Genesis 2:4-14 The Garden of Eden, the creation of man
אֵ֣לֶּה תֹולְדֹ֧ות הַשָּׁמַ֛יִם וְהָאָ֖רֶץ בְּהִבָּֽרְאָ֑ם בְּיֹ֗ום עֲשֹׂ֛ות יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהִ֖ים אֶ֥רֶץ וְשָׁמָֽיִם׃
4 These are the generations of the heavens and the earth in their being created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
וְכֹ֣ל ׀ שִׂ֣יחַ הַשָּׂדֶ֗ה טֶ֚רֶם יִֽהְיֶ֣ה בָאָ֔רֶץ וְכָל־עֵ֥שֶׂב הַשָּׂדֶ֖ה טֶ֣רֶם יִצְמָ֑ח כִּי֩ לֹ֨א הִמְטִ֜יר יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהִים֙ עַל־הָאָ֔רֶץ וְאָדָ֣ם אַ֔יִן לַֽעֲבֹ֖ד אֶת־הָֽאֲדָמָֽה׃
5 And yet there was no plant of the field upon the earth, and yet no grass of the field had sprung up, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no man to labor the ground.
וְאֵ֖ד יַֽעֲלֶ֣ה מִן־הָאָ֑רֶץ וְהִשְׁקָ֖ה אֶֽת־כָּל־פְּנֵֽי־הָֽאֲדָמָֽה׃
6 And a source was gushing from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground.
וַיִּיצֶר֩ יְהוָ֨ה אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֶת־הָֽאָדָ֗ם עָפָר֙ מִן־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה וַיִּפַּ֥ח בְּאַפָּ֖יו נִשְׁמַ֣ת חַיִּ֑ים וַֽיְהִ֥י הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ חַיָּֽה׃
7 Then the Lord God modelled man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils a breath of life, and man became a living soul.
וַיִּטַּ֞ע יְהוָ֧ה אֱלֹהִ֛ים גַּן־בְּעֵ֖דֶן מִקֶּ֑דֶם וַיָּ֣שֶׂם שָׁ֔ם אֶת־הָֽאָדָ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר יָצָֽר׃
8 The Lord God planted a garden-Eden (garden-pleasure), from the Orient, and there he put the man whom he had modelled.
וַיַּצְמַ֞ח יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהִים֙ מִן־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה כָּל־עֵ֛ץ נֶחְמָ֥ד לְמַרְאֶ֖ה וְטֹ֣וב לְמַאֲכָ֑ל וְעֵ֤ץ הַֽחַיִּים֙ בְּתֹ֣וךְ הַגָּ֔ן וְעֵ֕ץ הַדַּ֖עַת טֹ֥וב וָרָע׃
9 And the Lord God made every tree praised for its sight and good for food grow out of the ground, and the tree of life in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
וְנָהָר֙ יֹצֵ֣א מֵעֵ֔דֶן לְהַשְׁקֹ֖ות אֶת־הַגָּ֑ן וּמִשָּׁם֙ יִפָּרֵ֔ד וְהָיָ֖ה לְאַרְבָּעָ֥ה רָאשִֽׁים׃
10 A river was coming out from Eden to water the garden, and from there it was dividing itself and becoming four heads…
שֵׁ֥ם הָֽאֶחָ֖ד פִּישֹׁ֑ון ה֣וּא הַסֹּבֵ֗ב אֵ֚ת כָּל־אֶ֣רֶץ הַֽחֲוִילָ֔ה אֲשֶׁר־שָׁ֖ם הַזָּהָֽב׃
11 The name of one is Pishon, which surrounds the whole land of ḥavilah, where there is gold.
וּֽזֲהַ֛ב הָאָ֥רֶץ הַהִ֖וא טֹ֑וב שָׁ֥ם הַבְּדֹ֖לַח וְאֶ֥בֶן הַשֹּֽׁהַם׃12
And the gold of that land is good; there is also the [resin called] bedolaḥ and the stone of alabaster [onyx].
The resin for incense and the alabaster stone for the temple.
וְשֵֽׁם־הַנָּהָ֥ר הַשֵּׁנִ֖י גִּיחֹ֑ון ה֣וּא הַסֹּובֵ֔ב אֵ֖ת כָּל־אֶ֥רֶץ כּֽוּשׁ׃
13 And the name of the second river is Giḥon, it surrounds the whole land of Kush
וְשֵׁ֨ם הַנָּהָ֤ר הַשְּׁלִישִׁי֙ חִדֶּ֔קֶל ה֥וּא הַֽהֹלֵ֖ךְ קִדְמַ֣ת אַשּׁ֑וּר וְהַנָּהָ֥ר הָֽרְבִיעִ֖י ה֥וּא פְרָֽת׃
14 And the name of the third river is ḥiddeqel [Tigris]; it flows toward the east, and the fourth river is pharat [Euphrates].
