Eclectic Topics in no Particular Order
Various Topics Discussed
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“In the beginning” refers to the beginning of time—the first, indivisible moment, before which time did not exist...
בראשית, at the beginning of time; this is the first moment which is indivisible into shorter periods.. There had not been a concept “time” previous to this, i.e. there had only been unbroken continuity. (The author perceives “time” as one of the creations. Ed.] (2) ברא, He had converted “nothing” into “something.” There had been no need to invoke “time” in order to accomplish this. (3) אלוקים, The expression “elo-ha” refers to something enduring, eternal..." (Sforno, 1475 - 1550 CE). The creation of time begins with the very first verse -- not with the third. Not with the creation of light... " Scripture did not come to teach the sequence of the Creation, to say that these came first, for if it came to teach this, it should have written: “At first (בָּרִאשׁוֹנָה) He created the heavens and the earth,” for there is no רֵאשִׁית in Scripture that is not connected to the following word, [i.e., in the construct state]..." When the Torah tells us: "G-d said, 'There shall be light,' and light came into existence. 1:4 G-d saw that the light was good, and G-d divided between the light and the darkness." B'reshit / Genesis 1:3 - 4. What light? At this point there is no sun for illumination! Many of our sages looked at this verse midrashically. The Rebbe opined: “Let there be light” was the first statement in Creation, because “light” is the true purpose of existence: through the study of Torah and the fulfillment of mitzvot, divine radiance is revealed. “Light” is the purpose of existence as a whole. Further, each individual is a microcosm of the world. “Light” is therefore the purpose of each Jew: that he or she transforms his or her situation and environment from darkness and negativity to light and goodness. In the first word of the Hebrew Bible the ב / bet is a prefix to the word reshit / רֵאשִׁית. When used as a prefix the Hebrew letter ב / bet can mean in, with, or by. With "b'reshit" the letter bet means "in" as "in the beginning of..." The beginning of "what" you might ask? The next word which is בָּרָא / bara. The first two words of the Hebrew bible are בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא "at the beginning of G-d's creating of..." The word בְּרֵאשִׁית / b'réshιt has to be followed by another noun like "creating." The word רֵאשִׁית réshιt - "the beginning of [something]" - occurs 47 times in the T'nach, and it is followed by another noun in every case.
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