לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ מַשְׂכִּ֥יל לְדָוִֽד׃
Radak
בצלמנו כדמותנו, according to the interpretation of my father of blessed memory, the meaning of the word בצלמנו applies both to a physical likeness as well as to a spiritual likeness, the ending נו not applying to two different subjects, “our,” but applying to two different parts of the same subject. It matches the prefix נ in the word נעשה. If we understand the word נעשה as applying to the angels, we must treat the words צלם and דמות as referring to spiritual attributes only, the meaning being that man would be endowed with parts of the spiritual attributes known as צלם and דמות respectively. The expressions צלם and דמות respectively, are sometimes applied to something physical and on other occasions applied to something abstract, spiritual. The word צלם is an attribute sometimes applied to a physical entity, such as in Samuel I 6,5 צלמי טחוריכם, “images of your hemorrhoids,” or in Numbers 33,52 צלמי מסכותם, “their molten images.” The same expression is also used to describe something spiritual, as in verse 27 of our chapter here.
The same is true of the word דמות as for instance, in Song of Songs 7,8 קומתך דומה לתמר, “your posture resembles that of a date palm,” or Ezekiel 1,13 ודמות החיות, “and the appearance of the chayot,” (a category of angels shown to the prophet in this vision). The same word is also used to describe physical appearances such as in Ezekiel 32,2 כפיר גוים נדמית “you were compared to a young lion;” or in Psalms 102,7 דמיתי לקאת מדבר, “I am like a great owl in the desert.”
The word נעשה is justified seeing that these attributes are means employed by G’d. The letter ב which serves as a prefix to צלמנו, is to be understood as a “helper,” meaning “equipped with our attribute צלם, i.e. our intelligence, we shall produce a creature whom we will endow with portions of these attributes of ours.” We will do this although, essentially, man is of the earth, to wit his name אדם. Alternately, it is possible to understand the prefix ב in the word בצלמנו as a letter that describes that something is equipped with an attribute. G’d would be saying that this new creature called אדם, man, shall be equipped with the attribute known as צלם.
The same is true of the word דמות as for instance, in Song of Songs 7,8 קומתך דומה לתמר, “your posture resembles that of a date palm,” or Ezekiel 1,13 ודמות החיות, “and the appearance of the chayot,” (a category of angels shown to the prophet in this vision). The same word is also used to describe physical appearances such as in Ezekiel 32,2 כפיר גוים נדמית “you were compared to a young lion;” or in Psalms 102,7 דמיתי לקאת מדבר, “I am like a great owl in the desert.”
The word נעשה is justified seeing that these attributes are means employed by G’d. The letter ב which serves as a prefix to צלמנו, is to be understood as a “helper,” meaning “equipped with our attribute צלם, i.e. our intelligence, we shall produce a creature whom we will endow with portions of these attributes of ours.” We will do this although, essentially, man is of the earth, to wit his name אדם. Alternately, it is possible to understand the prefix ב in the word בצלמנו as a letter that describes that something is equipped with an attribute. G’d would be saying that this new creature called אדם, man, shall be equipped with the attribute known as צלם.