Divine Plurals/2

Divine Plurals

Exegetical Approaches

This topic has not yet undergone editorial review

Partnership with Others

The plural form is used because Hashem was including the angels in His speech.

Sources:PhiloOn the Confusion of Tongues 35:179About Philo,¹ Bereshit Rabbah8:3-48:821:5About Bereshit Rabbah, Targum Pseudo-JonathanBereshit 1:26Bereshit 3:22About Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, RashiBereshit 1:26Bereshit 3:22Bereshit 11:7About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, RashbamBereshit 1:26About R. Shemuel b. Meir, Ibn EzraBereshit 1:26Bereshit 3:22Bereshit 11:7About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, RadakBereshit 1:26Bereshit 3:22Bereshit 11:7About R. David Kimchi, Abarbanel #2, SefornoBereshit 1:26-27Bereshit 3:22About R. Ovadyah Seforno

"נַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם" – What did the angels do?

• Consult – According to Rashi, following Bereshit Rabbah, Hashem simply consulted with the angels regarding man's creation, but they did not actually do anything.  As evidence, he points to the verseוַיִּבְרָא אֱלֹהִים אֶת הָאָדָם" ‏,", which presents Hashem as the singular subject of the verb "ברא" and makes no mention of other beings.
• Create – Philo, Ibn Ezra, Abarbanel and Seforno, in contrast, suggest that the angels played an active role in creating man.  Abarbanel asserts that just as Hashem had the land actively draw forth vegetation since the two were naturally similar, he had angels abet him in creating mankind, who are naturally similar in having an intellect.

"הָבָה נֵרְדָה וְנָבְלָה" – What did the angels do?

• Most of these commentators suffice by saying that Hashem spoke with the angels, but do not elaborate as to whether they actively helped in dispersing the nations.
• Abarbanel, though, claims that after the people sinned by building the tower,² Hashem decided to remove His providence from the nations and give them into the hands of ministering angels instead.  It is this that Hashem tells the angels when He says, "let us go down".

"כְּאַחַד מִמֶּנּוּ לָדַעַת טוֹב וָרָע" – Targum Pseudo Jonathan and Ibn Ezra maintain that here, too, Hashem is speaking with the angels and refers to them when saying "from us".³  Radak's words are somewhat ambiguous but might suggest that Hashem was simply including the angels in his speech, but not actively speaking with them.⁴

Why work with angels?

• Moral lesson – According to Bereshit Rabbah and Rashi, Hashem consults with the angels, not because He needs their advice,⁵ but to teach a lesson in humility to humans.  If even Hashem asks permission of those lesser than Him before acting, all the more so should mankind.⁶
• Divine duties – Others might more simply suggest that Hashem often has intermediaries fulfill His will,⁷ and the cases discussed here are not particularly exceptional except for the fact that the Torah shares the heavenly discussion with the reader.
• Dirty work – According to Philo, Hashem had the angels participate in creating man, so that all the errors and wickedness of mankind could be attributed to these subordinate powers and not to Hashem.⁸

"בְּצַלְמֵנוּ כִּדְמוּתֵנוּ" – One of the motivations of this position is the discomfort with suggesting that Hashem is referring to His own form in the words "בְּצַלְמֵנוּ כִּדְמוּתֵנוּ", for that could suggest an anthropomorphic God.  Having the angels partner with Hashem allows one to explain that it is their form to which humans are similar.⁹  Many of these commentators, nonetheless, attempt to understand the terms in non physical ways, suggesting that they refer to the spirit or intellect.¹⁰

Philosophical concerns – These commentators are comfortable with the concept of angels.  Most of them (Rashi is an exception) do not even find it problematic that they might have aided Hashem in creating man.

Polemical concerns

Hashem Acting Alone

Utilized Earthly Elements

Sources:R. Yosef Kimchicited in Radak Bereshit 1:26About R. Yosef Kimchi, RambanBereshit 1:26About R. Moshe b. Nachman, Abarbanel #1,Bereshit 1:26About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel Maasei Hashem,

Why specifically in these verses?

"נַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם" – Hashem was speaking of himself and the earthly elements, who together were to create man.  Adam's body was created from the earth and his soul was infused by Hashem.

"הָבָה נֵרְדָה" and "כְּאַחַד מִמֶּנּוּ" – This approach can only account for the plural language in Bereshit 1 and would have to explain the other instances in a different manner. 

"בְּצַלְמֵנוּ כִּדְמוּתֵנוּ"

Rhetorical Flourish

Sources:R. Saadia GaonCommentary Bereshit 1:26HaEmunot VeHaDeot 2:6About R. Saadia Gaon, Lekach TovBereshit 1:26Bereshit 11:7About R. Toviah b. Eliezer, R"Y Bekhor Shor #1, Ibn Kaspi, ShadalBereshit 1:26About R. Shemuel David Luzzatto, R. S"R HirschBereshit 1:26Bereshit 3:22About R. Samson Raphael Hirsch, R. D"Z Hoffmann, CassutoBereshit 1:26About Prof. Umberto Cassuto

¹ This is Philo's understanding in his work, On the Confusion of Tongues.  In On Drunkenness, however, he implies another reading, that Hashem created man together with Wisdom.  See Enoch2:30:10About Enoch similarly.

² Not all commentators agree that the people who built the tower sinned, nor that the dispersal was a punishment.  For elaboration regarding Abarbanel and others' approaches to the issue, see Deconstructing Migdal Bavel.

³

The Targum, though, obviates the problem in another way as well, by understanding the word "מִמֶּנּוּ" to mean "from him" and not "from us". To do so, the Targum must play with the syntax of the verse, setting a pause after the words, "הֵן הָאָדָם הָיָה כְּאַחַד" and attaching the word "מִמֶּנּוּ" to the next phrase, "לָדַעַת טוֹב וָרָע".  Accordingly, Hashem is saying that man is like Him, "כְּאַחַד", unique on Earth as Hashem is unique in heaven.  From him will emerge generations of people who know good and bad. 

⁴ As both Ibn Ezra and Radak understand the knowledge granted by "Tree of Knowledge"  to pertain to sexual desire, saying that angels share this trait is somewhat difficult, but not any more problematic than attributing sexual desire to Hashem.

⁵ See Radak as well: "כבר פרשנו מלת הבה ואינו אלא על דרך משל, כי אין היוצר נועץ עם הנוצר".

⁶ It is not clear, though, why it is only in these verses where we are told of Hashem's consultations.

⁷ In each of these cases Hashem might speaks to the angels because they have a task to do, create man, banish Adam form teh garden and guard it, or disperse the builders of the tower.

⁸ He does not address their necessity by the dispersal of the generation of the Tower of Bavel.

⁹ Thus Rashbam and Ibn Ezra explain that "צֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים" refers to the angels.

¹⁰ Rashi, Rashbam, and Seforno all assert that "דמות" refers to the capacity for knowledge, while Radak says both "דמות" and "צלם" can be used to refer to a spiritual form. Ibn Ezra and Seforno also suggest that the similarity between mankind and Hashem/angels might refer to the immortality of the soul.  Only Rashi seems to have no problem with suggesting that maybe the phrase "צלם" might speak of some physical aspect of Hashem Himself.