Many Jews translate the 1st 2 word of Genesis as "God created six"

[Fascinated With God]

I just discovered this and I thought it was quite striking. The six in this context could not refer to days. They interpret it as six directions (NSEW, up & down) or six fundamental forces in the Tree of Life.

 

[ChristianT]

That's interesting. What endorsed this discovery of yours?

 

[miamited]

I just discovered this and I thought it was quite striking. The six in this context could not refer to days. They interpret it as six directions (NSEW, up & down) or six fundamental forces in the Tree of Life.

hi FWG,

Many christians don't believe that there is a place that Jesus described as hell either. Does that make them right?

I mentioned on another thread, and it is worth mentioning here. I'm always brought up short when people say things like, "Well, this is what the Jews believed...", or "What some Jews believed...". God was clear to Isaiah when He spoke of His people to him. "The ox knows his master, the donkey his owner's manger, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand."

So, when I hear these claims of what the Jews believed I immediately stop and want to know, well, wait a minute, are these possibly the same Jews that God was speaking of?

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem he wept and said, "Oh Jerusalem, Jerusalem. If you, yes even you, had only known the time of your visitation."

If we read the account of Jesus' trial before Pilate we read that the chief priests and scribes encouraged the people to demand that Jesus be put to death and Barabas be released. Do you think those folks had a clue? I mean, let's be real for a moment. You're standing in a crowd of people and you know that the man standing before you is the Son of your Creator. You know with all that is in you that this man is the most loved of your God. Are you just going to then cry for his crucifixtion because some lowly priest told you to? I tell you, they did what they did because they just didn't understand what they were doing and that is exactly Jesus plea to the Father for their mercy. "Father forgive them for they don't know what they are doing."

I would just be cautious about accepting something because it's told to me that this is what some Jews believed. However, just to set the record straight, while there may surely be some Jews who believe that today, I believe that if you could go back to the days of the old covenant you would find that the majority of all the living Jews believed and understood that the creation account as described in Genesis was accepted as the literal and true account of just exactly the order and the time span in which God created this realm in which we now live.

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

 

[miamited]

Oh and BTW, if you have a copy of the MT (masoretic text) you can read for yourself that the first several words of Genesis are "In the beginning God created...", so right off the bat either your explanation here is flawed or their basic Hebrew is flawed.

 

[Assyrian]

Gen 1:1 be'reshit bara elohiym...
I suspect it is the first words rather than the first two, God, elohiym, is the third word. Unless it is 'created six' that is supposed to be the first two words. bara, created, is fine, but I don't know how they get from the beginning, be'reshit, to six, shesh. It sounds like it comes from the Kabbalah they come up with some pretty wild 'hidden' means to words. It isn't really a translation, more an interpretation.

 

[Fascinated With God]

It sounds like it comes from the Kabbalah they come up with some pretty wild 'hidden' means to words.

No, it is first mentioned in the Midrash (6-8th cenutry) before the Zohar (13th century). I found it in an entire 463 page book dedicated to Midrash references to Gen 1:1.

That is one of the other things the "six" is compared to, the 6 volumes of the Midrash.





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[Assyrian]

The Kabbalah has deep roots in Jewish mysticism and interpretations based on secret meaning of text. What is the book, and does it explain the 'God created six' interpretation?

 

[Fascinated With God]

I already said the book it came from was the Midrash circa 6-8th centuries. The full title is Midrash Rabbah. It is at least half a millenium older than any Kabbalistic writings.

BTW, Kabbalah is not a book. The central book of Kabbalah is the Zohar.

 

[Assyrian]

I already said the book it came from was the Midrash circa 6-8th centuries. The full title is Midrash Rabbah. It is at least half a millenium older than any Kabbalistic writings.

Is that Midrash Rabba found here? Because there is no mention of 'God created six' in that text.

There is also the Midrash Rabbah Genesis 1 found here. But the closest I found to 'God created six' is:

4. IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED. Six things preceded the creation of the world; some of them were actually created, while the creation of the others was already contemplated.
​

and

R. Phinehas said : In the sixth He created six things: Adam, Eve, creeping things, cattle, beasts, and demons.
​

Perhaps you could quote the relevant passage.

BTW, Kabbalah is not a book. The central book of Kabbalah is the Zohar.

That is why I pointed out that the roots of the Kabbalah go deep into Jewish mysticism and the esoteric interpretations of biblical texts.

 

[Fascinated With God]

Is that Midrash Rabba found here? Because there is no mention of 'God created six' in that text.

