Provérbios 31:12 Cabalá: Sha'arei Orah

Even so, I will hint at it further with the verse,³¹¹Genesis 2:9 “The Tree of the Knowledge of good-Tov-טוב and evil-Ra-רע,” and,³¹²Proverbs 31:12 “She bestows goodness-Tov-טוב upon him, never evil-Ra-רע, all the days of her life,” hinting at eternal life. Whoever understands this will understand the repetition of the words “I-Anee-אני, I-Anww-אני am He.” This is the secret of the verse,³¹³Numbers 15:41 “I-Anee-אני am HaShem-יהו״ה your God, who took you out of the land of Egypt to be a God unto you; I-Anee-אני am HaShem-יהו״ה your God.” Whoever understands the beginning and end of this verse, will understand the secret of, “See now that I-Anee-אני, I-Anee-אני am He-Hoo-הוא,” and the secret of, “I-Anee-אני put to death and I bring to life.”

Included in these principles is the Sefirah of the moon-Levanah-לבנה (Kingship-Malcut). Whoever knows the secret that is hidden and sealed in the White Head-Rosh HaLavan-ראש הלבן, will contemplate the secret of the moon-Levanah-לבנה – beginning-Rosh-ראש and end-Sof-סוף. Now, the primordial snake-Nachash HaKadmonee, that is drawn from the power of Lavan-לבן the Aramean, instilled blemish in the moon-Levanah-לבנה, through Adam, the first man, who could not wait a mere hour for the prohibition of Orlah to pass.³⁷²Midrash Bereishit Rabba 21:7; Vayikra Rabba 25:2 and elsewhere. Had he waited one hour until Shabbat, the fruit of the tree would have been permitted to him. As a result, he ate from the tree while it still was mingled with good and evil, and did not wait until the evil took its portion in the place called the foreskin-Orlah-ערלה. The tree would then have been called good-Tov-טוב and not evil-Ra-רע, and he would have been permitted to eat from it to his heart’s content, and he would eat and live forever. This is the secret of the Tree of Life-Etz HaChayim-עץ החיים which adheres to the Tree of Knowledge-Etz HaDa’at-עץ הדעת, but is only good-Tov-טוב. The sign for this is the verse,³⁷³Deuteronomy 30:15 “See – I have placed before you today life-Chayim-חיים and good-Tov-טוב and death-Mavet-מות and evil-Ra-רע.” The whole matter is clearly explained by the verse,³⁷⁴Proverbs 31:12 “She bestows goodness-Tov-טוב upon him, never evil-Ra-רע, all the days of her life,” for this is certainly so. If only Adam, the first man, would have waited to cut of the foreskin-Orlah-ערלה, it would no longer be the Tree of the Knowledge of good and evil, but would only be good. However, when he ate of it, it still was mingled with good and evil.

One who understands the great hints we have provided here about Adam eating from the Tree of Knowledge during the period of Orlah, will know why it is called the Tree of Knowledge-Etz HaDa’at-עץ הדעת, and why it is called good and evil. For, it is possible for it to only be called good and not evil, provided that the Tree of Life-Etz HaDa’at-עץ הדעת adheres to it, rather than that which is called uncircumcised-Orlah-ערלה. This is the meaning of the verse,³⁷⁷Proverbs 31:12 “She bestows goodness-Tov-טוב upon him, never evil-Ra-רע, all the days of her life.”