Early Writings — Page 58
58 THE limits of time and space-—and whether or not the specific number of those existing, limited and finite entities is within His knowl- edge. Your points would be relevant only if you prove that those present and finite entities transcend the realm of existence and are infinite. For it cannot be said that just because God's knowledge which encompasses both existing and non-existing entities is lim- itless, therefore, a certain entity which may be specified in number is also limitless. Alas, how infinite you have shown Goďs knowledge to be whereby He can neither encompass the souls, nor count them, and this is despite the fact that all these souls are within the realm of existence, they are not non-existent. How astonishing that while heaven and earth have announced in practical terms the number of souls by containing them within itself—but God is unaware of this number. Strange indeed is such a God and even stranger His knowledge! My question to you is whether the knowledge of God regarding the existing souls constitutes only a part of His limitless knowledge or the whole of it? If your answer is that it constitutes the whole, then this would necessitate that God pos- sesses no knowledge of anything except for His knowledge of the souls and that no one possesses a greater knowledge than Him in this regard. However, if your answer is that it only constitutes a part of His knowledge, then this would imply a limitation, for a part is always smaller than the whole. Hence, this also leads to the conclusion that the souls are finite, and in reality, this is the truth. He, whom God has enlightened with understanding, knows well that out of His boundless ocean of knowledge, God's knowledge concerning existing souls does not even make as small a part of