua.
According to the plain meaning of the text “the days have drawn near for you to die” teaches that the lifespan man has to live seems to have been predetermined, meaning every single human being has a time allotted to live and a time allotted to him to die. This corresponds to the words said previously that the Creator will ensure that men complete the number of his years, as the Creator of life sees to it that every person lives out the time allotted at birth. We derive this from the life and death of the patriarch Ya’akov. He lived a hundred forty and seven years out of which seventeen years were in the land of Egypt. We read thus,
And the time drew near that Israel must die. And he called his son Yoseph and said to him: ‘If now I have found favor in your sight, put, I pray you, your hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me. Bury me not, I pray you, in Egypt. (Genesis 47:28-29)
At the end of his life, the years of his lifetime totaled one-hundred forty-seven years. Thus, Ya’akov did not live as long as Avraham (175 years) or his father Yitschak (180 years).
Ya’akov made his son swear by the sign of the covenant, which was stamped on his flesh, the sign of circumcision, as we explained elsewhere. Yoseph lived the first 17 years of his life under the care of his father, while his father lived the last 17 years of his life under the care of Yoseph. Because the Torah saw fit to tell us that Ya’akov lived the last 17 years of his life in Egypt, and we know that Yoseph lived 17 years with his father before he was sold in Egypt, it appears that the most important part of Ya’akov’s life was thirty-four years. This teaches that if children keep their parents alive longer by ensuring that they can enjoy their old age, the Creator in return will compensate the children for their service in a similar manner: Ya’akov had provided for Yoseph during the first 17 years of his life, and Yoseph repaid his father by providing for him during the last 17 years of his life. Yoseph ruled in Egypt for another 54 years during which all of his descendants enjoyed complete freedom.
And further in the Book of Exodus we read,
And you shall serve the Eternal your Elohim, and He shall bless your bread and your water. And I shall remove sickness from your midst. None shall miscarry or be barren in your land. I shall fill the number of your days. (Exodus 23:25-26)
As we know already from Genesis 47:29, the Torah speaks about the approaching death of the patriarch. But similarly, we are told that the time for David to die approached. We read from 1 Kings thus,
And the days of David drew near to die, and he commanded Shelomoh his son, saying, “I am going the way of all the earth. And you shall be strong and be a man. And guard the Charge of the Eternal your Elohim to walk in His ways, to guard His laws, His commands, His ordinances, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Torah of Mosheh, so that you do wisely all that you do and wherever you turn. (1 Kings 2:1-3)
These verses from the Torah and Kings teach that such times had been determined by the Creator of life already at birth. However, He may lengthen the allotted lifespan of humans as a reward for merits which they have accumulated during their lives. When Yerushalayim was under siege by the Assyrians, at this crucial moment of the Southern Kingdom, King Chizkiyahu had 15 years added to his life although the prophet Isaiah had been sent to him to prepare him for his last will as the king was not going to recover from his sickness. But Chizkiyahu prayed and the Eternal responded by revoking the decree he had been subject to. The story of King Chizkiyahu provides proof for the fact that the Supernal may change even decrees of death even though it was announced by one of His prophets at His command. We read from the Book of Isaiah,
Go, and say to Chizkiyahu: Thus says the Eternal, the Elohim of David your father: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add to your days fifteen years. And I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city. (Isaiah 38:5-6)
At the same time, however, we also know that when the occasion justifies it, the Giver of life can reduce the number of years, and the allotted life may be reduced due to faults the people have become guilty of. Such is the case of Achazyah King of Israel, son of Achav. The reason he had his life span shortened was that when he fell ill, instead of turning to Elohim or to His prophet, he turned to idols to inquire about his chances of a recovery (2King 1:16). The wicked king was told clearly that he would die, because he had turned to Ba’al Zevuv, the god of Akron, disregarding the presence of the prophets in Israel. We read,
Thus says the Eternal: Forasmuch as you have sent messengers to inquire of Ba’al-zevuv, the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His word? Therefore, you shall not get from the bed to which you have gone up but shall surely die. So, he died according to the word of the Eternal which Eliyahu had spoken. (2 Kings 1:16-17)
Mosheh is explicitly credited with writing one Psalm in the Hebrew Scripture: Psalm 90. In the Hebrew text, the title of Psalm 90 reads: “A Prayer of Mosheh, the man of God”. While only Psalm 90 bears his name, Talmudic tradition (Bava Batra, Midrash Tehillim, Rashi) attributes 10 additional Psalms (91 through 100) to Mosheh. There is an ancient Rabbinic principle, according to which, any anonymous Psalm that follows an attributed Psalm is understood to belong to the author named previously, until a new author’s name appears (which occurs at Psalm 101, attributed to David). Hence, Psalms 91 through 100 are traditionally attributed to Mosheh. From Psalm 90, “A Prayer of Mosheh, the man of God”, which asserts that the days of man are predetermined at birth, we read thus,
The days of our lives are seventy years, or if due to strength, eighty years. Yet the best of them is but toil and exertion. For it is soon cut off, and we fly away. Who knows the power of Your displeasure? And your wrath, according to the fear of You? Teach us to number our days and let us bring the heart to wisdom. (Psalms 90:10-12)
The important thing that can be derived from the above examples is that no one lives longer or dies earlier unless the Creator has so determined. 70 or 80 years are set for man to live. Every day above that is a pure gift of the Giver of life. For He reserves the right He only has to lengthen or shorten the lifespan decreed for man at birth. Indeed, the general decree that the lifespan of man is determine at birth is set by the Creator, yet the free will of man may influence the outcome of his life, as it is proclaimed at the mountain: “Respect your father and your mother, so that your days are prolonged upon the soil which the Eternal your Elohim is giving you”. (Exodus 20:12)
Suggested reading: “The Predestination vs Free Will Paradox” from the weekly Torah portion Nitsavim, “You stand” (Deuteronomy 29:9(10)-30:20).
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