That is a VERY tiny fraction of the Midrash. You aren't going to find something as massive as that in complete form online without either a lot of money to be made (like Britannica) or a lot of free help (like Wikipedia)..

There is also the Midrash Rabbah Genesis 1 found here. But the closest I found to 'God created six' is:

4. IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED. Six things preceded the creation of the world; some of them were actually created, while the creation of the others was already contemplated.
​

and

R. Phinehas said : In the sixth He created six things: Adam, Eve, creeping things, cattle, beasts, and demons.
​

Rabbi Shuchat did not make reference to either of these passages.

Perhaps you could quote the relevant passage.

The passages that Rabbi Shuchat quoted were the following two:

Rabbi Joshua b. Levi said in the name of Rabbi Levi: A person about to build requires six things: water, earth, timber, stones, cane and iron.
​

and

Thus the Torah preceded [the creation of the world] by these six things, viz, kedem [the first], me-azof old] (Proverbs 8:21), me-olam [from everlasting] (ibid. v. 22), me-rosh [from the beginning], and mi-kadmei [from the earliest times], which counts as two.
​

That is why I pointed out that the roots of the Kabbalah go deep into Jewish mysticism and the esoteric interpretations of biblical texts.

Are you familiar with Jewish denominations? Rabbi Shuchat is a Conservative, which is at the opposite end of the spectrum from Kabbalists. For example, many Conservative rabbi's openly reject reincarnation, while Orthodox and Hasidic Jews still defend the notion. Kabbalists on the other extreme are heavily invested in the reality of reincarnation.

 

[Fascinated With God]

Is that Midrash Rabba found here? Because there is no mention of 'God created six' in that text.

There is also the Midrash Rabbah Genesis 1 found here. But the closest I found to 'God created six' is:

4. IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED. Six things preceded the creation of the world; some of them were actually created, while the creation of the others was already contemplated.
​

and

R. Phinehas said : In the sixth He created six things: Adam, Eve, creeping things, cattle, beasts, and demons.
​

The Midrash is the size of a set of encyclopedias. Take a 2nd look at your sources and tell me how large those texts are compared to a set of encyclopedias.

Perhaps you could quote the relevant passage.

Rabbi Shuchat quotes two passages:

Rabbi Joshua b. Levi said in the name of Rabbi Levi: A person about to build requires six things: water, earth, timber, stones, canes, and iron.
​

and

Thus the Torah preceded [the creation of the world] by these six things, viz, kedem [the first], me-az [of old] (Proverbs 8:21), me-olam [from everlasting] (ibid. v. 22), me-rosh [from the beginning], and mi-kadmei [from the earliest times], which counts as two.
​

Rabbi Shuchat goes on to comment on these two Midrash verses:

Just as a builder needs six things before he can start building, so too the Torah through which the world was created preceded it in six stages, all of which are represented in the book of Proverbs in two verses (8:21-22) up to the word - [Hebrew script] - at the end of the sentence. Rabbi Joshua did not list all the words, only those connected with time or with the process of building (RWZE, abridged). The word mikadmei is interpreted as counting for two because it is in the plural.
​

That is why I pointed out that the roots of the Kabbalah go deep into Jewish mysticism and the esoteric interpretations of biblical texts.

Rabbi Shuchat is a Conservative and the Conservative denomination is about as far from Kabbalism as you can get in Judaism. For example, many Conservative rabbis strongly reject the idea of reincarnation, while Orthodox and Hasidics still embrace it but don't emphasize it, with Kabbalists at the other end of the spectrum who talk extensively about reincarnation.

In the chapter on this subject Rabbi Shuchat only makes one brief reference to Kabbalah sefirot and follows it up with a disclaimer that, "I am foolish and do not understand these things."

 

[Assyrian]

Thus the Torah preceded [the creation of the world] by these six things, viz, kedem [the first], me-azof old] (Proverbs 8:21), me-olam [from everlasting] (ibid. v. 22), me-rosh [from the beginning], and mi-kadmei [from the earliest times], which counts as two.

Sound like he is referring to the first passage I quoted. Here is a fuller version.

