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Gloss right over it. Don’t think about it too much, lest it make you think for a moment about the foundations of your faith. That would be terrible.

One learns Rambam, believes with all of his heart that each word is truly the word and will of G-d, but when he sees a sentence or two that are obviously inconsistent with reality, he does not afford it even a moment’s thought.

For example:

We’ve all read, “אָדָם שֶׁעֲוֹנוֹתָיו מְרֻבִּין עַל זְכֻיּוֹתָיו - מִיָּד הוּא מֵת בְּרִשְׁעוֹ.” But that is demonstrably not the case. Some explanations are given, though none are anywhere near satisfactory; with only a few moments of thought, it becomes clear that they don’t withstand a basic level of scrutiny.

The same applies to the following halacha (which, coincidentally, seems to contradict the previous one): בְּכָל שָׁנָה וְשָׁנָה שׁוֹקְלִין עֲוֹנוֹת כָּל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד מִבָּאֵי הָעוֹלָם עִם זְכֻיּוֹתָיו בְּיוֹם טוֹב שֶׁל רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה: מִי שֶׁנִּמְצָא צַדִּיק - נֶחְתָּם לְחַיִּים; וּמִי שֶׁנִּמְצָא רָשָׁע - נֶחְתָּם לְמִיתָה.

The Rambam is a ספר הלכות, not some spiritual and philosophical treatise, so he must have meant what he said at least somewhat literally. Could he really have believed that every person who crosses the line one too many times dies young? What about the individuals who clearly fit the bill with whom the Rambam himself had come into contact throughout his turbulent life?

So what does this mean? Enlighten me. Continue the thread.