GEN646 The Rabbis taught: “How severe is the evil inclination! Even its Creator called it “evil” as it is written ‘I will not curse again … for the inclination of man’s heart is evil’” Kiddushin 30b TEMIMAH-GEN 45

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GEN653 The major inspiration of the extensive Jewish ethical literature comes, of course, from the numerous biblical injunctions which are addressed to man.  These, together with rabbinical interpretations and moral maxims, have provided the guidelines and framework for the continued growth of the Jewish moral code. The very abundance of this genre of literature is a sad reflection of the fact that man is in constant need of admonition to guide him along the way. Despite the biblical assertion that man was created in the image of God, his free will leaves the choice of right or wrong entirely to him. Weakness and passion frequently tempt man to choose the course which has the greatest promises satisfying his greed in many desires. The Bible attests to this weakness by stating that “man’s inclinations are evil from his youth” [this verse]. Our ethical legacy is designed to tame him and to keep a proper balance between the earthly and heavenly aspects of human life, so that he may be worthy of the fact of having been created in God’s image. The faculty of free will and the capacity to distinguish right from wrong were truly divine attributes. Man, alone of all living creatures, was endowed with them. He must use them judiciously to make sure that this earth is a decent place to live in.  BLOCH 5

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GEN654 See [[GEN151]] Genesis 1:28 fruitful ROSNER-BLEICH 63

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GEN655 Genesis … includes laws as a partial remedy for human brutality. (By Elaine Adler Goodfriend, “Ethical Theory and Practice in the Hebrew Bible) OXFORD 44

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GEN656 Maimonides rules: “Anyone who accepts the seven [Noahide laws, that is, the minimal laws required of non-Jews: the duty to establish courts of law and the prohibitions of blasphemy, idolatry, incest, murder, robbery, and eating a limb from a live animal] [this verse, Sanhedrin 56a] … is among the pious of the nations of the world and has a portion in the world-to-come…if one accepts them because God has commanded them in the Law…; but if one observed them because of a rational decision, one is … not one of the pious of the nations of the world, but one of their wise.” Law of Kings 8:11 (By Warren Zev Harvey, “Ethical Theories among Medieval Jewish Philosophers”) OXFORD 97

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GEN657 The Tanakh assumes that there is a universal standard of ethical behavior for which God will punish nations other than Israel … the expression “fear of God/the gods” as the equivalent of “common decency” assumes that all nations are capable of behaving according to basic ethical standards. The Psalmist lauds God as one “who will rule the world justly, and its peoples with equity” Psalm 98:9, an idea evident in biblical narrative. God tests Abraham’s worthiness by revealing to him His plan to destroy the people of Sodom and Gomorrah because of their immorality Genesis 18:17-20, not their presumed idolatry. Jeremiah is appointed as a “prophet to the nations,” and several of the prophetic books include collections of oracles concerning other nations Isaiah 13-23, Jeremiah 46-51, Ezekiel 25-32, Amos 1:3-2:3, Obadiah, Nahum 1-3. Jonah is sent to Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian empire, to call its inhabitants to repentance: “Let everyone turn back from his evil ways and from the injustice of which he is guilty” Jonah 3:8. In Genesis 9:1-7, the aftermath of the flood, God gives laws for Noah and his family and authorizes capital punishment for homicide, but even prior to this, Genesis 1-8 presuppose a moral order that all people are expected to recognize and observe without the benefit of specific divine instruction, so that Cain and the generation of the flood can be punished for their misdeeds. Abraham shows keen awareness of this universal standard and holds God accountable to it when He threatens to decimate the Cities of the Plan: “Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” Genesis 18:25. The Bible never explicitly elucidates the origins of this universal ethical consciousness, but it is logical to assume that biblical authors could hardly imagine a basis for it other than God, as noted above regarding “fear of God.” (By Elaine Adler Goodfriend, “Ethical Theory and Practice in the Hebrew Bible) OXFORD 45

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GEN658 See [[LEV760]] Leviticus 19:29 daughter ROSNER-BLECH 67-8

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GEN659 Ferocious beasts come upon the world on account of false oaths. Pirkei Avot V:10-11 … the animal knows no surcease from his particular activity or pattern of living.  The lion will continue to attack and rend its prey, the ant to gather its food, the beaver to build its dams.  Only man can set a limit to his actions and decide when he has had enough; he can even oppose and rebel against his very instincts, in his search for higher levels and goals of development.  With this capacity man becomes higher than the animal. With his capacity he reflects the Divinity within him, and he attains the stature by which, as the Torah says, the fear of man “shall be upon every animal of the earth.” [this verse]. As long as man cultivates the “image of God” within himself and lives up to it, the animal kingdom will respect and fear him. But when man ignores the “image of God” within himself and grows father and father away from it, then the lower orders of Creation see only another animal before them, and the law of the jungle prevails. Talmud, Shabbat 151a. Only the human being stands erect with his head up, pointing toward his true destiny: Heaven. Woe to him if he loses the Divine grace of being human. For the Jew, though, there is a further height to attain. Like all men, he must fully develop his humanity; but he must also fulfill his special obligations as a Jew: Torah is his responsibility and his sanctity.  “Be you holy, for I am holy.” Leviticus 19:2  SINAI1 318-9

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GEN660 Ferocious beasts come upon the world on account of false oaths. Pirkei Avot V:10-11 As Noah and his sons stood before the Almighty after the Flood, the world ready to begin afresh, He gave them His word: “And fear and dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth …” [this verse]. But when the Almighty speaks to the Israelites through Moses we learn that this dominion and subjugation is conditional: “If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments and do them … I will banish evil beasts from the land.” Leviticus 26:3,6. If man is to be superior to the wild beast so that it keeps away from his habitations in awe, in his way of life he must be far more than an animal: only then is he truly man, and need fear no beast.  Without the Torah’s precepts to give his life human dignity, in the realization that he was created in the Divine image, man remains another species of animal.  Many a wild beast will then be superior in its prowess, and man one more species available for prey.  The touchstone of Torah is truth. It requires us to acknowledge the Creator as the ultimate verity; it bids us worship Him in utter honesty.  In a life spent in His presence, lying has no place; especially is a false oath an effrontery to Him, when His name is used to make it seem valid. For His Name is thus profaned.  No animal ever acts “falsely” or lies. … It never desecrates the holy Name by betraying its Creator and acting “out of character.” Man alone has speech and the power to choose what he will do with it – whether he will love with truth or swear falsely for small immediate gains; whether he will bring dignity to himself and Creator’s Name, or betray his own human potential and descreate the holy Name. If his choice is bad, he ends his superiority and dominion over the wild best; it becomes his superior; and “ferocious beasts come upon the world.” (The person who swears falsely sins with his mouth; the beast likewise destroys with its mouth.)  SINAI3 131-2

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GEN661 Out of His abounding goodness to mankind, God put the fear of man into dangerous wild creatures so that an infant be safe from cats, rats, and the like.  When a man dies, however, he is no longer safe from them, as our Masters, of blessed memory, expounded; “A day-old infant, alive, need not be guarded from rates; Og, King of Bashan, dead, needs to be guarded from rats, as it says “The fear of you, so long as the life force is within you [reading וחתכם as וחיותכם] will be instilled in all the wild beasts of the earth’ (this verse).  Shabbat 151b.  DUTIES 211

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