Questions tagged [parashat-bereishit]
The weekly Torah portion of Bereshit (Genesis 1:1-6:8)
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Can you link current events and the parsha
So I saw this post circling online. What exactly would we say about this? Is it just something “cute”, or is it like a valid method of searching for connections between current events and the parsha? ...
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Rabbi Dovid Tzvi Hoffmann: The tree of knowledge of good and evil and morallity
Rabbi Dovid Tzvi Hoffmann in his commentary to Bereishis 2:7 explains (thanks to AlHaTorah for making this available) that originally, it was the will of Hashem that man was going to learn knowledge ...
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What is the exact meaning of "ha Elohim" in Genesis 22:1?
In Genesis 22: 1 we read:
"And it came to pass after these things, that ha Elohim tested Abraham, and He said to him, "Abraham," and he said, "Here I am."
I see that the ...
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Why do fish die?
In Parshas Bereishis (Genesis 3:6), there's an interesting comment by Rashi.
The Torah says:
וַתֵּ֣רֶא הָֽאִשָּׁ֡ה
כִּ֣י טוֹב֩ הָעֵ֨ץ לְמַאֲכָ֜ל וְכִ֧י תַֽאֲוָה־ה֣וּא לָעֵינַ֗יִם
וְנֶחְמָ֤ד הָעֵץ֙ ...
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70 Souls of Jacob
In Bereshit 46 the Torah tells us that there were 70 descendents of Jacob who came to Egypt with him (excluding the wifes)
33 descendants through Leah
16 through Zilpa
14 throgh Rahel
7 through Bilah
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Textual parallel between Eve and Cain, why?
In Bereishit 3:16, Eve is cursed:
אֶֽל־הָאִשָּׁ֣ה אָמַ֗ר הַרְבָּ֤ה אַרְבֶּה֙ עִצְּבוֹנֵ֣ךְ וְהֵֽרֹנֵ֔ךְ בְּעֶ֖צֶב תֵּֽלְדִ֣י בָנִ֑ים וְאֶל־אִישֵׁךְ֙ תְּשׁ֣וּקָתֵ֔ךְ וְה֖וּא יִמְשׇׁל־בָּֽךְ׃
And to ...
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What was the serpent’s plan?
According to Rashi, the serpent desired Eve and his plan was that Adam eat from the tree and die so that he can have her [Rashi Genesis 3:1, Bereishis Rabbah 18:6]. If that was his plan, why would he ...
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The relationship of Adam and Chavah and what does it mean?
In Parshat B'reishis ch. 3 p. 20 Adam names Chavah. Here Rashi points out that Adam names her earlier and the reason for bringing up the name in this location.
What I'm wondering though is about the ...
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Bereishis and plant growth - why didn't the "אד" help?
We are told in Bereishis 1:12 that on the third day of creation:
וַתּוֹצֵ֨א הָאָ֜רֶץ דֶּ֠שֶׁא עֵ֣שֶׂב מַזְרִ֤יעַ זֶ֙רַע֙ לְמִינֵ֔הוּ וְעֵ֧ץ עֹֽשֶׂה־פְּרִ֛י אֲשֶׁ֥ר זַרְעוֹ־ב֖וֹ לְמִינֵ֑הוּ וַיַּ֥רְא ...
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Translating Genesis 1:1 "בְּרֵאשִׁ֖ית" to "in the beginning"
Apologies if this is a stupid question (or belongs in a different group). Since I'm not Jewish & only beginning to learn Hebrew I lack the background to pose an intelligent question.
English uses ...
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Why was Adam created age 20? [duplicate]
The Midrash says Adam and Chava were created age 20.
Why so? Looking mainly for an answer as to why they weren't made babies and raised like we are (rather than asking what's special about 20?).
Happy ...
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What exactly was Adam and Chava's sin?
Bereshit 2:9-10 tells about HaShem Elohim made to spring up every tree (in Gan Eden) pleasing to the sight, and tov for food and the Etz HaChayim (Tree of Life) also in the midst of Gan Eden, and the ...
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What's the simple meaning of the "upper waters", and where are they?
B"H
In the simple meaning of the verse of "He separated between the water that is below the sky (/beginning of "outer space"/"firmamemt") to the water that is above it&...
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How did Adam and Eve sin before they ate from the Tree of Knowledge?
We see in chapter three of Genesis that although Adam and Eve were commanded not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge by G-d, the serpent was able to make it desirable in their eyes and lead them to sin.
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What both Hashem and the snake said about death after eating the fruit doesn't seem to match what ended up happening?
Hashem says:
וּמֵעֵץ הַדַּעַת טוֹב וָרָע לֹא תֹאכַל מִמֶּנּוּ כִּי בְּיוֹם אֲכׇלְךָ
מִמֶּנּוּ מוֹת תָּמוּת׃
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat
of it: for on the day ...
