Genesis

בייה

We are introduced to Adam and Chavah, the first man and woman, our created parents, in the midst of Gan Eden near the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, in their natural state. They were עֲרוּמִּים Ah Ru Meem, completely naked. (Genesis 2.25) Says, ‘And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.’ They were not immodest. They lived in a state of bliss, a place of delight, a place of Divine happiness. They only enjoyed pleasure and ecstasy for a short while in Gan Eden. Heaven was wonderful for them until they made abysmal choices after speaking with הַנָּחָשׁ Ha Naw Chawsh – the Serpent. Why? (Genesis 3.1) Because הַנָּחָשׁ Ha Naw Chawsh – the Serpent was עָרוּם Aw Room, more subtle than any beast of the field הַשָּׂדֶה which Lord God had Made. עֲרוּמִּים Ah Ru Meem is plural for עָרוּם Aw Room, subtle naked, shrewd, sly, and crafty.

The first Letter of the first Word in (Genesis 3.1) is וְ Vav – and the first Word is – וְהַנָּחָשׁVih Ha Naw Chawsh – ‘And the Serpent.’ The Letter Vav is a connecting Letter. The Vav connects one Word, sentence, paragraph, chapter, or book to another like a bridge. (Genesis 2.19 – 20) Says, ‘And out of the ground Lord God Formed every beast of the field, and every bird of the air; and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them; and whatever Adam called every living creature, that was its name. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found a help to match him/her.’ At that time, a male Adam and a female Adam shared the same body with a face on the front and back. That is when Lord God Brought all the creatures to Adam for naming them.

The Midrash Shares A Story About Names

Rabbi Johanan ben Zakkai said, ‘When the Holy One, blessed be He, came to create Adam, He took counsel with the ministering angels, saying to them,’ Let us make man in our Spiritual Image,’ Genesis 1.26.

The Angels inquired, ‘What will be the nature of this man?’

The Holy One Responded, ‘His wisdom will exceed yours.’ Then, The Holy One brought animals, beasts, and birds before the angels and asked them, ‘What is the name of this one?’ They did not know; ‘And what about this one?’ Again, they did not know. Then, The Holy One paraded them before Adam and asked him, ‘What is the name of this one?’

Adam responded, ‘An ox.’

‘And of this?’

‘A camel.’

‘And of this?’

‘An ass.’

‘And of this?’

‘A horse.’ Thus it is written, And the man gave names to all the cattle, etc.,’ Genesis 2.20.

The Holy One Questioned him, ‘What is your name?’

Adam said,’ It is fitting that I should be called Adam because I was created from the ground, i.e., ‘Adamah.’

Then The Holy One asked, ‘What is My Name?’

‘It fits for You to be called Adonai, i.e., ‘Lord’ since You are Lord over all Your creatures,’ was Adam’s answer. Rabbi Hiyya said, ‘Thus it is written, ‘I am The Lord, that is My Name,’ Isaiah. 42.8; i.e., which means, ‘That is My Name by which Adam called Me.’

That is when Adam and Chavah studied the essence of what they called הַנָּחָשׁ the Serpent and his mate. The meaning of נָּחָשׁ Naw Chawsh, a poisonous snake, [because it uses] cunning, wickedness, maliciousness, virulent, and very infectious, invasive, malignant, magic, sorcery, enchantment, and divination.

(Genesis 3.1) happens after the naming. As noted before, Holy Scripture connects Adam and Chavah with the Letter Vav, the naming, and the temptation in the midst of Gan Eden.

Associations are tricky. It’s a little like being connected to a TAG (tags you on the internet) without choosing to do so or like an honest, decent, moral, ethical politician being grouped with the lying, cheating, dishonest ones. Unfortunately, Palestinians who want to live in peace with their Jewish neighbors are grouped with those Palestinians who are wicked terrorists who must be destroyed!!

