In kabbalistic thought, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are associated, respectively, with the divine attributes of lovingkindness, strength, and truth. The prooftext for these correspondences, which eventually became commonplace, is Micah 7:20, which begins (addressing God), “You will give truth to Jacob, lovingkindness to Abraham.” But, Ben Greenfield notes, Genesis shows Jacob as practicing deceit: first by disguising himself as his brother Esau to take his blessing, and then by outmaneuvering his avaricious father-in-law Laban. Passivity, even weakness—rather than strength—seem to characterize Isaac. And Abraham does at times display kindness, but:

Abraham’s full story is not at all defined by “kindness” and often runs directly counter to it. How is Avraham the epitome of lovingkindness in raising the blade over his bound son? Where is the lovingkindness in allowing Sarah to torment the lowly maidservant Hagar (Genesis 16:6) or in exiling Hagar and her young child Ishmael into the blazing desert (Genesis 21:14)? . . . The Abraham we know from the actual Torah exemplifies any number of virtues, but lovingkindness is not particularly high on that list.

Greenfield seeks a solution to this paradox by taking a closer look at one of the earliest texts to make these associations, an addendum to the Zohar known as the Zohar Ḥadash (“new Zohar”), first published in the 16th century:

Nothing in the Zohar Ḥadash indicates that the forefathers own, master, or are themselves the source of these virtues. Rather, it asserts that each patriarch “knew God through the looking glass” of these virtues. The virtue is located outside them and is central to their experience, but it is not necessarily something that they themselves embody. As such, it is reasonable to understand this kabbalistic thread as stating that the forefathers repeatedly confront their respective attribute: sometimes exhibiting it, sometimes challenged by it, constantly weighing if and how to bring that virtue into the world.

Perhaps to “know God through the looking glass” of a virtue means to struggle with that virtue. It is possible that Zohar Ḥadash’s intention in this passage is to highlight Jacob’s tendency toward guile (Genesis 27:35 and 34:13) and Isaac’s frequent positions of impotence. This “struggle” read is bolstered by the Zohar Ḥadash’s biblical prooftext of Micah 7:20, a verse that speaks of Jacob and Abraham lacking their respective attributes and which appears in a passage about Jewish spiritual failure.

Indeed, virtues like kindness, strength, and truth cannot possibly be embodied completely by any mortal being.

For some time, opponents of U.S support for Israel have been urging the White House to end the war in Gaza, or simply calling for a ceasefire. Douglas Feith and Lewis Libby consider what such a result would actually entail:

Ending the war immediately would allow Hamas to survive and retain military and governing power. Leaving it in the area containing the Sinai-Gaza smuggling routes would ensure that Hamas can rearm. This is why Hamas leaders now plead for a ceasefire. A ceasefire will provide some relief for Gazans today, but a prolonged ceasefire will preserve Hamas’s bloody oppression of Gaza and make future wars with Israel inevitable.

For most Gazans, even when there is no hot war, Hamas’s dictatorship is a nightmarish tyranny. Hamas rule features the torture and murder of regime opponents, official corruption, extremist indoctrination of children, and misery for the population in general. Hamas diverts foreign aid and other resources from proper uses; instead of improving life for the mass of the people, it uses the funds to fight against Palestinians and Israelis.

Moreover, a Hamas-affiliated website warned Gazans last month against cooperating with Israel in securing and delivering the truckloads of aid flowing into the Strip. It promised to deal with those who do with “an iron fist.” In other words, if Hamas remains in power, it will begin torturing, imprisoning, or murdering those it deems collaborators the moment the war ends. Thereafter, Hamas will begin planning its next attack on Israel:

Hamas’s goals are to overshadow the Palestinian Authority, win control of the West Bank, and establish Hamas leadership over the Palestinian revolution. Hamas’s ultimate aim is to spark a regional war to obliterate Israel and, as Hamas leaders steadfastly maintain, fulfill a Quranic vision of killing all Jews.

Hamas planned for corpses of Palestinian babies and mothers to serve as the mainspring of its October 7 war plan. Hamas calculated it could survive a war against a superior Israeli force and energize enemies of Israel around the world. The key to both aims was arranging for grievous Palestinian civilian losses. . . . That element of Hamas’s war plan is working impressively.