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Genesis 6.4: Nephilim, Gibborim and Benei ha’Elohim
The question I’ve asked is not centered on the identity of the benei ha’Elohim but on the text itself and whether the text has sufficient grammatical support to identify the subject with respect to “...
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Hashem's will is not "nihilo", so why is it "creatio ex nihilo"?
The traditional objection is to any material having existed prior to the creation of the Heavens and the Earth, but then why not call it "creation without material"? The will of Hashem is not "nihilo" ...
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How did the trees deviate from God's command?
In Bereshis 1:11 God commands עֵץ פְּרִי עֹשֶׂה פְּרִי לְמִינוֹ however in the next pasuk where it happens we find וְעֵץ עֹשֶׂה-פְּרִי אֲשֶׁר זַרְעוֹ-בוֹ, לְמִינֵהוּ. This discrepancy is explained by ...
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G-d formed man, why not right after creation?
The Torah tells us that on the sixth day of creation, G-d decided to create mankind (Bereishis 1:26-27):
And G-d said, Let Us make Mankind in Our image, after Our likeness
So G-d created Mankind in ...
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Are we forbidden from striving to develop biotech that can make us immortal since that would essentially be like biting off from the Tree of Life?
In the recent years, there has been a lot of talk and investment in the biotech space regarding life extension, with some saying that the eventual goal is to make us live forever. However, to strive ...
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What did the animals eat before Adam prayed for the trees to grow?
We learn in chullin 60b that the trees and herbage only began to sprout on the third day and that they only grew fully when Adam prayed for the rain (Genesis 2:5). If none of the plant life grew yet, ...
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Do any commentators say that Adam was not literally the first human being?
Bereshis seems to imply that Adam was literally the first human being (at least according to the normal translation). Do any commentators (preferably not modern ones) disagree with this?
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When exactly was Eve named?
While reading Paradise Lost, I noticed that at some point in the text before the forbidden fruit is consumed, Adam refers to Eve by name. This bothered me: I read the beginning of Genesis a couple ...
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Where was Adam when Chava cheated with the snake?
Where Adam was when Chava was sinning with the snake?
For me, it looks that Eden doesn't seem to be a huge place to walk around and Adam was so excited to have a woman by his side, also Adam and ...
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Anyone have an English Translation of Abarbanel on Bereishis 1:27?
Anyone know of an English translation available of the Abarbanel's commentary on Perek 1, Passuk 27 of Bereishis?
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The proposed killing of Yosef would have left 11 tribes
We know the Patriarchs and Matriarchs prophetically had knowledge there would be the Shevatim (12 tribes) descended through Ya'akov.
Source: (Bereshit Rabbah 72,5) concerning the fact that Ya'akov ...
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Talmudic legend about the souls refusing to enter Adam's and Hava's bodies?
Ted Hughes, in the Crow collection, has a poem named A Childish Prank (full text), which is a grotesque narration of Adam's and Hava's creation.
In March 1976, at the Adelaide Festival Writers’ Week, ...
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Why don't the birds get the bracha of פְּרוּ?
In the creation of the world when Hashem is creating fish and birds, the verse in Beresheit 1:22 says,"וַיְבָ֧רֶךְ אֹתָ֛ם אֱלֹהִ֖ים לֵאמֹ֑ר פְּר֣וּ וּרְב֗וּ וּמִלְא֤וּ אֶת־הַמַּ֙יִם֙ בַּיַּמִּ֔ים ...
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Order of events in parashas Bereishis
BH
I am having a lot of trouble understanding the order of the following events:
The creation of Man
The births of Cain and Hevel
The death of Hevel
The snake
Eating from the ...
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How widespread is the belief that Adam had a first wife?
I have heard of that the idea that Adam had a wife before Eve comes from Jewish tradition, and also about the idea that this wife was Lilith. From what I can tell the story of Lilith and the story of ...
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When was water created?
Bereishit 1 goes into detail on when and how Hashem created various things in creation. One thing I notice though is that there is no specific detail on how or when water was created. It just sort of &...
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How did Rashi come to the conclusion that the heavens were created from fire and water?
In his commentary of Beresheith/Genesis 1:1, Rashi states:
And a further proof that the heavens and earth were not the first
thing created is that the heavens were created from fire (אש) and
water (...
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Should Genesis 1:4 say that the light "was" or "is" good?
As a non-Jew who has very little knowledge of Hebrew, I'm curious as to the following:
Is the Hebrew text clear on this, one way or the other?
If so, which is it?
If not, are there any Jewish ...
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The Tomb of the Matriarch 'Rachel Imenu'
וַתָּ֖מׇת רָחֵ֑ל וַתִּקָּבֵר֙ בְּדֶ֣רֶךְ אֶפְרָ֔תָה הִ֖וא בֵּ֥ית לָֽחֶם׃
Bereshit 35:16
Why was Rachel Imenu not buried in Machpelah's cave?