Dear Ones, Adam, the first man, and Eve, the first lady, were created from the finest dust of the ground. They were Fashioned from the earth where the Holy Altar to The Holy Temple would eventually stand. Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, Jerusalem the Eye of the Universe, {New York, N.Y. Publishers: National Conference of Synagogue Youth / Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, 2002} pp 13,14 Yet, because of their associations, they got caught up in disobedience. What were Adam and Chavah doing in the midst of Gan Eden? They were looking at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It was apparent to הַנָּחָשׁ Ha Naw Chawsh – the Serpent that they were starring at the forbidden tree. They were looking at the fruit and imagining what it would taste like. Were they memorized? (Genesis 3.6) says, ‘The woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise’. Were they window-shopping the Forbidden Tree? I don’t know. What else could they be doing there in the midst of Gan Eden? Dear Ones, why are there auto showrooms and department store displays? What is there intention? They are trying to entice shoppers to buy. First, Adam and Chavah went to the location of the forbidden tree, and then Chavah imagined that the tree was good for food. וַתֵּרֶא Vah Tay Reh [ רָאָה ] – means to see, perceive envision. It was a delight. The fruit was enticing. How could Chavah know the fruit was good for food without tasting it? Later, she said, ‘The Serpent beguiled, charmed, enchanted, dazzled, mesmerized, seduced me, and I ate.’ Adam sinned because ‘he listened to the voice of his wife.’ When did Chavah speak to Adam? כִּי שָׁמַעְתָּ לְקוֹל – Cee – Shaw Mah Taw – Lih Kohl means because ‘you obeyed your wife’s command/action, i.e., She took, ate, and gave to her husband with the expectation that he would eat as well.

Chavah tried to pass off her sin on הַנָּחָשׁ Ha Naw Chawsh – the Serpent. She said, ‘The Serpent mesmerized and seduced me. Did the Serpent conspire? Yes! Adam tried to pass his sin off on God. Adam said, ‘The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.’ Adam and Chavah were trying to ignore their personal responsibility. Lord God Said to the Serpent, Because you have done this,i.e., you conspired to bring sin into the world. [Some teach that he wanted Adam to die because he lusted for Chavah. So when we mess up, we can repent and return to Torah observance. (Pesachim 54a) Says, ‘Seven things were created before the world was created, and these are they: The Torah, Repentance, The Garden of Eden, Gehenna, the Throne of Glory, The Temple, and The Name of The Messiah.’ Our Creator knew that we would sin, so before creation, He created repentance. Originally Ohr/Light from the Shekinah of Lord covered them. Then, they sinned. The Glory departed them. They became aware of their nakedness. (Genesis 3.21) Says, ‘Lord God Made coats of skins, and clothed Adam and his wife [from shed snake skin and lambs wool].’

When Adam and Eve sinned, the Glory of Lord departed them. They felt empty. They immediately missed the feeling of closeness to God. They wanted to feel like a child who was wrapped in the embrace of their loving mother. When Adam and Eve felt naked, their response was to cover their bodies. They wanted their association to Lord restored. Their eyes were opened. Perhaps they were oblivious to the damage done to their souls. They covered themselves with leaves, thinking that the leaves would protect them. After they repented, Lord God provided them with new clothing. Rav Yosef Dov Solovietchik discusses this subject in his book, Yemie Zikaron, page 203.

(Isaiah 61.10) Says, ‘I will greatly rejoice in my Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.’ Humankind had not sinned before stealing from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Yet, even though Adam and Chavah sinned, all was not lost. Genesis One concludes with an essential message from Lord our God (Genesis 1.31): ‘And God Saw everything that He had Made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning, the sixth day.’ Repentance worked! Adam and Chavah’s association with God was restored.

Dear Ones, we can take comfort in knowing that our name remains in The Book of The Living. It is incredibly wonderful to know our souls will go to Heaven. We will join other souls already in Heaven. Heaven is a perfect place.

May our study be for good!

Blessings, Love and Peace,

Dr. Akiva Gamliel Belk

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