Hashem loves you

It definitely has to be said. Thanks 🙂

LB – as far as I know it is a Jewish thing. There are certainly many, many Psukim that talk about how Hashem loves us. I’m not sure where they are off-hand and can’t look right now, but I’m sure there are many posters here who can bring them.

There is actually a song running through my head. something about “ahavti eschem amar Hashem…” not sure, but I’m sure s.o. here knows what I’m talking about.

And I’m pretty sure Chovos Halevavos, shaar habitachon talks about how Hashem loves us and everything He does for us is out of love for us.

Wow. I was thinking of his brother Rabbi Manis Friedman, shlita’s, talk where he shares the story about visiting a depressed boy.

Everyone was telling the boy that they love him and Hashem loves him.

Then Rabbi Friedman came in and said not to listen to that stuff. Having Hashem love him didn’t make a difference and may not necessarily be true. The truth is that Hashem needs him in this world. He is needed for his unique neshamah which is way greater than love.

It’s def possible that both are true. Honestly though I hear “G[o]d loves you” way more from people who aren’t Jewish and are typically Christian. Of course, Christianity is based off of Jewish teachings.

I guess that hearing it here can balance things out so that it’s associated with Judaism too.

Thank you

http://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=14261&st=&pgnum=399&hilite=

It is referring to Klal Yisroel as a whole.

Thanks for posting the link

Particularly, I think if a person acts in a way which excludes himself from klal Yisroel, that pasuk would not apply.

but I think that Am Yisrael does refer to all the people in Am Yisrael.

Why?

To support what Lilmod said that am yisroel means all of am yisroel, I would suggest that since Hashem is total Emes, then anything He says has to be pure, complete truth. If “Ahavti Eschem” meant am yisroel as a whole but not every individual, I think that the statement would not be 100% true. But that cannot be, since Hashem is 100% emes. besides, we say that even a sinner is part of am yisroel (except maybe a total kofer), so he would be included in the eschem.

That said, I too am a bit bothered by using “Hashem loves you” as a slogan because it reminds me of other versions of this statement put out by other religions, but keep in mind, that the statement is not meant to stand alone and mean that because of that we are absolved of all our sins and everything is great, but rather Hashem loving us means that we are obligated to prove that love and live by His Torah.

Mi Yodea has a question titled “Are there any scriptural sources that Hashem loves each Jew individually?”

The accepted answer there is as follows:

G-d’s counting of the Jewish people expresses his love for the individual Jew (since counting emphasizes the importance of the individual unit. Were the individual unit not important, there would be no need to count). Rashi (Shemot 1:1) says:

And these are the names of the sons of Israel: Although [God] counted them in their lifetime by their names (Gen. 46:8-27), He counted them again after their death, to let us know how precious they are [to Him], because they were likened to the stars, which He takes out [From beyond the horizon] and brings in by number and by name, as it is said: who takes out their host by number; all of them He calls by name (Isa. 40:26). [From Tanchuma Buber, Shemot 2; Exod. Rabbah 1:3]

Rashi (Bamidbar 1:1) says that because G-d loves the Jewish people he counts them all the time.

LB, just want to add the point that Hashem does not NEED anything. He is perfect and complete just the way He is. He created us to benefit us, gave us everything for our good and does everything because He loves us and wants for us to have good. This boy you are referring to may not have benefited from hearing these ideas, as he was seemingly resistant to them and was still depressed and another angle was needed to try to bring him out of his depression. I think you will find many contradictions to what was said in that talk, but it may have had its use for that specific case only, not to be extrapolated to all Yidden.

(The pasuk from Malachi is read as the haftarah of parshas Toldos.)

I think we need to just read the next few pesukim to understand this inyan. The Novi is saying, that Hashem loves us as a nation, but we have turned away from Him. “If I am your Father, where is My respect; if I am your Master, where is My fear?”.

Maybe the pshat is, that Hashem loves us despite the fact that we have turned away. Like a father whose child has strayed, He constantly waits for us to return.

LU +Every spark of every soul but not counting people and maybe the letters of the Torah instead with Hashem knows how many

Thank you so nice of you 🙂

Yes. Love to all. Love to Mods too <3

The idea that Hashem loves every Jew is certainly expressed in some seforim. For example, see here in Likutei Moharan:

“God takes pride even in the most insignificant Jew, even in the sinners of Israel, so long as they go by the name Jew. There is a special pride which God takes in each individual Jew. One should therefore never despair of God’s help regardless of any wrong one may have done. God’s love for him will never cease, and he can still return to God.”

And here is something from Matanas Chelko, a commentary on Chovos Halevavos, making clear each person should believe Hashem loves him:

“Certainly, without strong trust in his father, that his father worries for him and loves him, he would never have jumped thereby placing himself in danger of falling to the floor. His trust in his father is so great that he jumps to his hands. Likewise, for a man’s trust in G-d, he must jump into the hands of G-d and trust in Him that He cares for him and loves him just like a father’s love for his child.”

You’re welcome! I think the exact source is I:17, but if you google the phrase you’ll go to a translation of Likutei Eitzot, which cites it.