Ambrose of Milan, De paradiso 1, 6
Ergo si paradisus est in quo erant exorta uirgulta, uidetur paradisus anima esse, quae multiplicat semen acceptum, in qua uirtus unaquaeque plantatur, in qua erat etiam lignum uitae, hoc est sapientia, sicut dixit Solomon quia sapientia non de terra exorta est, sed de patre; for it is the splendor of eternal light and the manifestation of the omnipotent glory.
If, therefore, it was in paradise that the first offspring (uirgulta) came forth, it seems that paradise is the soul, which multiplies the seed it has received, [the soul] in which every virtue is planted, in which was also the tree of life, which is wisdom, as Solomon says (Book of Wisdom 7:21-26) that wisdom did not come from the earth, but from the Father; for it is the splendor of eternal light and the diffusion of the glory of the Almighty.
Ambrose of Milan, De paradiso 3, 12-13
Est ergo paradisus terra quaedis fertilis, hoc est anima fecunda, in Edem plantata, hoc est in uoluptate quadam uel exercitata terra, in qua animae sit delectatio.
Paradise is therefore a certain fertile land, which is the fertile soul, planted in Eden, which [Eden] is a certain pleasure or a land that has been cultivated, in which the delight of the soul is found.
[…]
erat fons qui inrigaret paradisum. qui fons nisi dominus Iesus Christus, fons uitae aeternae sicut pater? quia scriptum est: quoniam apud te fons uitae, denique: flumina de uentre eius fluent aquae uiuae.
There was a spring that irrigated paradise. What other spring [could it be] if not Jesus Christ, the source of eternal life like the Father? Since it is written (Psalm 35:10): “For with you is the fountain of life,” and then:
and fons legitur and fluvius legitur, quì inrigat paradisi lignum fructuosum, quod ferat fructum in vita aeternam. hic ergo fons, sicut legisti
we read of a spring and we read of a river, which irrigates the fruit-bearing wood of paradise, which bears fruit in eternal life. So this spring, according to what you have just read
— fons enim procedit inquit ex Edem, id est: in anima tua fons est, unde et Solomon ait: bibe aquam de tuis uasis et de puteorum tuorum fontibus—
— indeed, a spring, says the text, comes from Eden, that is to say: in your soul there is a spring, which also makes Solomon say (in the book of XXCC): drink the water from your oases and from the springs of your wells —
Here is the source, which proceeds from the soul exercised and filled with pleasure; here is the source, which irrigates paradise; this is the virtue of the soul, teeming with the highest merit.
This is the source, which comes from this soul that has been cultivated and filled with pleasure, this source, which irrigates paradise, this paradise which is that of the virtues of the soul that spring forth through very high merits.
Ovadia Sforno (Cesena 1470- Bologna 1550) on Genesis 2:4
אלה תולדות השמים והארץ בהבראם אלה הצמחים ובעלי חיים שאמרנו היו תולדות השמים והארץ בכח שנמצא בהם משעה שנבראו כי מאז נמצאו בהם כחות פועלות ומתפעלות להויות ההוות ונפסדות כאמרם את השמים לרבות תולדותיהם ואת הארץ לרבות תולדותיה אמנם יצאו לפועל ביום עשות ה’ אלהים ארץ ושמים ביום שסדר הנהגת הארץ ותולדותיה מן השמים על סדר מתמיד וזה אחר ששת ימי בראשית ואז נקרא ה’ אלהים שבסדרו התמיד ההוים:
These are the creations of the heavens and the earth in their created state. These plants, these possessors of life of which we have spoken, were “the creations of the heavens and the earth” in potentiality, which existed there from the moment they were created (Bershit, in the beginning God created the earth and the heavens, Genesis 1:1).From then on, they contain the active and passive powers for a lasting or perishable existence, according to the words that designate “the heavens” (as the object of creation) including the multitude of their offspring, and “the earth” (as the object of creation) including the multitude of its generations (Bereshit Rabba 1:14). However, they came into being on the day when the Lord God (the name of God, the tetragrammaton, Elohim) made the earth and the heavens (Genesis 2:4). On that day, He arranged the order of the earth and its creations from the heavens according to a perpetual order, and this was after the six days of creation. It is from that moment that God is called the Lord God (in Hebrew, the name of God, the tetragrammaton, and the word Elohim-God), the One who, by His command, made existence lasting.
After the sixth day, God ensures existence through natural procreation and is called Hashem.
Rashi, acronym for Rabbi Shlomo ben Itzhak HaTzarfati (Troyes, circa 1040–1105) on Genesis 2:5: creation in two stages, the grass had already been created but had not yet grown.
וכל עשב השדה – עדיין לא צמח, ובשלישי שכתוב: תוצא הארץ (בראשית א׳:י״ב), על פתח קרקע עמדו עד יום ששי. כי לא המטיר – ומה טעם לא המטיר לפי שאדם אין לעבוד את האדמה, ואין מי מכיר בטובתן של גשמים. וכשבא אדם וידע שצורך הם לעולם, התפלל עליהם וירדו, וצמחו האילנות והדשאים.
