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GENESIS — 9:6 whoever

GEN725 Although a man inciting murder escapes the death sentence at the hands of a human court [since he himself did not actually commit the murder], there are legal mechanisms in Judaism by which to deal with such a person.  It is within the purview of the Jewish king [Maimonides, Hilchot Rotze’ach 2:4] to take such a person and kill him, if he so desires, and even the Jewish court, in a one-time action, may put this murder inciter to death if they feel it is necessary.  However, even if the king or court do not kill this person under this special allowance, the court is obligated to beat this murder inciter “to within an inch of his life,” just short of death, jail him for life, and generally make his life as miserable as possible, in order to deter anyone else from causing or inciting similar crimes and sins.  Ibid 2:5.  AMEMEI 119

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GENESIS — 9:6 whoever

GEN723 (Continued [[EXOD549]] from Exodus 21:14 neighbor SPERO 126-30). [I]n connection with Exodus 21:14, the Talmud was astonished to think that the Torah would exclude the non-Jew from the law which condemns to death a man who deliberately murders his neighbor. After all, even before the Sinai legislation, the Torah had proclaimed [this verse]. But here again the rabbis explained that without a doubt he who deliberately kills any human being has violated the sixth commandment and would be duly punished by heaven. In restricting this particular law the rabbis were responding to the general hermeneutical principle that whenever the text permits, interpretations tending to limit the area in which the death penalty might apply are to be favored. [The Talmud (Sanhedrin 81b) relates how the rabbis had stringent requirements for witnesses and for warning (hazharah) in cases involving capital punishment which were designed to obviate the death penalty. They believed that since the judicial process, with its reliance on witnesses, did not yield certain knowledge, it was preferable to leave the matter to the justice of heaven when a person’s life was at stake]. SPERO 130-1

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GENESIS — 9:6 within

GEN726 The wording of the verse is very strange.  The verse states “He who sheds the blood of man that is within a man, his blood shall be shed as well, because man was created in God’s image.”  In analyzing the literal meaning of the words “man that is within a man” the Talmud concludes that this refers to a fetus, since this is literally a man within another human – i.e. the mother.  Sanhedrin 40b.  Therefore, according to this passage, any abortion is equal to murder, and the fetus is considered to be a human being.  In Jewish law, Maimonides rules this way for a non-Jew, and therefore a non-Jew who performs an abortion is considered a murderer.  Maimonides, Laws of Kings 1:4.  AMJV 86

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GENESIS — 9:7 fertile

GEN727 It was taught: “Ben Assai said: ‘If one does not fulfill the mitzvah of begetting children, it is as if he spills blood and diminishes God’s image, as it is written: ‘One who spills the blood of a man in a man, his blood shall be spilled, for in the image of God He made man,’ after which it is written: ‘And you, be fruitful and multiple” Yevamot 63b. TEMIMAH-GEN 48

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GENESIS — 9:7 fruitful

GEN729 A rationale for the exemption of women from the obligation of procreation is given by the great Gaon of this century, Rabbi Meir Simhah ha-Kohen of Dvinsk, in his Biblical commentary. Meshekh Hokhmah to this verse. He writes: “It is not amiss to assume that the reason why women are exempt from the obligation of procreation is grounded in the reasonableness of the judgments of the Lord and His ways. The Torah did not impose upon Israel burdens too difficult for a person to bear … Women whose lives are jeopardized by conception and birth were not enjoined …  [See also Genesis 1:28  multiply ROSNER 64] ROSNER 65

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GENESIS — 9:9 covenant

GEN730 According to some commentaries, the Hebrew word for covenant, brit, is derived from the Hebrew word briah, creation.  What does this mean and what is its significance?  A new creation today is formed with two separate entities combined to form something else.  This is the essence of every covenant, brit.  The first mention of brit in the Torah is the rainbow following the flood that destroyed the world and saved Noah. [this verse].  The symbol of this brit is incomplete, a rainbow of half a circle.  Why only half?  Because each part to a brit is incomplete by itself, the rainbow symbolizing God’s half of the covenant.  It is only in combination, when a new object, a new creation is forged, that both parties to a brit become complete.   AMEMEI 159

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GENESIS — 9:9 covenant

GEN731 What ethical failure led to the Flood? Vaguely, the Torah specifies only hamas—ruination, perhaps connected with “heat.” Humanity at large, not a central institution or person, was to blame. The Rabbis usually asserted that the universe is built on “measure for measure”: God’s rewards and punishments fit our actions. So the Rabbis asked, “Since the purging of the earth came through water, what was being wrongly done through water?” And they answered that before the Flood, all the species were mixing the water of their semen with each other. This water washed away all biological boundaries, confounding the clarity of God’s creation; so God sent a Flood of water to wash away all boundaries. Rosh Hashanah 12a: Rav Hisda said: “With hot liquid they sinned, and with hot liquid they were punished. With hot liquid they sinned –namely, with sexual transgressions.” Today we know that few species can mix together and propagate in this way. But we have also invented “genetic recombination,” by which indeed the genes of one species can be introduced inside the DNA of another. Should we take the fantasy of the Rabbis as a warning to explore this new technology with the greatest care, if at all, lest we bring upon ourselves a global disaster? (By Arthur Waskow, "Jewish Environmental Ethics: Intertwining Adam with Adamah") OXFORD 411

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GENESIS — 9:10 every

GEN732 The Torah’s concern for animals, reflected in many specific laws in the Pentateuch, can be seen as an expression of both the universality of Jewish morality and its quality of depth. If undeserved and unnecessary pain is evil, then it should make no difference whether those suffering are human beings or animals. Common sense tells us that animals are sentient beings subject to the same physical pain that we human beings are subject to and perhaps to certain forms of psychological stress as well. It follows, therefore, that human beings are morally obliged to refrain from any act that might cause pain or discomfort to animals, have a positive obligation to relieve animals of pain, and carry a responsibility to provide for the needs of the animals that come within their orbit. Even as God’s mercy and goodness extend to all creatures so must man’s. “The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works”; therefore, “A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast.” Psalms 145:9, Proverbs 12:10  Animals are a form of life, and life in all of its forms, plant and animal s well as human, is a source of value. The “living God” points man in the direction of value and bids him: “…and ye shall choose life!” In the course of creation, animals received a special blessing from God, and after the deluge, God established His covenant specifically with them. [this verse]  The psalmist praises God for His concern for the beast: “He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.” Psalms 147:9 This is in no way in conflict with the principle implicit in the Torah that man is the ultimate purpose of creation and that the lower forms serve man in certain specified but regulated ways. Judaism’s concern for animals is prompted not only by moral regard for the beast per se but also by consideration of the consequences of tender concern for animals and of cruelty toward animals for the personality of man as a moral agent. SPERO 150

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