Genesis 1:1

[Fenris]

This week we begin again reading the 5 Books of Moses in our yearly cycle, beginning with Genesis.

The foremost Jewish commentator on the bible was a man we call "Rashi", short for Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki. He lived from 1040 to 1105.

In his commentary on Genesis 1:1, he asks the question, if the bible is primarily a book of commandments, why does it not start with Exodus 12? That's where the first command is given to the Jewish people. And then he answers his own question in a very beautiful way that speaks to us today. He says:

" For if the nations of the world should say to Israel, “You are robbers, for you conquered by force the lands of the seven nations of Canaan,” they will reply, "The entire earth belongs to the Holy One, blessed be He; He created it, as we learn from the story of the Creation, and gave it to whomever He deemed proper. When He wished, He gave it to them, and when He wished, He took it away from them and gave it to us."

[Athanasius]

I want to ask the question.

Rashi say anything about the 'gap theory' re: 1:1 -> 1:2?

[Fenris]

Historically, religious Jews have understood the creation saga to have taken 6 days, as the text says. The more modern ideas of the days not being 24 hours and such aren't really relevant in Judaism. The bible isn't understood as a history book or a science text. It's the guidebook to living a good and Godly life.

[IMINXTC]

Of course time begins to be reckoned in vv 3-5, with the advent of "day," and there is no such determinate term applied to the "begining."


So, for some contextualists, vv1&2 cannot be measured by time.

[Fenris]

I don't see the significance though. The pertinent point is not how God created the universe, or how long each day way. It's that God created the universe, and in the context of this discussion, that He can apportion land to whomever He pleases.

There's an interesting similar statement at the end of Deuteronomy, so a bookend? Deuteronomy 32:8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind, he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.

Which says that God also apportioned lands to other nations, and somehow those borders have something to do with the Jews.

[IMINXTC]

I don't see the significance though. The pertinent point is not how God created the universe, or how long each day way. It's that God created the universe, and in the context of this discussion, that He can apportion land to whomever He pleases.

There's an interesting similar statement at the end of Deuteronomy, so a bookend? Deuteronomy 32:8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind, he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.

Which says that God also apportioned lands to other nations, and somehow those borders have something to do with the Jews.

Truth! And Israel's inheritence, unlike the nations', was based on a specific covenant and promise, which eventually displaced many others.