At the same time that Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant is telling the Israelis living in the north that the war there is about to escalate significantly, the news of the day continues to be about negotiations with Hamas.
As Israel continues to try to negotiate the release of the hostages, I am hearing more and more from people about how they wish Israel would stop dallying around and just carpet-bomb Gaza. Or how they believe that most of the hostages are dead, and why are we even negotiating with these terrorists? The world already hates Israel, these people say (which is true), so why not just finish it quickly?
The reason is actually a theological one. Israel is guided in all conflicts by a passage from the Talmud (Sanhedrin 37a): "Whomever saves a single life is considered by Scripture to have saved the whole world. Because we are created in God's image."
This passage is the underlying principle for the actions of the war cabinet and the IDF, and it's the reason that this war seems to be going so slowly. It is especially applicable in this war against the true evils of Hamas.
If there is even a small chance of saving the life of one hostage, it is the religious obligation of Israel to do everything possible to try to save that one life. This is why Israel was willing to trade 240 Arab prisoners for 105 hostages; each of those 105 hostages is considered an entire "world." It is why Israel is now discussing trading hundreds more (Hamas is asking for thousands) for the remaining hostages.
The guidance of the Talmud is the reason that Israel, even without world pressure, has not carpet-bombed Gaza. To do so would kill people who could possibly live and become peaceful neighbors of Israel. Again, even if only one innocent Gazan could be saved, it must be tried. For if saving one life is saving a world, the opposite is also true: to destroy a life is to destroy a world.
This Talmudic principle is also why Israel always attempts to capture rather than kill Hamas soldiers. The second sentence states that the reason for this concept is that we were all created in God's image. Even the Hamas terrorists, who surrendered any semblance of humanity on October 7 and are the modern incarnations of Amalek, the embodiment of evil, were created in God's image. Despite the evil that they personify, each of those terrorists was created by God. Each of them was innocent in their moment of birth, even though they quickly were inculcated into a culture that worships death, destruction, and evil. Out of respect for how they were created, Israel tries whenever possible to avoid killing these terrorists who have corrupted their own souls.
Related: A Hamas Leader Is Killed, but Should We Celebrate?
In the coming days, we are going to be hearing more and more proposals for a hostage negotiation, a cease-fire, an end to the war, etc. When it seems that Israel is giving away too much, we need to remember that it is all based on this religious principle.
Netanyahu and the war cabinet are constantly being faced with difficult decisions. To save a single life is of paramount importance, but at what point does saving that life put many other lives in jeopardy? This is a primary question that each member of the war cabinet is wrestling with.
Before any of us judge their actions, we must remember the complexity of integrating a primary Jewish principle into the necessities of a war against evil. The war cabinet is making decisions about how to proceed in this terrible conflict, and each of the cabinet members is wrestling with this spiritual issue at every moment.
We all need to pray that through self-reflection and God’s guidance, they find the best path in this battle against evil — a path that ultimately leads to a lasting peace for Israel and the region.
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