Question
Tehillim 81:10 could be read as: “There shall be no strange god in you (Nit zol zeyn in dir Gott fremd)” Rabbi Avin said: “What is the meaning of that which is written? What ‘strange god’ is there inside the body of a person (i.e. within you)? You must say – this is the Tempter, the Yetzer HaRah [the human inclination to be distracted/led away from G-d] – Shabat 105b. Rabbi Avin explains that the service of strange gods in actual practice starts with the service of the strange god within the person himself… This means that an idol-worshipper is called “the evil inclination.” [It follows that when speaking of a single body, then idol-worshipping, which is called “a foreign god” or “a strange god,” is entirely within man]. So here are my questions: 1. Why is the evil inclination compared to a foreign/strange god? 2. Also, what is the connection between idolatry and the evil inclination? 3. And why is it assumed that both come from or occur within man?

Question
Hi rabbi, I have a question. If I have bad thoughts and feelings does that make me a bad person? For example, I gave my friend's name for a job opportunity in my office and when he got the job I felt upset. The reason I felt upset is because my chances of being promoted were slim once my very accomplished and well known friend was hired. I never expressed the way I really felt to him or anyone else, and just pretended I was excited that he got the job. Does it make me a bad person if had bad thought or feelings yet I never acted on them? This question also goes beyond the example I provided. Thank you in advance for your help.
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