Knowing

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Knowing and Intimacy

TANAKH

The intimate relationship between Adam and Eve highlights the connection between human procreation and divine assistance. The book of Genesis recounts the moment when Adam and Eve conceive their first child, Cain, acknowledging God's role in the process.

Now the Human knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gained a person with the help of יהוה.”

Genesis 4:1

The Limits of the Knowable

JEWISH THOUGHT

Rabbi Joseph Albo's 15th-century philosophical work, Sefer HaIkkarim, explores the limits of the knowable and the unknowable and the implications for faith, happiness, and reason.

All belief does not lead to happiness. Thus belief in the impossible does not produce happiness. No one doubts that belief which makes a man happy must be belief in the truth, not belief that a non-existing thing exists or that an existing thing does not exist. The question therefore arises, how can we tell whether a thing is true and demands implicit belief or is not true and should not be believed. If we say that the question must be determined by reason, it will follow that ratiocination stands higher than faith, which contradicts what was laid down before…

Sefer HaIkkarim, Maamar 1 22:1-3

Abraham's Deep Knowing

KABBALAH

Abraham's decision to leave the land and go to Egypt was driven by a profound understanding of his unusually profound understanding of the nature of reality, and in this case, specifically the need for the land to be corrected. The Zohar, a foundational work of Jewish mysticism, delves into Abraham's spiritual mission.

How did Abram know that the land was still defective? Because it was said to him, UNTO THY SEED WILL I GIVE THIS LAND. From this Abram knew that the land would not be invested with its appropriate holiness save through the grades of holiness which would be exhibited by his offspring.

Zohar, Lech Lecha 10:75

Does God Know?

TANAKH

The question of whether God truly knows and is involved in human affairs challenges is a longstanding theological debate. The Book of Psalms, an anthology of 150 poems, includes an articulation of this eternal question.

Then they say, “How could God know?
Is there knowledge with the Most High?”

Psalms 73:11

Solomon's Wise Judgment

SECOND TEMPLE

King Solomon's wisdom is legendary. In 'The Antiquities of the Jews' Josephus, a first-century Jewish historian, recounts a famous biblical story where King Solomon uses a unique method of discerning the true mother in a difficult judgment case.

2. In these days a hard cause came before him in judgment, which it was very difficult to find any end of; and I think it necessary to explain the fact about which the contest was, that such as light upon my writings may know what a difficult cause Solomon was to determine, and those that are concerned in such matters may take this sagacity of the king for a pattern, that they may the more easily give sentence about such questions. There were two women, who were harlots in the course of their lives, that came to him…

The Antiquities of the Jews 8:2:2

Mysteries Beyond Human Comprehension

MIDRASH

Human knowledge has inherent limitations. The early fifth-century midrash, Bereshit Rabbah, a talmudic-era midrashic work on the book of Genesis, offers insights into the themes of mortality and the limits of human comprehension.

“He said: Behold, I have now grown old; I do not know the day of my death” (Genesis 27:2).
Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa said: When a person reaches the age of his parents, five years before or five years after, he should be concerned about death, as Isaac said: ‘If I will reach the years of Father, now there are many remaining; if I will reach the years of my mother: “He said [to him]: Behold, I have now grown old; I do not know the day of my death.”
It is taught: There are seven matters that are obscured from people: The day of [their] death; the day of consolation…

Bereshit Rabbah 65:12

The Importance of Knowing The Laws

MUSAR

Knowing the laws of proper speech is important in order to not only to avoid transgressions but also to ensure one does not mistakenly forbid themselves from speaking out against harmful individuals. The Chafetz Chaim’s Shemirat HaLashon provides detailed guidance on when it is a mitzvah to speak negatively to protect the community.

And another benefit of knowing the dinim — on the reverse side — is not to be overstringent with oneself and forbid [oneself from speaking lashon hara] where it is a mitzvah to demean someone [i.e., a heretic], so that he not corrupt the public with his deceitful views. [For yet another benefit, see the Preface of the Chafetz Chaim.]

Shemirat HaLashon, Book I, Introduction 15

Acknowledging God's Sovereignty

COMMENTARY

The plagues and the liberation from Egypt were designed to make both Egyptians and Israelites recognize God's sovereignty and His compassion toward the oppressed. Everett Fox’s essays on the Five Books of Moses delve into the importance of knowing, emphasizing God's awareness of the slaves' sufferings.

know—The Plagues and the liberation take place so that Egyptian and Israelite alike will acknowledge God as the true ruler (who “knows” the slaves’ sufferings). The book as a whole portrays a God who is “known” by his compassion toward the oppressed.

