Through an examination of a Hebrew term commonly employed to denote decency, this chapter both looks back to the ways in which the concept has played a role in Jewish life and considers modern society in general and contemporary Israel in particular through this prism. The example of Jerusalem’s Arab population is adduced to consider whether Israel can be considered a decent society. Rather than dwell on an abstract notion of idealized moral perfection, this chapter suggests that the benchmark of decency might be employed as Israel struggles to find its way in a complex and challenging world.