Our Gemara on Amud Aleph tells us the remarkable story of Onkelos’s conversion to Judaism and the impact he had on other Roman soldiers and officers. The Caesar sent officers in several attempts to bring Onkelos back and hold him accountable for his possibly treasonous activities. Each group somehow became enamored and awestruck by Onkelos’s theological declarations about the uniqueness of Judaism and God’s relationship with the Jewish people. In one encounter, the following dialogue occurs:
When they were walking, Onkelos said to the troop of soldiers: I will say a mere statement to you: A minor official [נִיפְיוֹרָא] holds a torch before a high official [אֲפִיפְיוֹרָא], the high official holds a torch for a duke [דוּכְסָא], a duke for the governor, and the governor for the ruler [קוֹמָא]. Does the ruler hold a torch before the common people? The soldiers said to Onkelos: No. Onkelos said to them: Yet the Holy One, Blessed be He, holds a torch before the Jewish people, as it is written: “And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them the way, and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light” (Shemos 13:21). They all converted.
A similar discussion took place when another group saw the mezuzah. Onkelos explained that instead of them guarding their king, God—our King—guards over us.
While this story is fascinating when read in a straightforward manner, Rav Kook (Moreh Lenevuchei Hatekufah 3:11) brilliantly adds another dimension. Rav Kook says that a key distinction between Jewish theology and other theologies is that the main focus of other religions is to serve or please the deity. While of course Judaism utilizes the anthropomorphic dimension of worship and service—sacrifice and prayer—it is more of a metaphorical and emotional process to arouse the soul and create awareness of God. Nevertheless, God does not need our worship or our mitzvos. We treat Him as a monarch in order to humble ourselves within the scheme of the universe and to engender gratitude and perspective. But we need the mitzvos—they are cloaked as service to God, but in essence, they are for our benefit.
The Torah states (Vayikra 18:5): “You shall keep My statutes and My laws, which a man shall do and live by them.” The Torah offers a way to live well. Bereishis Rabbah (44:1) states, “The mitzvos were given to refine the creatures.” Devarim (6:24) states that the mitzvos are “for our lasting good and for our survival, just as God keeps us alive today.”
Rav Kook notes that while it is certainly important to attend shul, we never find that as the primary criterion for determining a person’s status within Judaism. Rather, observance of mitzvos, commitment to halachah, and study of Torah are the central criteria. This is because the Torah is not about servicing God for His needs—it’s about human growth and sanctification through Divine truth.
Rav Kook even goes a step further. He asserts that even other monotheistic religions—while not necessarily idolatrous in a strict halachic sense—often maintain a fundamentally flawed conception of God. Any religion that casts the deity as in “need” of service, adoration, or appeasement inherently distorts the idea of divine perfection and is thus, in spirit, closer to avodah zarah.
This is what Onkelos was so powerfully conveying. We do not carry the torch for God—He carries it for us. The mitzvos are not burdens; they are guides. Even the mezuzah, while it superficially serves as a reminder of our duties, is primarily there to orient us in how to live properly within and beyond our homes. The mezuzah guards us—not the other way around.
Translations Courtesy of Sefaria, except when, sometimes, I disagree with the translation
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Rabbi Simcha Feuerman, Rabbi Simcha Feuerman, LCSW-R, LMFT, DHL is a psychotherapist who works with high conflict couples and families. He can be reached via email at simchafeuerman@gmail.com