{"id":73252,"date":"2020-04-13T10:31:32","date_gmt":"2020-04-13T07:31:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=73252"},"modified":"2020-04-13T10:31:32","modified_gmt":"2020-04-13T07:31:32","slug":"joy-and-pain-the-joy-of-pain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/joy-and-pain-the-joy-of-pain\/","title":{"rendered":"Joy And Pain, The Joy Of Pain"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[],"acf":{"old_id":"73252","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":34250,"related_cahpter":"458","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"The complex emotions at seeing divine justice done\r\n\r\n","content":"

According to the Metzudat Tzion commentary, one exclaims \u201cach\u201d (\u05d0\u05d7) over both joy and pain.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is an exclamation Ezekiel is instructed to let loose as part of a physical expression of emotion with odd echoes in a well-known song. God tells him in 6:11 to \u201cclap your hands, and stamp your feet, and shout\u2026\u201d \u2013 not \u201churray,\u201d but \u201cach!\u201d So, is he happy or sad? (Does he know it?)<\/span><\/p>\n

The context being fairly negative \u2013 \u201cvile abominations of the house of Israel,\u201d and the various punishments to be meted out for those abominations \u2013 we might assume the emotion here is one of pain. Malbim, however, sees joy in this \u201cach,\u201d as part of a larger picture of emotional complexity: \u201cstrike his hand and stamp his foot on the ground in anger over the vile abominations of the house of Israel \u2013 but on the other hand, he should say \u2018ach\u2019 and joy over the fact that God will punish them\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Focusing solely on the suffering, one might express pain through hands, feet, and voice. But for Malbim, the prophet is redirected to think of the sins that brought it on \u2013 to be upset about the sins themselves, and also <\/span>glad <\/span><\/i>for the impending punishment.<\/span><\/p>\n

Seems harsh, though perhaps understandable for God\u2019s representative in the very moment of divine retribution.<\/span><\/p>\n

We might, however, suggest a further nuance based on the other instances of the word \u201cach\u201d that Malbim cites to support his contention:<\/span><\/p>\n

1)<\/span>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>Isaiah 44:16 describes various uses for wood: \u201cPart of it he burns in a fire\u2026 roasts meat, he eats the roast and is sated; he also warms himself and cries, \u2018Ach, I am warm! I can feel the heat!\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

2)<\/span>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/span>Psalms 35:21 tells how David\u2019s enemies rejoice when he suffers just as they\u2019d wanted: \u201cThey open wide their mouths at me, saying, \u201cAch, ach, we have seen it!\u201d\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe \u201cach\u201d doesn\u2019t express joy in the general sense, but a sense of satisfaction at finally perceiving what one had been hoping for \u2013 heat, revenge, or in the case of Ezekiel, knowledge of God (as in verses 10, 13, and 14).<\/span><\/p>\n

We don\u2019t often get to see things work out in the world just as we\u2019d like, with everyone getting what we think should be coming to them; life and God are too complex for anyone to claim that knowledge. But within the books of the Bible, particularly the Prophets, things are outlined in much simpler terms: people act, and God rewards or punishes; within the closed framework of the biblical text, reward and punishment are often quite clear. Perhaps Ezekiel\u2019s \u201cach\u201d is intended as a dramatic sigh of contentment at seeing God\u2019s justice play out, and at the accompanying sense of certainty about Him.<\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe the point is to be able to feel it all at once: pain on behalf of his people who are suffering, alongside some sense of satisfaction that God is God and (to echo the song) you know it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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