47. The Path of God

Deios 1:6

The explanation of “You shall walk in His ways” (Deuteronomy 28:9,) is:” Just as God is gracious, so shall we be gracious; just as He is merciful, so shall we be merciful; just as He is holy, so shall we be holy.” The same is true for other traits we attribute to God: slow to anger, full of kindness, righteous, just, etc. These terms are used for God to teach us that they are the paths we should strive to follow. One is required to try to follow these paths and to emulate God to the extent possible.

Deios 1:7

A person can train himself to follow moderate paths and to internalize them by repeatedly performing acts that conform to the standards of the middle road. One should do this constantly until such acts become easy for him. Then these traits will have become a permanent part of his personality.

Since God is called by the traits that constitute the moderate path that we are required to follow, this path is called “the path of God.” Our forefather Abraham taught this path to his descendants, as per Genesis 18:19, “I have known him so that he will command his children and his descendants after him to keep the path of God.” One who follows this path brings goodness and blessing upon himself, as the verse continues, “so that God will bring upon Abraham all that He promised him.”