Commentary פַּרְשָׁנוּת
(כח) וַיְבָ֣רֶךְ אֹתָם֮ אֱלֹהִים֒ וַיֹּ֨אמֶר לָהֶ֜ם אֱלֹהִ֗ים פְּר֥וּ וּרְב֛וּ וּמִלְא֥וּ אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ וְכִבְשֻׁ֑הָ וּרְד֞וּ בִּדְגַ֤ת הַיָּם֙ וּבְע֣וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וּבְכׇל־חַיָּ֖ה הָֽרֹמֶ֥שֶׂת עַל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase, fill the earth and rule over it; and rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and all the living things that creep on earth.”
This is the first set of instructions that God gives to human beings in the Torah. But it isn’t clear what exactly the Hebrew word וְכִבְשֻׁ֑הָ (rule over it) means here. What does it mean that אָדָם and חַוָּה fill the earth and subdue it?
We are going to look at two different ways of understanding this phrase. As you read the two commentaries, try to see if you can notice the differences between how they each understand its meaning.
(ג) וכבשוה נתן להם כח וממשלה בארץ לעשות כרצונם בבהמות ובשרצים וכל זוחלי עפר ולבנות ולעקור נטוע ומהרריה לחצוב נחשת וכיוצא בזה וזה יכלול מה שאמר "וּבְכָל הָאָרֶץ" (בראשית א׳:כ״ו):
“And rule over”—God gave them power and authority over the earth to do as they wish with the cattle, the reptiles, and all that crawl in the dust, and to build, and to uproot that which is planted, and to dig out copper from its hills, and other similar things. This is included in what God said “and over all the earth.”
(א) וכבשוה שתגינו בשכלכם ותמנעו את החיות שלא יכנסו בגבולכם ואתם תמשלו בם:
(1) וכבשה, this is not a directive to conquer earth with muscular power, but to subdue it by means of man’s superior intellect. It means that man is to use his intelligence to prevent predators from invading his habitats, demonstrating the fact that man is superior, can outwit the beasts.
- How do Ramban and Seforno each understand what God is telling אָדָם and חַוָּה in this פָּסוּק (verse)? Are they reading this פָּסוּק differently?
- Which reading do you think fits better into the words of the פָּסוּק?
- How do these commentators view our relationship to the world around us? When we use the resources of the earth—like trees for wood, or animals for food—in what way are we allowed to do that? Why? What other responsibilities should we keep in mind when we use the earth’s resources?
