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ShareR. Berekiah said : When the Holy One, blessed be He, came to create Adam, He saw righteous and wicked arising from him. Said He: 'If I create him, wicked men will spring from him; if I do not create him, how are the righteous to spring from him?' What then did the Lord do ? He removed the way of the wicked out of His sight 1 and associated the quality of mercy 2 with Himself and created him, as it is written, For the Lord regarded the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked toved — E.V. 'shall perish" (Ps. I, 6): what does 'toved' mean? He destroyed it (ibbedah) from before His sight and asso- ciated the quality of mercy with Himself and created him. R. Hanina did not say thus, but [he said that] when He came to create Adam He took counsel with the ministering angels, saying to them, 'Let us make man/ 'What shall his character be?' asked they. 'Righteous men shall spring from him/ He answered, as it is written, 'For the Lord knoweth (yodea') the way of the righteous,' which means that the Lord made known (hodia') the way of the righteous to the ministering angels; 'But the way of the wicked shall perish': He destroyed [hid] it from them. He revealed to them that the righteous would arise from him, but He did not reveal to them that the wicked would spring from him, for had He revealed to them that the wicked would spring from him; the quality of Justice would not have permitted him to be created.
The creation of man, given our propensity for evil, is a contradiction of the just nature of God.
God can only overcome the contradiction through deception/denial.
Rav Simon said:
When the Holy One was about to create Adam, the ministering angels formed themselves into groups and companies,
some of them saying, “Let him be created,”
while others urged, “Let him not be created.” Thus it is written,
“Love and truth fought each other,
righteousness and peace combated each other" (Psalm 85:11).
Love said, “Let him be created because he will perform acts of love.” Truth said,
“Let him not be created because all of him will be falsehood.” Righteousness said,
“Let him be created because he will do righteous deeds.” Peace said,
“Let him not be created because he will be all strife.” What did the Holy One do?
He took Truth and cast him to the ground,
as is said: “You cast truth to the ground"
(Daniel 8:12). The ministering angels dared say to the Holy One:
“Master of the Universe
why do You humiliate Your seal,
let Truth arise from the earth.”
Hence it is written: “Let truth grow from the earth" (Psalm 85:12).
The elder Rav Huna of Sepphoris said:
While the ministering angels were conferring and disputing with one another,
the Holy One created Adam and then said:
“What are you conferring about, man is already made (ne’esah).”
R. Huna said in R. Aibu's name: He created him with due deliberation: He first created his food requirements, and only then did He create him. Said the ministering angels to the Lord: 'Sovereign of the Universe! What is man, that Thou art mindful of him, and the son of man,
that Thou thinkest of him? (Ps. viii, 5). This trouble, for what has it been created?' 'If so/ said He to them, 'Sheep and oxen, all of them (ib. 8), why were they created ; why were The fowl of the air and the fish of the sea (ih. 9) created ? A tower full of good things and no guests — what pleasure has its owner in having filled it?' Said they to Him: ' Sovereign of the Universe ! O Lord, our Lord, how glorious is Thy name in all the earth (ib. 10). Do what pleaseth Thee!'
