Does G-d Tell Us When He is Displeased?

Dear Rabbi

If a person loses a court case, or things seem to be going poorly for him, is that any indication that G‑d is displeased with the individual?

Answer:

Most of us experience times when hardships seem to pile up, and it’s only natural to wonder if G‑d is sending us a message.

I found two passages, one from the Talmud and one from Maimonides, which may help answer your question.

According to the Talmud:

If one sees that troubles are befalling him, let him inspect his deeds; if he finds nothing to warrant them, he should attribute them to the neglect of Torah study; if this too is not there, he may know that these are “suffering due to love,” as it says (Proverbs 3:12), “he who G‑d loves does He chastise.”1

Maimonides writes:

It is a positive duty to cry out... for any trouble that may befall the community... This practice is one of the paths of repentance, when a difficulty arises, and the people cry out [to G‑d]... everyone realizes that it is on account of our wicked deeds that it has gone badly for us... This will bring about that this trouble will be removed. But if we do not cry out... but say “What has happened to us is merely a natural phenomenon and this difficulty is merely a chance occurrence,” this is a cruel conception of things, causing us to cleave to our evil deeds. Thus, this time of distress will lead to further distresses...2

We see from Maimonides’ explanation that suffering alerts us to the need to look at ourselves closely and assess our conduct. Difficulties give us a chance to consider that everything comes from G‑d. Hardship also allows us to practice introspection so that we might determine (on our own, or with the help of a mentor) which part of our conduct needs improvement.

Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi explains that hardship is a springboard for spiritual growth. G‑d is assisting us in recognizing our faults, arousing us to clean up our act, since, in His love for us, G‑d does not want us to maintain a destructive lifestyle in a spiritual wasteland. The anguish we find ourselves in is for our own benefit, and an indication of G‑d’s love for us.3

Thus, experiencing a good spell or bad period are not definite signals that G‑d is pleased or displeased with us. When something negative happens, it is a sign not of G‑d’s displeasure, but of His concern for our good. Using the negative experience as motivation for self-improvement is not to avoid punishment, but to hear the real message that G‑d is sending us, which is that He cares about our physical and spiritual well-being, and so should we.

I hope things turn around for you and the hardships are resolved quickly and painlessly.

See Is My Friend Sick Because He Sinned?

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3 Comments

Susan Levitsky February 18, 2012

treading on dangerous ground The Shoah proves that nobody knows what God is thinking, including the sages. Certainly all the little children who were murdered were not responsible for their fate by their doing or not doing something to displease God. They did not need to look inside themselves to assess their conduct.
This whole discussion implies the Jews who died were guilty of some unknowable deed against God. Since it is impossible to know, we should just say we don't know instead of second guessing what God may or may not think. Reply

Anonymous Barcelona, Spain February 17, 2012

G-d is always more merciful than we deserve Divine providence implies that all G-d's deeds are for the best, even if it does not look like it. G-d's primary motivation in sending trouble is love for His creatures. This is meant for correction and preparation for blessings. Remember that G-d always acts according to His compassion meaning that any judgement which comes on us is infinitely smaller than our acts really deserve, any trouble you face is actually only a fraction of what you really deserve. Also important to realize is that G-d never sends a decree without prior warning. Sometimes you see the threat of trouble before the trouble actually occurs, and that's the moment to return to G-d, like with the Purim story. The threat was there before the disaster occured, when the Jews fasted and repented the decree was lifted. Think also about the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem. The threat was there but disaster never came because Jews returned to G-d. Reply

Beatriz Brownsville February 17, 2012

Hardship means G-d is displeased? Rabbi, thanks for your explanation on the subject. This question has troubled me for some time. Totally understood is neither His displeasure or pleasure with us, is but a "pointing in the right direction" by G-d, a message that we should stop, reconsider, reflect, assess our own conduct, figure out which part of our behaviour needs improvement - try to hear the real message G-d is trying to send us because He cares for us.
Also love the idea of using a negative experience as a motivation for self improvement and spiritual growth.
Again Rabbi, thanks for yourwise words. They really helped me. Reply

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