B"H
N.B A big thank goes to both Michelle S. for alerting me to a cornucopia of online sources, and to Joe W. whose shiur on Gan Eden got me thinking about this theme in Torah. And of course to all of you who've said you're interested in reading, thereby pushing me to actually meet my own deadline while trying to not to be distracted by Diwali fireworks...
בְּרֵאשִׁית, בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים
And so we begin. Except not quite as expected...
Most of us think of Bereishit as containing two central narratives - creation itself, and the expulsion of Adam and Chava from Gan Eden. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Midrash Tanchuma therefore begins its commentary by focusing on the central role of Torah to the creation.
What is more surprising - to me at least - is how much attention the Midrash Tanchuma gives to the opening words of the Torah and how little by comparison to Gan Eden. While the Midrash does not move on from the opening words until Chapter 6, Gan Eden is dealt with in a mere 3 chapters which on the surface do very little to expand the source text itself. However, if we study Chapter 6 more closely, we find that the Midrash makes a series of connections showing the significance of the expulsion and future return to Gan Eden throughout both the Torah and history.
[For Hebrew readers who want to follow, a full text of the Midrash in question can be found here about halfway down].
(Bereishit 2:4) אֵלֶּה תוֹלְדוֹת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהָאָרֶץ, בְּהִבָּרְאָם
The Midrash notes that everywhere in the Torah (in this case, the whole of Tanakh) the word תוֹלְדת is missing a second vav except in the above verse and the verse 'These are the generations (תוֹלְדוֹת) of Peretz' at the end of Sefer Ruth, which lies almost at the opposite end of Tanakh from Bereishit. It then goes on to explain that the vav represents 6 attributes which G-d took away from Adam after he sinned, but which will ultimately be restored in the future: the 'radiance' of Adam's face; his height; his immortality; the 'fruits of the lands'; his residence in Gan Eden; and the full power of the sun and the moon, which were diminished as a result. Since the relevant verses from Ruth describe the ancestry of David ha-Melech and therefore the Moshiach, the Midrash is implying here that the restoration it refers to is to come in the Messianic age.
This Messianic link is heightened when we consider the proof-texts used by the Midrash. Many of the proofs for the restoration of what G-d removed from Adam are drawn from the Nevi'im, usually from the prophecies relating to G-d returning us to Eretz Yisrael and the Temple after its destruction and our exile. In particular, the verse כי כימי העץ ימי עמי (Yeshayahu 65:22) - brought as a proof-text for G-d's restoration of eternal life - is taken from a chapter where the prophet specifically talks about G-d 'creating a new heaven and a new earth', telling us that 'the former things shall not be remembered'. Here, it seems that not only Adam's sin will be fully forgiven but the whole of creation as described in Bereishit will be 'rebooted'*.
However, this doesn't fully explain the significance of the 'full' תוֹלְדוֹת's second appearance at the end of Ruth. Peretz, Ruth and David himself all lived well before even the first period of destruction and exile for Israel. From a strictly historical point of view, while it makes sense for the full תוֹלְדוֹת to appear in Bereishit before Adam's sin and expulsion from Gan Eden, there is therefore little reason for it to appear in Ruth at a time when the Messianic age is only hinted at through the generations from Peretz to David.
On the other hand, the other proof-texts used by the Midrash suggest something more complex than history merely being bookended by Gan Eden and the Moshiach. Although most of the 'restoration' proof-texts are from the Nevi'im, the exception is that for restoring Adam's lost height, which is taken not from prophecies about a future redemption but from a reminder in Vayikra 26:13 of a redemption which has already taken place - G-d leading Israel out of slavery in Mitzrayim. Meanwhile, the proof-text for the sun and the moon diminishing in light through Adam's sin is taken not from Bereishit but from another of Yeshayahu's prophecies - this time, concerning a destruction and exile which are to occur well after the original exile of Adam from Gan Eden.
If we consider the Midrash's earlier focus on the Torah as pre-existing creation, this can help us understand the Midrash's perspective. As humans we can only experience time as a linear progression from one event to the other - however, if the Torah is truly outside time and space, this means that events spanning the course of history can nevertheless be part of the same act of sin and/or redemption.
The Midrash therefore teaches us that - while at first the reappearance of a 'full' תוֹלְדוֹת at the end of Ruth may appear to be jumping the gun when it comes to redemption for Adam's sin - we should see this both as a reminder that history is an ongoing process of sin and redemption, and as a sign of hope for a future return to both Eretz Yisrael and Gan Eden.
*with thanks/apologies to Steven Moffat for the metaphor ;-)
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Stay tuned for Noach and Yosef, and laila tov!
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