The Five Books of Moses, by Everett Fox, Exodus, On the Book of Exodus and Its Structure 28

The Democratization of Knowledge

COMMENTARY

Knowledge has historically been controlled by elites as a way of maintaing power, but Judaism democratized this power by making Torah study accessible to all. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explores how the Jewish tradition of sharing knowledge contrasts with historical practices.

This idea goes so far back and so deep in Judaism that we can easily forget how radical it is. Knowledge – in the phrase commonly attributed to Sir Francis Bacon – is power. Those who have it are usually reluctant to share it with others. Most societies have had literate elites who controlled the administration of government. To this day, many professions use a technical vocabulary intelligible only to insiders, so that their knowledge is impenetrable to outsiders.

Covenant and Conversation; Deuteronomy; Renewal of the Sinai Covenant, V'Zot HaBerachah, The Inheritance That Belongs to All 12

Knowledge and False Oaths

TALMUD

The Talmudic tractate Shevuot explains that liability for a false oath depends on whether knowledge of the testimony preceded the oath.

The Sages taught: I administer an oath to you that when you will know testimony relevant to me you will come and testify on my behalf; in such a case one might have thought that they would be liable. Therefore, the verse states: “And he heard the voice of an oath and he is a witness or he saw or he knew” (Leviticus 5:1). One is liable to bring an offering for a false oath only in a case where knowledge of the testimony preceded the oath, and not in a case where the oath preceded knowledge of the testimony.

Shevuot 35a:10

The Centrality of Wisdom and Knowledge

COMMENTARY

Ramban, a 13th-century Jewish scholar, quotes a text known as "The Great Wisdom of Solomon" which offers that wisdom and knowledge are more valuable than material power and status.

Now I have seen the Aramaic translation of the book called The Great Wisdom of Solomon, and in it is written: “There is nothing new in the birth of a king or ruler; there is one entrance for all people into the world, and one exit alike. Therefore I have prayed, and the spirit of wisdom was given to me, and I have called out and the spirit of knowledge came to me; I chose it above scepter and throne.”

Ramban on Genesis, Foreword 11

The Necessity of Awareness in Ritual Purity

GUIDES

To be held liable for unwitting transgressions related to ritual impurity, one must have an initial basic awareness of the prohibition. The Babylonian Talmud, a talmudic-era midrashic work on the book of Genesis, delves into the nuances of Jewish law, including the conditions under which one is held accountable for ritual impurity.

The precise wording used by the Torah teaches that one is liable to bring an offering for unwittingly entering the Temple in a state of ritual impurity or unwittingly partaking of sacrificial foods in a state of ritual impurity, only if initially he was aware of the basic components of the prohibition, and afterward he forgot them, and in the end he was notified about what he had done. His initial awareness need not include the finer details, e.g., the source of his ritual impurity or its measure, but he must have basic knowledge that he was impure.

Introductions to the Babylonian Talmud, Shevuot, Summary of Perek II 1

Solomon Teaches Knowledge

TARGUM

Solomon's role in teaching and disseminating knowledge to the people of Israel is central to understanding Jewish wisdom literature. The Aramaic Targum to Ecclesiastes offers an interpretive translation that highlights Solomon's prophetic inspiration and his authorship of proverbs.

9. And more than all people, Solomon, who was called Kohelet, was wise and also he taught the people of Israel knowledge, and he listened to the voice of the wise and explored the books of wisdom,and by the spirit of prophecy from 'ה , he prepared wisdom books and independently very many clever proverbs.

Aramaic Targum to Ecclesiastes 12:9

Beyond Memorization

HALAKHAH

True knowledge involves understanding the underlying principles and necessity behind facts, not just memorizing them. Rabbi J. David Bleich, in his series 'Contemporary Halakhic Problems,' emphasizes the importance of internalizing and comprehending the reasons behind religious practices.

We can repeat like poll parrots that God is the Creator of the universe, that He is possessed of this, that and the other attribute, that the Deity is capable of x, y and z, but the fulfillment of the mizvah does not lie therein. A student can memorize the Pythagorean Theorem: a² + b² = c². He can then employ that proposition in solving various mathematical problems involving triangles. But does the student necessarily understand why it is that a² plus b² equals c²? Does he further understand that not only does…

Contemporary Halakhic Problems, Vol VI, Chapter 3 In the Wake of Birkat ha Hammah 5769 29

Knowing God's Sovereignty

LITURGY

The Aleinu prayer emphasizes the importance of recognizing and proclaiming a specific truth about God's sovereignty. This central prayer, recited at the conclusion of the three daily services, expresses gratitude for the unique relationship between God and the Jewish people.

And You shall know this day

Weekday Siddur Sefard Linear, The Morning Prayers, Aleinu 175

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