4. In the beginning God created. Six things preceded the creation of the world; some of them were actually created, while the creation of the others was already contemplated. 2 The Torah and the Throne of Glory were created. The Torah, for it is written, The Lord made me as the beginning of His way, prior to His works of old (Prov. viii, 22). 3 The Throne of Glory, as it is written, Thy throne is established of old, etc. (Ps. xciii, 2). The creation of the Patriarchs was contemplated, for it is written, / saw your fathers as the first-ripe in the fig-tree at her first season (Hos. ix, 10). 4 [The creation of] Israel was contemplated, as it is written, Remember Thy congregation, which Thou hast gotten aforetime (Ps. lxxiv, 2). [The creation of] the Temple was contemplated, for it is written, Thou throne of glory, on high from the beginning, the place of our sanctuary (Jer. xvii, 12). The name of Messiah was contemplated, for it is written, His name existeth ere the sun (Ps. lxxii, 17). R. Ahabah b. R. Ze'ira said : Repentance too, as it is written, Before the mountains were brought forth, etc. (ib. xc, 2), and from that very moment, Thou turnest man to contrition, and say est: Repent, ye children of men (ib. 3). I still do not know which was first, whether the Torah preceded the Throne of Glory or the Throne of Glory preceded the Torah. Said R. Abba b. Kahana: The Torah preceded the Throne of Glory, for it says, ' The Lord made me as the beginning of His way, ere His works of old,' which means, ere that whereof it is written, 'Thy throne is established of old/
​

That is a more straightforward exegesis looking things the bible talks about being 'from the beginning' or 'of old'. Of course it ties it in with the mystical numerology finding six things that existed before the creation.

I was able to search for phrases from your quote

"Thus the Torah preceded " "by these six things"
​

and came across Rabbi Shuchat's book here. Is that the one you are referring to? At the top of the page we get:

the word berei$hit consists of bara $hit meaning 'He created six'
​

Which I think is what you were talking about in the OP. However, here we leave the plain meaning of the text and start playing games rearranging the groups of letters into new words, a bit like the bible code. They take the first word in the bible, which consists of the word reshiyth first or beginning its prefix be' meaning in, be'reshiyth. It is a nice long word with a one letter prefix giving a total of six consonants, which is very handy because most Hebrew words are only three consonants long, with vowel pointings as a later addition. That is how the bible code works. Lots of random three letter combinations form Hebrew words. In this case the six letters are split into bere, which has the same consonants as bara he created (actually the second word in Gen 1:1) and shiyth which they claim means six. Maybe it does, though I did search for occurrences of three consonants shiyth in the OT, it does come up in Hebrew, but with various verbs as dress, look and briar, not as the number six. The nearest I got was the two consonant [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]h Dan 3:1 which does mean six, but it is in Aramaic, not Hebrew.

I don't doubt the Rabbi is conservative, but even though the method of interpretation is an esoteric hidden meaning interpretation, as long as the six are kept to things like the throne of glory, there isn't anything in the interpretation to conflict with conservative Judaism. But if you want to see where this form of interpretation really belongs retype:

"bara $hit" "He created six"
​

into Google and see how many Kabbalah hits you get on the first page.

 

[Fascinated With God]

You have the correct book. BTW he is Conservative with a capital C; it's a denomination of Judaism, not a generic adjective. Hasidics for example are all hyper conservative neocons, but they are not Conservatives. The Conservatives are poorly named, they are actually much more relaxed and liberal than Orthodox Jews, but less than Reformed. They are actually in the middle of the spectrum, and not to the right.

But most of all Conservatives are very pragmatic and not at all mystical like Orthodox and Hasidics in particular who respect Kabbalists, even though they take them with a grain of salt. Conservatives on the other hand generally have no interest what-so-ever in Kabbalists and outright reject some of the Kabbalists' most cherished notions, totally unlike the Orthodox and Hasidics.

I grant you that the Zohar goes far more into this than the Midrash does, but never the less it does originate from the Midrash, and the six things are even suggested to be the 6 volumes of the Midrash, according to Rabbi Shuchat.

 

[Keachian]

I grant you that the Zohar goes far more into this than the Midrash does, but never the less it does originate from the Midrash, and the six things are even suggested to be the 6 volumes of the Midrash, according to Rabbi Shuchat.

Yeah, I don't see it, the Rabbah, or great Midrash is 10 volumes, and there are at least another 10 Midrash, And this would be the first I have ever heard of Rabbinical literature being considered inspired/created by God himself.

 

[Fascinated With God]

It is the original Hebrew that is inspired. Jews, speaking Hebrews themselves, can give some insight into the meaning. To think otherwise is taking a somewhat conceited approach to the Old Testament. Claiming that you know better than the native speakers about what words in their language mean.