163. “I said to him, you have certainly etc.” I said to him: You have certainly spoken well, that there are those like Him in Israel. Who revives the dead? Is it the Holy One, blessed be He, alone? Elijah and Elisha came and revived dead. Who brings rainfall? Is it the Holy One, blessed be He, alone? Elijah came and withheld them, and [subsequently] brought them down with his prayer. Who makes heaven and earth? Is it the Holy One, blessed be He, alone? Abraham came, and the heaven and earth continued to endure on his account.

Explanation: Rabbi Shimon explained to him that he is undoubtedly correct, that there are others like Him in Israel; “you have certainly spoken well.” And yet, this does not at all contradict our simple faith that no thought can grasp [Him] in any way whatsoever. He “rules over the entire expanse of the heavens,” i. e., not even the loftiest angels can grasp Him “or know His place.” However in counterpart to that, He has given us Torah and the commandments, for by engaging in the Torah and the commandments for their own sake Israel merit to truly cleave to Him. His Divine Presence is enclothed in them until they perform the same deeds as the Creator: They revive the dead, cause rainfall, sustain the heavens and earth, and so on. From this perspective they are actually like Him, which is the mystical meaning of: “Through Your actions we know You.” Yet they attain all this only through a complete and simple faith, for they do not even contemplate grasping Him by means of their wisdom, in the manner of the wise men of the nations.