Individual Judgement: Three Perspectives

We are judged on Rosh Hashana as a shepherd inspects his sheep, who inspects and counts his sheep for various reasons. He wants to see if they are all present. Perhaps some have run away or died. Similarly, Hashem reviews and judges us to see if we are still part of his flock. Have we abandoned Him and His Torah – if not totally then perhaps partially? How solid is our belief and faith? How strong is our belief and commitment to G-d and His Torah? The shepherd also wants to see if the sheep are healthy or sick, whole or blemished. Similarly, Hashem judges if we are fulfilling His mitzvos and perfecting our middos (character traits), or are we spiritually sickly and blemished. Finally, the shepherd wants to check if each sheep bears his brand and is identifiable as belonging to him. Similarly, G-d created the world to be populated with human beings who bear His brand and therefore testify to the existence of their Shepherd. Every human being is individually scrutinized as to how manifest and visible this brand is in their life – how well one has represented G-d’s image. The Jews are referred to as holy sheep, who represent not only G-d’s existence but His holiness. We bear a special brand that must bring honor and glory to the shepherd because we are His elite flock. Each Jew is judged on how his conduct from the past year reflects holiness and Godliness as a member of the kingdom of priests and the holy nation.

A second facet of our judgement is that Hashem evaluates the progress that we have made in the past year compared to our level in the previous year. Even if we have been faithful representatives of G-d in the previous year, this is not enough. A Jew must constantly seek higher and higher levels of perfection. He must be dynamic and not stagnant. If our status in the past year has not shown growth and improvement we will be found lacking no matter how lofty our status is.

However, even if we have progressed and grown in an exemplary fashion and truly represented the divine image, there is yet one last aspect that is considered: Are we fulfilling our unique mission in life? Every Jew is blessed with abilities and talents that are divinely provided to him so that he can make his unique contribution to the world.

(There is also a collective judgement – how we functioned in the communal structure as members of the Jewish people)

(Rabbi Zev Leff)