Was her burial in Ephrata a punishment?
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Were there any so to speak "divine conceptions," physically or spiritually, or conceptions by angels?
This question has been edited to add sources.
Bereshit 4:1 states, Now the man knew his wife Chava, and she conceived and bore Cain, and she said, "I have acquired a man with the Lord."
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Beresheit 3:21: What was the material Hashem used to cover Adam and Chava?
I'm seeking a general consensus on what material Hashem used to clothe Adam and Chava. I realize there are various translations stating they were leather or animal skins. Commentaries range from ...
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Are there any opinions about Yitzchak's parentage, or other children from Sarah?
Are there any opinions that either Abimelech and Sarah, or Pharaoh and Sarah, had children together? And if so, I would never suggest that would have any bearing on Yitzchak, since he's one of the ...
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How do we reconcile the order of creating animals betweeen Genesis and science?
https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/6932/does-the-torah-encoded-age-of-the-universe-match-science#comment53788_6932
The Genesis 1 creation account conflicts with the order of events that ...
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Why didn't Hashem tell the snake that his power of speech would be removed?
B"H
In the curses Hashem tells the snake it says "because you have done this, you are cursed from all beasts of the field..", without specifying exactly what that means.
If you would ...
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In the wake of the banishment from Eden, Adam and Eve start their family
In the wake of the banishment from Eden, Adam and Eve start their family:
וְהָאָדָם יָדַע אֶת־חַוָּה אִשְׁתּוֹ וַתַּהַר וַתֵּלֶד אֶת־קַיִן וַתֹּאמֶר קָנִיתִי אִישׁ אֶת־יהוה׃
Bereshit 4:1 "And ...
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Why was Chanoch/Enoch taken but Noach/Noah was not?
In Beresheith/Genesis 5:24 it states:
וַיִּתְהַלֵּ֥ךְ חֲנ֖וֹךְ אֶת־הָֽאֱלֹהִ֑ים וְאֵינֶ֕נּוּ כִּֽי־לָקַ֥ח
אֹת֖וֹ אֱלֹהִֽים׃
Enoch walked with G-d; then he was no more, for G-d took him
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How could Adam HaRishon have contained all the souls that would ever be inside of him, including evil, even before the sin?
I recall a concept from the teachings of the Arizal and elsewhere that before eating of the tree of knowledge, Adam HaRishon contained all the souls that would ever exist within him, but the good and ...
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In Parshas Barashis (4:21) Noah's wife Namah was born before 130 AM. How could she have children at 1,160 yrs? How can she live longer than 1,000 yrs?
We find from The Simple reading of Chumash/Rashi Parshas Barashis:
Perek 4 Pusuk 21 "..Tubal-cain's sister was Naamah" Rashi "Naamah: She was Noah's wife"
On Pasuk 25 "And ...
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Trying to understand this Tzafnat Pa'neach
I am intrigued by this verse (Genesis 6:3):
יהוה said, “My breath shall not abide in humankind forever, since it too is flesh; let the days allowed them be one hundred and twenty
years.”
I see there ...
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How does Saadia Gaon explain עדה וצילה?
אבן עזרא על בראשית ד׳:י״ט:א׳ implies that Saadia Gaon has an explanation of the names עדה וצלה. Do you know where I could find that?
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What sin was Hevel killed for? [duplicate]
In Judaism we believe that someone who is murdered is being killed as punishment for his sins. What sin did Hevel commit to deserve to be put to death?
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Why did Hevel suffer?
I've heard many times from Rabbis and Morims that every suffering we have in life is the consequence of something bad we've done. And for babies that suffer at birth and righteous people that seem to ...
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Where exactly does R' Saadia Gaon explain why a woman marrying two men is מתנגד לשכל?
ר' סעדיה גאון על בראשית ד׳:י״ח
"וכבר ביארנו קודם בפרשת מעשה אדם שהשכל מתנגד לנשואי אשה אחת לשני אנשים, אבל אינו מתנגד לנשואי שתי נשים לאיש אחד"
Can someone give me an exact location for the &...
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Why "God formed Adam dust" and not "from dust"?
"וַיִּיצֶר ה"א אֶת־הָאָדָם עָפָר מִן־הָאֲדָמָה" Genesis.2.7
Literally, the verse reads "God formed Adam dust from the earth", like if "dust" was an adjective. ...
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What Rabbinic interpretations of the Garden of Eden narrative treat "the serpent" as more the protagonist, instead of the antagonist?
Most interpretations of the Garden narrative treat Adam and Even as protagonists, and the serpent as the antagonist. I am interested here in interpretations that flip some roles. As one example, I ...
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