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Crying over the Destruction

The lamentations of Jeremiah the prophet

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Crying over the Destruction: The lamentations of Jeremiah the prophet

Says the prophet Jeremiah in Lamentations, “For these things I weep.” Where were the rest of the Jewish people when Jeremiah was mourning the destruction of the Holy Temple?

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Three Weeks, Jeremiah, Tisha B’Av, Destruction of Holy Temple, Lamentations

By Shimon Hecht

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7 Comments

abey July 29, 2015

No wonder the Talmud is a book of speculations. God does not speculate if one is to know the meaning of the word "God". Mistaken identity. Reply

Rabbi Shimon Hecht via mychabad.org December 9, 2012

To: Shterna G. from brooklyn I know this is a late response, but better late than never.

In answer to your question, yes, G-d actually does fill in for our imperfections, too. Anytime you read a Maamar Chazal such as, “Hashem joins the good thought to the deed,” or, “Open for me the size of a needle, and I’ll extend it to the size of a banquet hall” (in connection with Teshuvah), or “If one transgressed against a positive precept but has repented, he is parted on the spot,” G-d is filling in for you.

Thank you for your comment. I hope this email clarified things. If concepts are still not clear, feel free to contact me. All the best. Reply

Rabbi Shimon Hecht via mychabad.org December 9, 2012

To: Anonymous from Miami I know this is a late response, but better late than never.

In answer to your question, no I did not say that G-d made a mistake. G-d said so Himself. I just quoted Him. In the Gemara that I mention, G-d tells us to offer a sacrifice to atone for His sin. In the class, I toned down the verbiage to “mistake,” and even then I explicitly made sure to preface the terminology with “kavayachol- so to speak.” I explained then that even if G-d says about Himself that He made a mistake/sinned, it is by no means comparable to a human version of a mistake/sin.

Thank you for your comment. I hope this email clarified things. If concepts are still not clear, feel free to email me back. All the best. Reply

ber yahud, israel July 29, 2012

This is terrible the speaker is saying that Gd makes mistakes, and has conversations with the finite moon, in which the moon befuddles Gd's logic, or that Gd realizes his mistake in making the moon too stupid. If Gd is infinite that he knows all logic of everything before and after time even started. If man is finite, and the moon is finite, then what is the difference between man talking to Gd casually and the moon doing so? Lastly it's not physically possible for the moon to be as big as the sun, without becoming a sun it's self. Reply

Anonymous miami, fl July 28, 2012

mistake i heard shimon hecht say Hashem makes mistakes, please explain I don't agree, people make mistakes not Hashem. Reply

Paulin phoenix, Arizona July 26, 2012

Smallness,Thickness. G-D made the moon small and it was so thick, it couldn't understand what G-D was saying.....Sounds like Israel! Reply

shterna g bklyn, n.y. July 26, 2012

very interesting can we also conclude that if we must make up for the Almighty's so called "imperfections", the Almighty should make up for ours? I feel like you just "scratched the surface" and there is much more to this. Hope you continue to enlighten us. Reply

Crying over the Destruction: The lamentations of Jeremiah the prophet

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