Genesis 9 – Blessings of A Vegetarian World
Every being in our world was a vegetarian for the first 1,657 years. What does that mean? Berries, nuts, fruits, roots, seeds, grains, vegetables, herbs, and grasses are the only foods eaten by all living beings from Creation until after the flood. What was the result?
A world at peace does not murder anyone or anything under any circumstance. There were no wars. For a short time, there were no weapons. The intention was that a world at peace did not need weapons. The Holy Scripture Records the murder of Abel in Genesis 4.9, the murder of Cain and Tubal Cain in Genesis 4.23. Murder is heinous. Yet, The Lord God did not Execute these violent men. He did not have them imprisoned, yet, they were punished.
Abortion of any kind was prohibited. Hunting animals, for any reason, was forbidden. Clams, shrimp, crabs, octopus, et cetera were forbidden. Baked turkey, roasted duck, fried chicken, and all birds were prohibited. Steak, ribs, and chops, et cetera were forbidden. There were many other tasty foods to eat. Are you a vegetarian? Have you tried to live as a vegetarian?
Years ago, I tried a vegetarian lifestyle for a while during my second marriage. Today it is relatively easy to enjoy life as a vegetarian in comparison to years ago. There are so many excellent kosher vegetarian products available. Yet, there was a time when being a vegetarian in the observant Jewish Community was pretty much unheard of. Back then, just about everyone in the Jewish Community was meat-eaters. However, over the past few decades, Jews began to return to a vegetarian life for health reasons.
On one occasion during the interim days of Sukkot, i.e., The Festival of Tabernacles, we invited a few members from the meat eating community – SMILE – for a Sukkot meal celebration without mentioning we were vegetarians. If my memory serves me right, there was an array of wine, Bourbon, Vodka, Liqueur, Slovakia Plum Brandy, coffee, tea, juice, soft drinks, and ice water with a twist of lime. We served challah with a slice of apple and honey. Each place setting was a leaf of lettuce, a portion of carrot, a generous helping of gefilte fish, and homemade horseradish. We baked the main dishes, apple nut noodle kugel, spaghetti squash, butternut squash, corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, asparagus. The spread was lovely.
We began our celebration with the blessings for wine and bread then enjoyed some gefilte fish with a healthy drink. We continued sitting around the Sukkah table, talking, drinking. The look on our guest’s faces was, ‘Where’s The Meat?’ Suddenly, laughter erupted throughout the Sukkah when I began serving a little from each vegetarian dish.
What do The Holy Scriptures share regarding the vegetarian living during the first 1,657 years of life on the earth? First, Genesis 1.1 – 9.23 cover from the six creation periods up to 1,657 years.
People did not age or experience any sickness, illness, or disease. Wives did not miscarry. The atmosphere was balmy and comfortable. There were no storms, violent winds, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, typhoons, or monsoon type downpours. Neither rain nor snow waters the earth. A mist went up from the ground. Genesis 2.6. The world was perfect for living a long healthy, happy life.
Our focus in Genesis 9 is the transition from a world of vegetarians to a world that became meat, poultry, and fish eaters.
Genesis 1.29 – 30
And God said, ‘Behold, I have Given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, on which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you, it shall be for food. And to every beast of the earth, and every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps upon the earth, where there is life, I have given every green herb for food; and it was so.’
Genesis 6.21
[The Lord God Said to Noah] ‘You, take for each of you, all the food that is eaten and gather it to you [in the ark] and it shall be food for you and them [all the beings with you].
Genesis 6.21
And take to you of all food that is eaten, and you shall gather it to you, and it shall be for food for you, and them.
Genesis 6.21
וְאַתָּה קַח־לְךָמכָּל־מַאֲכָל אֲשֶׁר יֵאָכֵל וְאָסַפְתָּ אֵלֶיךָ וְהָיָה לְךָ וְלָהֶם לְאָכְלָה: ס
Genesis 9.2-4
[The Lord God Said to Noah] The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the air, upon all that moves upon the world, and upon all the fishes of the sea; to your hand, they are delivered. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. But flesh with its life, which is its blood, you shall not eat.
Genesis 9.5-6
And surely the blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man. Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God, He Made man.
These Holy Scriptures teach taking the life of any kind was forbidden until after the flood in 1657 from Creation. So neither Adam, Cain, or Abel offered burnt animal sacrifices to The Lord.
Genesis 7.1 – 3
The Lord Said to Noah, ‘Come you and all your house into the ark; for you have I seen you righteous before Me in this generation. Of every clean beast, you shall take to you seven pairs, the male and his female; and of beasts that are not clean one pair, the male and his female. Also, birds of the air take seven pairs, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth.’
The clean animals and birds are pure and kosher.
Genesis 8.12
Noah built an altar to The Lord, took every clean beast, and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on The Altar.
Holy Scripture is clear. Noah offered the first burnt sacrifices on the altar. They were from clean animals and birds. Our world went through a transition. The atmosphere changed. The temperatures changed. The anticipated age for humans changed. God Permitted humans to kill animals for sacrifice and food under specific instances. Animals were allowed to stock and prey upon each other. The peaceful times of living in and enjoying the fruits of a vegetarian world were now gone. Yet, we can practice these extraordinary friendly values of a vegetarian world in and age. It is something for us to consider.
Good Sabbath and A Happy Joyful Chanukkah.
Blessings and peace,
Dr. Akiva Gamliel and Rebbetzin Revi Belk
