Pemikiran Yahudi Kejadian 1: HaEmunot veHaDeot, Akeidat Yitzchak, Yesod Mora VeSod HaTorah & Derush Chiddushei HaLevanah

And as I explained this introduction, I say, for our blessed God has informed us that all things are renewed, and He renews them not from a thing, as it is said (Genesis 1:1), "In the beginning God created," and also, "I, the Lord, make all things, stretching out the heavens by Myself." (Isaiah 44:24) This truth, we have received through signs and miracles. Afterward, I examined this matter, asking whether it is affirmed through investigation as it is affirmed through prophecy? And I found it to be so from various perspectives. I will briefly summarize four evidences:

Just as man, despite his freedom to move within the confines of the earth, cannot move outside of it, so he cannot interfere with the laws of nature G-d has established, despite the free will that has been granted to him. Man's limitations are evident in three areas. Let us illustrate this. There are many necessary activities without which man would perish, i.e. provision of food, shelter, and clothing, all of which man pursues by choice, though his failure to pursue them would result in irreparable harm to himself. Secondly, there are activities which are undertaken under the influence of varying degrees of pressure, such as business trips to foreign countries, which though freely decided upon, have not really been initiated by the traveller's own free will. Thirdly, there are activities which man wishes to initiate but is prevented from executing due to the limitations placed upon him by the will of the Creator. Were man to aspire to travel to heaven, for instance, this is clearly impossible due to the nature of man and the universe, respectively. The limitation placed on man is consistent with the words of David in Psalms 33,10-11, "G-d destroys the counsel of nations, whereas the counsel of the Almighty prevails forever." This teaches that the limitations placed on human freedom aim at ensuring that G-d’s universe should not be tampered with unduly by any of His creatures. Superficial consideration of these limitations might lead one to conclude that freedom of choice does not exist in reality. If one assumes that the whole is nothing more than the sum total of its parts, it follows that if the whole is to remain inviolate, so must the parts remain inviolate. We have discussed this in Chapter twenty-two and twenty-six, and have demonstrated that G-d’s will does not impose itself on human will. A prisoner who has the run of his prison, is free and responsible for his actions, though he cannot escape from the walls of the prison. The Torah illustrates the limits of such freedom by many stories, the Joseph story being a classic example in which all participants play their parts, executing their own designs, without G-d’s overall design becoming thwarted. On the other hand, the freedom of choice of none of the participants is interfered with in any way. This is the basis for the whole system of reward and punishment. Rabbi Yoshua ben Korcha in Tanchuma Vayeshev explains the verse, "Go and see G-d’s accomplishment. He is terrifying in His acts above the sons of man" (Psalms 66,4) to mean that man has a habit of blaming his mistakes on G-d. A husband who wants to divorce his wife, for instance, asks her to pour him a cup of wine. She complies, whereupon he gives her a bill of divorce claiming that the wine had been lukewarm. The wife queries, "How did you know beforehand that I was going to give you lukewarm wine?" Similarly, we say to G-d, "You have predetermined our death, since it says in Your Torah, which had been written prior to the creation of man "this is the law of the Torah; when man dies in a tent etc" (Numbers 19,2). This clearly means that death is part of the scheme of things. The truth is, of course, the reverse. Although, in the final analysis G-d’s plan will prevail, no one has been forced to play a particular part on the stage of history. Is it conceivable that because of an extra strand of dyed wool in Joseph's garment a whole people should have become condemned to exile in Egypt? G-d wanted to carry out the prophecy made to Abraham at the covenant between the pieces. The chain of events in which the jealousy of Joseph's brothers played a prominent part ultimately proves to have become the instrument for carrying out G-d’s design. However, G-d could have found many other means to achieve the same end. Therefore, the brothers cannot claim exoneration by saying that what they had done, helped G-d to achieve His aim. The Bible is full of similar such lessons. The Joseph story with all its details would be completely superfluous were it not for the fact that it foreshadowed Jewish experiences in general.

In the words of our sages, there are many statements that require evidence and interpretation, such as in Pirkei Avot (3:4) "One who is awake at night" [referring to studying Torah at night], and in Pesachim (111a) "And [he] drank water" [referring to the wisdom of measurements]. And the matter of the letter of the daughter of the voice [the Shekhinah] is derived from the laws of the constellations. And the matter of the moon and its relationship with the sun is derived from the wisdom of the constellations. Similarly, many things in the Scriptures require interpretation, as mentioned by Kohelet regarding the four elements, which are the heavens, the earth, the wind, and the dust. It is written (Kohelet 1:5) "And the sun rises and the sun sets" corresponding to the heavens, (Kohelet 1:4) "And the earth stands forever," (Kohelet 1:6) "And the wind goes round and round," and it does not come to an end, (Kohelet 1:7) "All the rivers flow into the sea," and these four are mentioned in the portion of Bereishit (Genesis 1:1) "The heavens and the earth," (Genesis 1:2) "And the spirit of God hovered over the waters." And similarly, in Isaiah (40:12), "Who measured the waters in the hollow of His hand and marked off the heavens with a span, and calculated the dust of the earth in a measure," and in Psalms (104:2), "He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, He lays the beams of His chambers on the waters," and His angels are the winds that roam over the water. And likewise, in Psalms (33:7), "He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He sets the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him." And similarly, it is mentioned in Psalms (33:6) regarding the word of God, "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all their host by the breath of His mouth." And similarly (Job 28:25), "To establish a weight for the wind and apportion the waters by measure." For He looks to the ends of the earth and sees under the whole heavens. And thus it is written (Proverbs 30:4), "Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has wrapped up the waters in His garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son's name? Surely you know!" And thus it is written elsewhere (Job 38:18), "Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? Declare, if you know all this!" And all is prepared for the understanding one. And many such things are mentioned at the end of the Book of Psalms, as fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling His word. And thus the waters are above the heavens, and how the luminaries and the stars are in one expanse, and all is true. And the sages of the Talmud in our generation are diverse in their approaches. There are those who delve into matters of prohibition and permission, and there are those who possess knowledge of the Midrashim, and they too provide new insights and seek meaning for every word, whether surplus or lacking. And now, let me state a general principle: Know that the prophets do not guard the words themselves in their years; rather, they guard the meanings alone, which are the essence, as in the words of Eliezer (Genesis 24), "The Lord, before whom I have walked, will send His angel with you." And Isaac said to Esau (Genesis 27), "So that my soul may bless you before I die." And Rebekah said (Genesis 27), "So that I may bless you before the Lord before my death." And in the dream (Genesis 41), "Handsome in appearance and robust in form," and in the interpretation, it is not stated thus, but to Balaam (Numbers 22), it is said, "You shall not curse them at all, and indeed, you shall bless them." And in the words of Moses (Numbers 21), "And he sent messengers to Sihon, saying, 'Let me pass through your land; I will not turn aside into field or vineyard.'" But Moses changed it and said, "We will not pass through the field." And it is written (Exodus 32), "Now, leave Me alone, and let My anger flare up against them, that I may consume them." But Moses changed it and said, "Turn from Your burning anger and relent from this disaster against Your people." And there are many such instances. And behold, in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20), "Remember" (Deuteronomy 5), "Observe" (Exodus 20), "You shall not covet" (Deuteronomy 5), "You shall not desire" (Exodus 20), "And any false oath" (Deuteronomy 5), "And any vain oath." The letters 'vav' (ו) in "Avnei" (אבני) are missing, and Moses changed it to have a 'vav' (ו). Also, "You shall not commit adultery" - this is an addition and a rebuke, and the intelligent one will understand.