And no herb of the field had yet sprung up (Genesis 2:5): On the third (day of creation) where it is written, “Let the earth bring forth (Genesis 1:12) the herbs remained at the opening of the ground until the sixth day. Because He had not yet rained: What is the meaning of “He had not yet rained”? Because there was no Adam to work the soil and there was no one to recognize the benefits of rain, until the arrival of Adam, who recognized that it was necessary for the world. He prayed for it, and it came down, and the trees and vegetation grew.
Kli Yakar, a work by Solomon Ephraim of Luntschitz (1550 Łęczyca, Poland – 1619 Prague) on Genesis 2:7: The breath of life is the immortal intellectual soul.
נשמת חיים היא הנפש המשכלת הנצחי צא ולמד מי הנופח ותמצא שזה מדבר בחלק אלוה ממעל ויאמר אע״פ שנפח ה׳ באדם נשמת חיים המשכלת מ״מ ויהי האדם בתחלת הויתו לסתם נפש חיה כשאר בעלי חיים כי אדם עיר פרא יולד (איוב י״א:י״ב) ועיקר שלימותו תלוי בחריצות השתדלותו וטוב בחירתו כשיפקח עיני שכלו בבואו בימים, אבל בתחילת הויתו אע״פ שכבר נופח בו נשמת רוח חיים מכל מקום אין הנשמה בו בפועל כי אם בכח לבד ואם לא ישנס מתני זריזותו לצאת בראש החלוץ ללחום מלחמת ה׳ הרי הוא בבהמיותו ונמשל כבהמה. אבל שור או כשב או עז כי יולד. באותו יום נברא עם כל שלימותו ואין בו תוספת שלימות. וגלה לנו הכתוב דבר זה שלא יטעה האדם בעצמו לאמר שבלא יגיעה ועמל יבא לידי שלימותו אשר כבר נוצר עמו ויסמוך על יתרון זה שנמצא ביצירתו כי אין הדבר כן אלא הכל תלוי בפועל כפיו כי יש בידיו תמיד להחליף ולהמיר הטבע בשכל והשכל בטבע. ומטעם זה לא נאמר ביצירת האדם וירא אלהים כי טוב לפי שביצירתו עדיין לא ניכר מה טובו ומה יופיו.
This breath of life is the immortal intellectual soul; considering the one who breathes it, you will find that it speaks of the part of God that comes from above, and one could say that ” ” even though the Lord breathed into Adam a breath of life that understands everything, Adam became from the beginning of his existence a simple living soul like the rest of the living (animals), as the book of Job 11:12 says: “Adam will be brought forth like a wild donkey,” but the principle of his perfection depends on the diligence of his efforts and his good choices, when he uses his intellect wisely in the days to come. But at the beginning of his existence, even though the breath of the spirit of life had already been breathed into him, the soul within him was not yet in act, but only in potentiality. If he did not gird his loins with all his skill to go forth as a pioneer at the head of the Lord’s battle. Here he is in his animal state and is comparable to an animal. But an ox, a sheep, or a goat, from the moment they are born, are created with all their perfection and without any further perfection to be added. And Scripture reveals this to us so that man may not err in thinking that without effort or labor he will attain the perfection that has already been created in him, and that he should not rely on this advantage found in his modeling, for it is nothing, but everything depends on his actions, for he always has in his power to change and transform nature through intelligence, and intelligence into nature. That is why it is not said, concerning the modeling of man, “and Elohim saw that it was good,” for in his modeling, his goodness and beauty do not yet appear.
Bereshit Rabba 15, 3 on Genesis 2, 8
מִקֶּדֶם, אָמַר רַבִּי שְׁמוּאֵל בַּר נַחְמָן, אַתְּ סָבוּר קֹדֶם לִבְרִיָּתוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, וְאֵינוֹ אֶלָּא קֹדֶם לְאָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן. אָדָם נִבְרָא בַּשִּׁשִּׁי, גַּן עֵדֶן בַּשְּׁלִישִׁי, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (תהלים עד, יב): וֵאלֹהִים מַלְכִּי מִקֶּדֶם פֹּעֵל יְשׁוּעוֹת בְּקֶרֶב הָאָרֶץ, רְאוּ פָּעֳלָא טָבָא שֶׁהִתְקִין הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא שְׂכָרִי עַד שֶׁלֹא עָמַדְתִּי לִפְעֹל
Miqqedem [from before, previously]: Rabbi Shemouel bar Nahman said: “You interpret this as meaning before the creation of the world, but it only means before the creation of the first Adam. Adam was created on the sixth day, the Garden of Eden on the third, as it is written in Psalm 74:12: ‘And God is my king, he previously (miqqedem) performs deeds of salvation in the midst of the earth.’ See the good deed: the Holy One, blessed be He, established my wages before I stood up to work.”
Torah Temimah, a work by Baruch Epstein (1860–1941 in Belarus) on Genesis 2:8
גן בעדן מקדם. מלבד שנן עדן נברא קודם שנברא העולם כז (פסחים נ »ד א’) ן
A garden in Eden before (miqqedem): this teaches us that the Garden of Eden was created before the world was created (Pessahim 54, 1).