Ten Minutes of Talmud #167 — Rethinking Reward & Punishment — Rabbi Amy Scheinerman

Antigonus of Sokho received [the tradition] from Shimon ha-Tzaddik (Simon the Righteous). He used to say: do not be like servants who serve the master in order to receive a reward, but rather be like servants who serve the master not in order to receive a reward, and let reverence for Heaven be upon you. (Pirkei Avot 1:3)

INTRODUCTION

There is a wonderful tradition of studying Pirkei Avot during the Omer (the period from the second day of Pesach through Shavuot). In many locations, people gather to study Pirkei Avot on Shabbat afternoons during the seven weeks bridging the celebrations of the Exodus from Egypt (Passover) and the Revelation of Torah at Mount Sinai (Shavuot). Pirkei Avot contains a wealth of rabbinic wisdom and insights. It reveals much about the values and theological perspectives of the Sages and serves to launch many marvelous discussions that permit us to ponder and reconsider our personal values and view of God against how we live out our spiritual lives.

Antigonus of Sokho lived some two centuries B.C.E., long before there were rabbis. He was a Pharisee who sported a Greek name, which was not unusual following Alexander the Great’s conquest of Judea in 332 B.C.E. In Pirkei Avot’s effort to document a strong and vibrant path of the transmission of Oral Torah from Sinai to the academies of Eretz Yisrael and Babylonia, Antigonus of Sokho occupies an important spot: he was exposed to Hellenistic ideas, and reflected on both Written Torah (the Five Books of Moses) and the nascent Pharisaic tradition in this teaching that Pirkei Avot preserves for us.

COMMENTARY

Written Torah speaks at length about God’s promised rewards to those who obey the mitzvot, as well as and the punishments that will accrue to those who violate them. Deuteronomy 11:13–21 (second paragraph of Shema) is a prime example: God warns Israel that if they heed the mitzvot, God will bring rain at the proper season, insuring ample harvests and multiplying flocks and herds. If, however, they disobey, God will withhold the rain, resulting in drought and famine. It is worth noting that Torah speaks of reward and punishment in corporate terms: people obey or disobey as the nation, and as a nation they will be rewarded or punished accordingly. 

In time, some prophets hinted that the system of heavenly reward and punishment might operate on an individual level, as well, leading to a theological perspective that holds up God as a cosmic  accountant, recording our mitzvot and aveirot (sins) on a heavenly ledger. This perspective renders reward and punishment not only a national concern, but also a personal matter because it is driven by individual behavior. This latter thinking had taken hold by the time of Antigonus of Sokho.

Antigonus of Sokho understands that we all desire pleasure and reward, and we all wish to avoid pain and punishment. He does not take exception with that set of priorities, but rather directs us to consider our motivation for serving God. If we fulfill the mitzvot purely in expectation of divine reward, we diminish the meaning of obedience to God and are like servants who serve only to receive a reward, and not because service has value beyond the reward. Rather, he encourages us to view our adherence to what we understand to be God’s priorities and values (as expressed through mitzvot) as valuable service rendered for its own sake. He further advises us to always revere God, recommendation that, in context, suggests that pure reverence for God should be our primary motivation for fulfilling the mitzvot.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER AND DISCUSS

1. How do you understand God? (Some consider God a Cosmic Being who controls or intervenes in the events of our world; others think of God in more abstract terms) How do the concepts of reward and punishment fit within your understanding of God? 
2. Reward and punishment can be viewed through the lens of pleasure and pain. The trade-off between pleasure and pain was articulated as long ago as Epicurus (340–270 B.C.E.), who lived several generations before Antigonus of Sokho. Epicurus wrote (Principal Doctrine, 3), “The magnitude of pleasure reaches its limit in the removal of all pain. When pleasure is present, so long as it is uninterrupted, there is no pain either of body or mind or both together.” The 17th century philosopher Thomas Hobbes wrote that human beings naturally incline toward hedonism: to maximize happiness, people maximal their pleasure and avoid pain (at least in the short term). Modern psychologists have measured social decision-making and confirmed the human proclivity to seek pleasure and avoid pain, but they also recognize the human desire to find meaning in what we do, or do not do. On the basis of Epicurus, Hobbes, and modern psychology, one might dismiss biblical reward and punishment, couched as it is in the plural (meaning that we all are rewarded or all punished together) as having no reality. Alternatively, one might reinterpret the notion of divine reward and punishment in accordance with what is most meaningful. What approach do you take?
3. Although he does not say explicitly, it is easy to imagine that Antigonus of Sokho would have us fulfill mitzvot out of love of God, appreciation for the merit of mitzvot, and concern for the impact of our behavior on ourselves and others. With these motivations, we enhance our own lives, the lives of others, and express reverence for God. If Antigonus of Sokho had in mind that fulfilling a mitzvah is an act of obedience that is truly an act of love and appreciation of the Divine, not mere subservience, how might you incorporate that ideal into your life and practice?