Reply To: The Wicked Son, and the Kiruv System

If we’re anyways writing thoughts on the Four Sons, here’s one I had which is relevant to this thread:

The question is often asked: The opposite of rasha is a tzaddik, not chochom. Why is chochom given as the other extreme of rasha?

(DISCLAIMER: The question doesn’t really start; we are discussing four personality traits. Wickedness is one. The opposited of the Wicked Son is the Righteous Son, who is split into three categories: The Clever Son, the Simple Son and the One Who Cannot Ask. Chochom is the opposite of Tam, not of Rasha)

I think that if you look a bit deeper into the definition of a Chochom and the definition of a Rasha, you will find they are direct opposites. The Mishneh writes “אזהו חכם – הרואה את הנולד”. Chochmoh is measured by the ability to foresee consequences, and calculates his actions based on their ramifications.

What is a Rasha? If someone believes in Hashem, believes in Hashgacha, and believes in Schar VeOinesh, it should be impossible to sin willingly. Don’t you understand that the negative consequences of this action should outweigh any momentary pleasure you might have? In the capacity of rational thought, there is no ability to sin.

A Rasha is someone who isn’t רואה את הנולד. He lives in the present; he doesn’t SEE the future when he acts. He thinks of the fleeting, momentary pleasure rather than the negative ramifications of his actions. Every sin involves “forgetting” the future that he will reap from the seeds he plants. A Rasha is the antithesis of the Chacham.

This came to mind when I saw the אבן עזרא in Parshas Yisro – “כי לא יתכן להיות ירא שמים כראוי רק מי שהוא חכם”. (He’s coming to explain how Yisro spoke about אנשי חיל יראי אלקים, and Moshe said חכמים ונבנים, and he writes that they are one and the same)