And God heard the voice of the lad, and an angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.”
English: “Where he is.” Rabbi Yitzchak said: A person is judged only according to his deeds of that moment, as it is said, “For God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.”
On the daf / in context: Even though the future of Yishmael’s descendants would include hostility to Israel, the present cry of the suffering child was heard on its own merits.
Type of Learning
Derash on the verse (Bavli sugya) — not a formal named middah of the 13. The phrase teaches the principle of judging by present deeds alone.
What Is Learned
A person is judged only by his actions at the present moment; God heard Yishmael’s cry “where he is,” without regard to future conduct of his descendants.