Shabbos Parashas Bereishis - 5779
Shabbos Parashas Bereishis - 5779
Rabbi Hal Miller
God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the
seas, but the fowl shall increase on the earth." [Bereishis 1:22]
God blessed them and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth
and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every
living thing that treads upon the earth." [Bereishis 1:28]
Immediately upon creating the fish, birds, and creeping things in 1:21, God blesses
them with "be fruitful and multiply". Immediately upon creating man in 1:27, God
blesses them and "said to them" the same command. This is the very first speech
heard anywhere on earth, thus must have particular importance. What is behind the
obvious importance, and what do the differences mean in these two verses? Why
did He separate man from all the other classes of creatures?
A well-known Rashi says that He blessed the fish to increase in number because
they would serve as food for man, thus diminishing their numbers. But this does
not explain the other uses of the blessing, nor the differences. Bereishis Rabbah
says that this blessing is the giving of sexual pleasure rather than the food issue,
but this also fails to address the separations, nor does it deal well with creatures such
as fish and birds, that propagate externally.
Abarbanel wonders why this was not said to the other animals, and answers that
even though many are also food for man, those are fed by man, and ones that do
not fit the category are such as the serpent from the Garden of Eden. He then
addresses the Bereishis Rabbah issue of sexuality, and says that this is for man
to fill the earth and subject all other creatures to his rule. But, he asks, why is it
necessary for man and woman to combine to reproduce? He answers that it becomes
holy because it is founded on a holy mitzvah, our verse. But if so, he asks, what
makes man different from an animal in this regard? The answer is that man must elevate
himself to understand that he is doing this not for animalistic reasons but because he
was commanded to do so to fulfill the will of God.
Alshich has an interesting view, contrasting those who have faith in God with those who
lack such faith. Those who have faith believe that the world is meant to serve man and
provide for his needs, and to this end it is permissible for man to exploit nature. Those
who lack faith becomes slaves to the laws of nature. He gives as an example the modern
day issue of overpopulation: there are those who refuse to bring another child into a world
that does not provide enough sustenance, but those with faith know that God will provide
for all who are conceived as a result of parents following the commandments.
Our role is to follow the Torah commandments and know that God will take care of us
when we do so.