Genesis Rabbah 19

¹“The serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field that the Lord God had made. It said to the woman: Did God actually say: You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?” (Genesis 3:1). “The serpent was…cunning” – it is written: “For with great wisdom is great anger, and he who increases knowledge increases pain” (Ecclesiastes 1:18). By increasing wisdom a person increases anger against himself; by increasing knowledge he brings pain upon himself. Solomon said: Because I increased wisdom for myself I increased anger against myself, and because I increased my knowledge I brought pain upon myself. 10:4). Have you ever heard anyone say: ‘This donkey is afflicted by a cold?’ [Or:] ‘So many inflammations afflict him.’ [Of course not.] Where is suffering found? It is among human beings. Rav said: A Torah scholar does not require forewarning. Rabbi Yoḥanan said: It is like fine linen garments that come from Beit She’an; if they get a bit dirty they are ruined [and it is a great loss]. But the linen garments of Arbel, what is their quality, and what is their value? Rabbi Yishmael taught: In accordance with the camel, so is its burden. This is the ordinary way of the world : If two people enter a restaurant, and one says: ‘Bring me a piece of roast meat, white bread, and fine wine,’ and the other says: ‘Give me bread and beets.’ This one ]the first man] eats and suffers, and that one [the second man] eats and does not suffer. The food is too much for this one, but it is not too much for that one. It is taught in the name of Rabbi Meir: The downfall of the serpent was in accordance with its greatness – The more cunning, the more cursed. Rabbi Hoshaya Rabba said: It [the serpent] stood erect like a reed, and it had legs. Rabbi Yirmeya ben Elazar said: It was a heretic. Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar said: It was like a camel. The world lost a great benefit, as were it not so [that the serpent was punished], man would have been able to send merchandise with it and it would have been able to come and go [by itself]. ²“It said to the woman: Did [ af ] God actually say…” – Rabbi Ḥanina ben Sansan said: There are four people who began a statement with af and perished by [divine] wrath [ af ], and they are: The serpent, the baker [in prison with Joseph], the congregation of Koraḥ, and Haman. The serpent – “It said to the woman: Did [ af ] God actually say…” The baker – “I, too [ af ], in my dream…” (Genesis 40:16). The congregation of Koraḥ – “Moreover, [ af ] not to a land…” (Numbers 16:14). Haman – “Moreover, [ af ] Esther did not bring…” (Esther 5:12). ³“The woman said to the serpent: From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat” (Genesis 3:2). “The woman said to the serpent” – where was Adam at that time? Abba bar Korya said: He had engaged in the way of nature and he was sleeping. The Rabbis say: The Holy One blessed be He was taking him and circulating throughout the entire world [telling him]: ‘This is a good place to plant, this is a good place to sow.’ That is what is written: “In a land that no man has ever crossed, and where no person [ adam ] has ever dwelled” (Jeremiah 2:6) – Adam the first man did not dwell there. “But from the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, God said: You shall not eat of it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die” (Genesis 3:3). “But from the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden…nor shall you touch it” – that is what is written: “Do not add to His words, lest He rebuke you, and you will be found to be false” (Proverbs 30:6). Rabbi Ḥiyya taught: [This teaches] that you should not make the fence [around an orchard] taller than the main object [being protected], so it should not fall and sever the saplings. So, the Holy One blessed be He said [merely]: “As on the day that you eat of it [you shall die]” (Genesis 2:17). But she did not say that, rather [she added on to it and said:] “God said: You shall not eat of it, nor shall you touch it.” When it saw her passing before the tree, it took hold of her and pushed her onto it. It said to her: ‘See, you did not die. Just as you did not die from touching it, so you will not die from eating of it. Rather [the real reason God forbade you to eat of it is:] “for God knows that on the day [you eat from it…you will be as God, knowing good from evil]”’ (Genesis 3:5). ⁴“For God knows that, on the day you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be as God, knowing good from evil (Genesis 3:5). Rabbi Tanḥuma said: They asked me this question in Antioch. I said to them: “For God knows [ yodim ]” is not written, but rather, “for God knows [ yode’a ] that, on the day you eat from it.” Rabbi Yehoshua of Sikhnin said in the name of Rabbi Levi: It began to slander its Creator. It said: ‘He ate from this tree and then created the world, so He says to you: Do not eat from it so you will not create other worlds. For every person hates the craftsman that competes with him.’ Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Simon said: [The serpent said:] ‘Everything that was created after its counterpart dominates that counterpart. The heavens were created on the first day and the firmament on the second. Does it [the firmament] not hold them up? That is a rhetorical question. The firmament was created on the second day and the vegetation on the third – does it [the firmament] not supply water for it? Vegetation was created on the third day and the luminaries on the fourth – do they [the luminaries] not cause its [the earth’s] produce to grow? The luminaries were created on the fourth day and the birds on the fifth – the ziz is a very large bird and when it flies it obscures the orb of the sun. Man was created after everything in order to dominate everything. Hurry and eat [the fruit] now, before He creates additional worlds and they will dominate you.’ That is what is written: “The woman saw that the tree was good…” (Genesis 3:6) – she saw the arguments of the serpent. ⁵“The woman saw that the tree was good for eating, and that it was an enticement to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable as a source of wisdom; she took from its fruit and ate; she also gave to her husband with her, and he ate” (Genesis 3:6). Rabbi Yosei bar Zimra said: Three matters were stated regarding that tree: That it was good for eating, pleasing to the eye, and suited for increasing wisdom” – and the three of them were stated in one verse. “The woman saw that…was good” – from here we learn that it was good; “and that it was an enticement to the eyes” – from here we learn that it was pleasing to the eye; “and that the tree was desirable as a source of wisdom [ lehaskil ]” – from here we learn that it was suitable for increasing wisdom, just as it says: “A contemplation [ maskil ] by Eitan the Ezrahite” (Psalms 89:1). “She took from its fruit and ate” – Rabbi Aivu said: She squeezed grapes and gave it to him [Adam]. Rabbi Simlai said: She came to him persuasively. She said to him: ‘What, do you think that I will die and another Eve will be created for you? “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Or, perhaps [you think that] I will die and you will sit alone? “He did not create it [the world] for emptiness, He formed it to be inhabited”’ (Isaiah 45:18). The Rabbis say: She began sobbing at him plaintively with her voice. “Also [ gam ]” is an inclusive term; [as well as Adam,] she also fed the animals, the beasts, and the birds. All of them heeded her [and ate of the fruit] except for one bird that is called ḥol . That is what is written: “I will live many days, like the ḥol ” (Job 29:18). The school of Rabbi Yanai says: It lives a thousand years, and at the end of a thousand years, fire emerges from its nest and burns it. An egg-bulk remains of it and it then grows limbs, and lives again. Rabbi Yudan ben Rabbi Shimon says: It lives a thousand years, and at the end of one thousand years, its body wastes away and its wings are shed. But an egg-bulk remains of it and it then grows limbs, and lives again. ⁶“The eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; they sewed fig leaves, and they made themselves loincloths” (Genesis 3:7). “The eyes of both of them were opened” – Had they been blind? Rabbi Yudan in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan ben Zakkai and Rabbi Berekhya in the name of Rabbi Akiva said: This is analogous to a villager who was passing by a glazier’s shop which had a basket filled with goblets and cut glass in front of it, and he grabbed them with his cane and shattered them. He [the glazier] got up and grabbed him. He said to him: ‘I know that I will not be able to get any benefit out of you, but come with me [into my shop] and I will show you how much goodness you have destroyed.’ So, too, He showed them [Adam and Eve] how many generations they had destroyed [through their sin]. “They knew that they were naked” – they had been stripped bare of even that one commandment that they had received. “They sewed fig [ te’ena ] leaves” – Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai said: It is the leaf that brought grief [ to’ana ] to the world. Rabbi Yitzḥak said: [God said to them, in effect:] ‘You have ruined your handiwork, take a thread and sow it up.’ “And they made themselves loincloths [ ḥagorot ]” – Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: Ḥagora [singular], is not written here, but rather ḥagorot [plural] – several straps: istikhon, galyon, sedinim . And just as they made these for the man, so, they made for the woman: tziltzelin, kolasin, sekhanin . ⁷“They heard the voice of the Lord God moving about in the garden with the day breeze; the man and his wife hid from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden” (Genesis 3:8). “They heard the voice of the Lord God moving about [ mithalekh ] in the garden with the day breeze” – Rabbi Ḥalfon said: We have heard that walking about [ hilukh ] is [an expression] used regarding sound, as it is stated: “They heard the voice of the Lord God moving about [ mithalekh ] in the garden,” and that walking about is used regarding fire, as it is stated: “And fire went [ vatihalakh ] earthward” (Exodus 9:23). Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: Mehalekh is not written here, but rather, mithalekh , [which connotes] leaping up and ascending. The essence of the Divine Presence had been in the lower world, but when Adam the first man sinned the Divine Presence removed itself up to the first firmament; when Cain sinned, it removed itself up to the second firmament; at the generation of Enosh, to the third; at the generation of the Flood, to the fourth; at the generation of the dispersion, to the fifth; upon [the sins of] the Sodomites, to the sixth; upon [the sins of] the Egyptians in the generation of Abraham, to the seventh. Corresponding to them there arose seven righteous men, and these were: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Levi, Kehat, Amram, Moses. Abraham arose and brought it down to the sixth level; Isaac arose and brought it down from the sixth to the fifth; Jacob arose and brought it down from the fifth to the fourth; Levi arose and brought it down from the fourth to the third; Kehat arose and brought it down from the third to the second; Amram arose and brought it down from the second to the first; Moses arose and brought it down from above [in the first firmament] to down below [earth]. Rabbi Yitzḥak said: It is written: “The righteous will inherit the earth [and dwell [ veyishkenu ] upon it forever…” (Psalms 37:29). And what of the wicked, will they float in the air? It means, rather, that the wicked did not allow the Divine Presence [ shekhina ] to rest on earth. ⁸“They heard [ vayishme’u ]” – do not read it vayishme’u , but rather, vayashmiu [they made heard] – they heard the voice of the trees saying: ‘This is the thief who deceived his Creator.’ means that they [the trees] made something heard to Adam and Eve. Another interpretation: They heard the voice of the angels saying: ‘The Lord God is going to those in the garden.’ Rabbi Levi and Rabbi Yitzḥak, Rabbi Levi said: [The angels said:] ‘Is the one in the garden to die [ met ]?’ is interpreted as two words: Is he going to die [ met ], that man walking [ holekh ] in the garden? Rabbi Yitzḥak said: Is he to die [ met ], for having gone off [ halakh ] on his own way? That is astonishing. The Holy One blessed be He said to them: “With the day breeze [ ruaḥ ]” – the expansion [ revaḥ ] of the day. I will make this day alive for them. This is what I said to him: ‘“As on the day that you eat of it you shall die” (Genesis 2:17), but you do not know whether I meant one of My days or one of your days. But I will grant him one of My days, which is one thousand years.’ He lived nine hundred and thirty years, and left seventy years for his descendants. That is what is written: “The days of our lives in it are seventy years” (Psalms 90:10). “With the day breeze [ ruaḥ ]” – He judged them by the eastern direction [ ruaḥ ] – by the direction that rises with the day. Zavdi ben Levi said: He judged them by the western direction – by the direction that sets with the day. According to Rav’s opinion, [this means that] He treated him harshly, for as long as the day rises it gets hotter. According to Zavdi ben Levi, He treated him leniently, for as long as the day is setting, it gets cooler. “The man and his wife hid” – Rav Aivu said: His [Adam’s] stature diminished and it became [a mere] one hundred cubits. 8:1. “[The man and his wife hid …] among the trees [ etz ] of the garden” – this is an allusion to his descendants who would be placed in wooden [ etz ] caskets. ⁹“The Lord God called to the man, and said to him: Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9). “The Lord God called to the man [and said to him: Where are you [ ayeka ]?]” – how [ eikh ] have you become like this? Yesterday you were loyal to My will, but now to the will of the serpent. Yesterday you extended from one end of the world to the other end, but now you fit “among the trees of the garden”? Rabbi Abahu said in the name of Rabbi Ḥanina: “But they were like men [ adam ] who violated the covenant” (Hosea 6:7) – they were like Adam the first man. They were like Adam the first man, whom I put into the Garden of Eden and commanded him, but he violated the command, and I sentenced him to banishment and expulsion, and I lamented over him: ‘How could it be [ eikha ]?’ . I put him into the Garden of Eden, as it is stated: “He placed him in the Garden of Eden” (Genesis 2:15). And I commanded him, as it is stated: “The Lord God commanded the man, saying” (Genesis 2:16). And he violated the command, as it is stated: “Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from it?” (Genesis 3:11). And I sentenced him to banishment, as it is stated: “The Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden” (Genesis 3:23). And I sentenced him to expulsion, as it is stated: “He expelled the man” (Genesis 3:24). And I lamented over him: ‘How could it be [ eikha ],’ as it is stated: “The Lord God called to the man, and said to him: Where are you [ ayeka ]?” – eikha is written. So it was with His descendants: I brought them into the Land of Israel, I commanded them and they violated the command, I sentenced them to banishment and expulsion, and I lamented over them: Eikha . I brought them into the Land of Israel, as it is stated: “I brought you to a fruitful land” (Jeremiah 2:7). And I commanded them, as it is stated: “You shall command the children of Israel” (Exodus 27:20). And they violated the command, as it is stated: “All Israel has violated Your Torah” (Daniel 9:11). And I sentenced them to banishment, as it is stated: “Banish them from My presence” (Jeremiah 15:1). And I sentenced them to expulsion, as it is stated: “I will expel them from My house” (Hosea 9:15). And I lamented over them: Eikha , as it is stated: “How [ eikha ] does…it sit” (Lamentations 1:1). ¹⁰“He said: Who told you that you are naked? Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from it” (Genesis 3:11). “He said: Who told you that you are naked? Did [you eat] from the tree…?” – Rabbi Levi said: This is analogous to a woman who needs to borrow vinegar, so she goes into the house of a snake charmer’s wife. She says to her: ‘How does your husband treat you?’ She answers her: ‘He treats me with all generosity, except for this barrel that is filled with snakes and scorpions, to which he does not allow me access.’ She says to her: ‘All his gems are there, and he wants to marry another woman and give it all to her.’ What did she do? She reached her hand into it, and they began biting her. When her husband came, he heard the sound of her screaming. He said to her: ‘Did you, perhaps, touch that barrel?’ So, the Holy One blessed be He said to Adam the first man: “Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you [not to eat from it?]” ¹¹“The man said: The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate” (Genesis 3:12). “The man said…” – there are four people whom the Holy One blessed be He tapped on their jug and found that they were jugs filled with urine. They are: Adam, Cain, Bilam, and Hezekiah. Adam, as it is stated: “The man said: The woman [whom You gave to be with me, she gave me…].” Cain – “The Lord said to Cain: Where is Abel…and he said: I do not know” (Genesis 4:9). The wicked Bilam, as it is stated: “Who are these people with you… Bilam said to God…” (Numbers 22:9–10). Hezekiah – “What did these people say to you?” (II Kings 20:14, Isaiah 39:3). But Ezekiel, He found him more perceptive than all of them, as it is stated: “Son of man, will these bones come to life? And I said: Lord God, You know” (Ezekiel 37:3). Rabbi Ḥanina bar Pappa said: This is analogous to a bird held in a hunter’s hand. He encountered someone and said to him: ‘This thing in my hand, will it live or die?’ He said to him: ‘If you wish it will live, and if you wish it will die.’ So, too, [when God asked Ezekiel] “son of man, will these bones live?” [His response was:] “I said: Lord God, You know.” ¹²“The man said: The woman whom You gave…” – that is what is written: “I would speak, and I would not fear Him; for it is not so that I am, with myself [ imadi ]” (Job 9:35) – I am unlike the one who said: “The woman whom You gave to me [ imadi ]…” He heeded his wife’s words, but I did not heed my wife’s words. , a word that alludes to Adam. Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: Dina was Job’s wife. That is why he said to her: “You are speaking as one of the disgusting women [ nevalot ] would speak. ] in Israel to lie with Jacob's daughter” (Genesis 34:7). Shall we accept the good from God, [and not accept the bad]?” (Job 2:10). “Shall I accept,” is not written here, but rather, “shall we accept [ nekabel ]” – should we be pleased with the good but not be pleased with the bad? is interpreted as “pleased [ na’im ] about accepting [ kabel ].” That was a rhetorical question. “With all this, Job did not sin with his lips” (Job 2:10) – [the implication is:] with his lips he did not sin, but in his heart he did sin. Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: “And I ate [ veakhalti ]” is not written here, but rather, “ vaokhel ” – I ate and I will eat again. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: Adam the first man was banished only after he blasphemed and spoke sacrilegiously. That is what is written: “He hoped to produce grapes, but it produced sour grapes” (Isaiah 5:2). “The Lord God said to the woman: What is this you have done? The woman said: The serpent enticed me, and I ate” (Genesis 3:13). “The woman said: The serpent enticed me [ hishiani ], and I ate” – [ hishiani has three meanings:] It enticed me, it brought liability upon me, and it misled me. It enticed me, as it says: “The enemy will not entice [ yashi ] you” (Psalms 89:23). It brought liability upon me, as it says: “When you lend [ tashe ] to your neighbor” (Deuteronomy 24:10). It misled me, as it says: “Now, do not allow Hezekiah to mislead [ yashi ] you” (II Chronicles 32:15).