The idea that God rewards those who fulfill His commandments and punishes those who do not, is mentioned continuously in the Bible. These mentions are made despite how difficult it is to prove, since in many cases the righteous suffer and the wicked do well. This question is openly raised in the book of Psalms, in Ecclesiastes and especially in the book of Job, which deals with the subject in depth. Despite how difficult it is to find an answer, the basic belief in the concept of reward and punishment did not affect the fact that in many biblical passages it is mentioned that bad behavior affects not only the whole people, but also individuals. In all cases there is talk of reward and punishment here on Earth and in this life.

This changes in the Maccabean era, when men and women were killed for being loyal to the Jewish faith. In view of this clear contradiction, the sages began to address the concept that reward and punishment are not only here and now, but that they will primarily occur in the World to Come, the Olam Hava, where the soul of the person is supposed to arrive upon death. Maimonides emphasizes this point in his writings and incorporates it as one of the basic principles of Judaism. To this change is added the rabbinical concept that what we do in this world is to accumulate points so that our soul will do well in the world to come (Pirkei Avot 4:22).

Many thinkers of the Middle Ages dealt with the subject. Some understood that the ideal is for people to fulfill the commandments out of their own conviction and out of love for God, rather than for reward or punishment, although the latter was still the concept most accepted by the people.

Belief in the principle of reward and punishment was severely questioned by the Holocaust. The phrase “after Auschwitz” became the code for the position that doubts whether God really rewards and punishes. Richard L. Rubinstein, in his work “After Auschwitz,” is categorical in saying that he can no longer believe in the principle of reward and punishment. But on the other hand, Elie Wiesel maintains a position like that of Job, that of maintaining faith in God. The more conservative sectors maintain that we do not have the capacity to understand Divine Justice, that God does reward and punish, even though we often do not understand it that way.

Some thinkers such as Kohler, Kaplan and Buber say that we should not take the principle of reward and punishment literally and that rather than thinking that it applies to the individual, we should think that it applies to the entire social group. The concept of reward and punishment should be seen in the long term, where good actions lead us to a more just society, while the opposite leads us to a world full of evil.

Fulfilling the commandments for their intrinsic value, rather than for the expectation of reward or punishment, is more praiseworthy and attests to a person’s commitment to his or her values. You fulfill them because you are convinced. It’s that simple.

Prepared by Marcos Gojman

Bibliography: “The Jewish Religion, a Companion,” by Louis Jacobs and other sources.