Question

Hello Rabbi,
The approach in the literature of the Sages is that repentance is an act of kindness that the Holy One, blessed be He, did for us, giving us the option of going through a process of repentance and retracting our deeds, and thereby He forgives us for our sins. But seemingly this raises a difficulty, because were it not for repentance and the mercy of the Holy One, blessed be He, in judgment, no one could ever be found innocent in court. If so, there would be no possibility of a normal world, because everyone has sins and no one would be acquitted in his judgment. Rather, surely the idea of repentance is not merely kindness but something necessary, like eating and drinking, as the prophet said: “He did not create it a waste; He formed it to be inhabited.” And this could not exist without repentance and mercy. So why do the Sages call it kindness?