Insight 5773-17: The Challenge of Biblical History

For Va'era
Not yet available on the Nishma website.

Study Question

1) The resultant basic question is thus: how do we then fully understand bechira? The fact is that it does not just represent the possibility of choice but the possibility of choice between good and evil. The further problem with a definition of bechira that is predicated on the possibility of alternative explanations of events would be the need to define one of the choices as evil. If one explains such an event as magic, for example, rather than the action of God -- given a world in which magic exists -- why would such a choice necessarily be an evil one? Has would someone thereby know that they are choosing evil? Simply arguing that bechira is possible because of alternative explanations actually continues the complication for there is still the need to understand not only what is evil but that the one making this choice knows it to be evil.