Kinah 18: Promises

“And You have said, “I will surely do good with you!”
“So, why, when worthless men desecrated Your Name,
did You fail to pour out Your fury upon them?

This Kinah reminds me of a poem written by Rabbi Abraham Ibn Ezra almost 1,000 years ago about the false promises of life, and I wonder what happens when we begin to feel that God is not keeping His promises; we can survive anything but not the loss of our faith:

The Promises of The World

The promises of the world are lies,
Her love and her friendship are feigned.
Wealth she bestows, but as a snare,
And upon her heights she stretches her nets.

To the gaze, she appears a very tree of life,
But her most precious fruits are the gifts of death.

Her words seem like cool, refreshing water,
But they scald; for between her cheeks is a caldron.

Oh, what path shall a creature choose, to keep his life,
When the very days are watchmen that count his steps?

And where shall a mortal flee, when his
journeying is ceaseless,
And his resting in the hands of Fate?

Author Info:
Learn & discover the Divine prophecies with Rabbi Simcha Weinberg from the holy Torah, Jewish Law, Mysticism, Kabbalah and Jewish Prophecies. The Foundation Stone is the ultimate resource for Jews, Judaism, Jewish Education, Jewish Spirituality & the holy Torah.