Quotation sur Job 11:9

Why does the Torah begin with the letter Bet? In order that it begin with a berachah (blessing). How do we know that the Torah is called a blessing? Because it is written (Deut. 33:23), "And full of the LORD’s blessing, Take possession on the west and south." The Sea is nothing other than the Torah, as it is written (Job 11:9), "Its measure is longer than the earth And broader than the sea." What is the meaning of the verse, "full of the LORD’s blessing"? This means that wherever we find the letter bet it indicates a blessing. It is thus written (Gen. 1:1), "Bereshit..." ("In the beginning") The word reshit ("beginning") is nothing other than Wisdom. It is thus written (Ps. 111:10), "The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the LORD;" Wisdom is a blessing. It is thus written, that, the LORD blessed Solomon. It is furthermore written (I Kings 5:26), "The LORD had given Solomon wisdom". This resembles a king who marries his daughter to his son. He gives her to him at the wedding and says to him, "Do with her as you desire."

Rabbi Amorai sat and expounded: What is the meaning of the verse (Deut. 33:23), "And full of the LORD’s blessing, Take possession on the west and south." Moses was saying, "If you follow my decrees, you will inherit both this world and the next." The World to Come is likened to the sea, as it is written (Job 11:9), "And broader than the sea." The present world is referred to as the South. It is thus written (Josh. 15:19), "...for you have given me away as Negeb-land..." The Targum translates this, "behold the earth is the south."