Nimrod/2

Nimrod

Exegetical Approaches

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Wicked

Sources:PhiloQuestions and Answers on Genesis II:82On the Giants 65-66About Philo, JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1:4:2-3About Josephus, Sifra VayikraBechukotai 2:2About the Sifra Vayikra, BavliEiruvin 53aPesachim 94a-94bChulin 89aAbout the Bavli, Bereshit Rabbah23:737:2-3About Bereshit Rabbah, Targum Pseudo-JonathanBereshit 10:8-11About Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, Targum YerushalmiBereshit 11:9About Targum Yerushalmi, Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer24About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, RashiBereshit 10:8-11About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, R. Yosef Bekhor ShorBereshit 10:8-11About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor, RambanBereshit 10:8-11About R. Moshe b. Nachman, SefornoBereshit 10:8-11About R. Ovadyah Seforno,

Wicked to whom? While most of these sources focus on Nimrod's rebelliousness against Hashem, R"Y Bekhor Shor and Ramban point to his oppressing of men, with the former highlighting his robbing of them and the latter suggesting that Nimrod introduced war and human domination to the world.  Seforno combines the two approaches, asserting that Nimrod looked to rule over the entire human species via a foreign god that all would worship.

Meaning of "נמרוד" – The Bavli explains that Nimrod's name comes from the word "מרד" hinting to his rebellious nature.¹  Though the other sources are not as explicit, many make words-plays with the two words, and it is possible that the name played a part in their choice to read Nimrod's character negatively.

"הוּא הֵחֵל לִהְיוֹת גִּבֹּר בָּאָרֶץ"

• First "גִּבֹּר" after the flood – R"Y Bekhor Shor asserts that though there were violent men (גבורים) before Nimrod, they were all destroyed in the flood.  Nimrod was the first after the deluge to resume a life of brutality; thus the language of "הוּא הֵחֵל".
• First ruler ever – Ramban maintains that Nimrod was actually the first king.  Before him no one had ever fought wars or used their power to rule over others.
• Nimrod profaned – R. Simon in Bereshit Rabbah takes the word "הֵחֵל" out of its simple sense of "began" and suggests instead that it insinuates rebellion.  He presumably understands the word to be related to the root "חול", meaning secular or profane.

"גִבֹּר צַיִד"

• Hunter of animals - Philo opines that Nimrod's chosen profession is an indication of his character, for "he who lives among wild beasts wishes to live the life of a beast". According to Pirkei De Rabbi Eliezer, hunting is not inherently evil, but Nimrod's role as hunter² is what led humans to fear him, allowing him to rule over them and sway them to rebel against Hashem.
• Hunter of Men - Bereshit Rabbah, Targum Yerushalmi, and Rashi posit that Nimrod "hunted" or trapped men with his words, distancing them from the ways of Hashem.³  R"Y Bekhor Shor posits that the description refers to Nimrod's thievery.⁴

"'לִפְנֵי ה‎‏"

• Against Hashem – Philo suggests that the phrase means "against Hashem" (rather than before Hashem).  Most of the other sources do not say so explicitly, but appear to read it in the same manner, as they too view Nimrod as rebelling against God.
• In Hashem's face – Sifra Vayikra (and Rashi similarly) claims that this language is used to show that someone is acting with full knowledge of Hashem and an intention to rebel against Him.⁵ R"Y Bekhor Shor elaborates that Nimrod's sins constituted an act of bold defiance of Hashem since he acted knowingly ignoring the fact that Hashem had just punished previous such sinners with the flood.
• Language of amplification – In contrast to the above, Ramban and Seforno do not read anything negative into the phrase.  According to Ramban the verse is saying that there were none on earth (before Hashem = in the world) comparable to him in might,⁶ while Seforno asserts that the word "Hashem" is an intensifier,⁷ and the text is simply stating that  Nimrod was a very mighty hunter.

Connection to Story of Tower of Bavel – Most of these commentators⁸ connect Nimrod to the building of the Tower, suggesting that he was the initiator of the rebellious endeavor.  Since he reigned in Bavel, in the land of Shinar, the association is easy to  make, and is probably a further motivation for reading Nimrod negatively.  Targum Pseudo-Jonathon, though, explicitly states that Nimrod did not play a part in the building; though Nimrod acted against Hashem, his rebelliousness did not go as far as the generation of the Tower..

"מִן הָאָרֶץ הַהִוא יָצָא אַשּׁוּר" – These sources disagree regarding who is the subject of the verb  "יָצָא" and thus regarding the import of this sentence:

• Assyria – Bereshit Rabbah, Rashi and Seforno all assert that Ashur left the land of Nimrod so as not to be a part of his plot to build the tower. For this he was rewarded, measure for measure, and built four cities.
• Nimrod – R"Y Bekhor Shor and Ramban, in contrast, assert that it is Nimrod who left to Assyira, extending his empire to the lands of Shem.⁹  This is consistent with their understanding that Nimrod's wickedness lay in his oppression of and dominion over men, and not in his defiance of Hashem.  Targum Pseudo-Jonathon agrees that the verb refers to Nimrod, but assume that it shows a positive rather than negative aspect of his character.  He left to Ashur so as not to join with the generation that built the Tower.

Why does the Torah share this?

Neutral

Sources:RadakBereshit 10:8-12About R. David Kimchi, ShadalBereshit 10:8-11About R. Shemuel David Luzzatto, Maasei Hashem, Beur

Righteous

Sources:Ibn EzraBereshit 10:8-11Additional Commentary Bereshit 10About R. Avraham ibn Ezra

¹ In contrast to the Bavli, Philo, in his Questions on Genesis, suggests that the name Nimrod means "Ethiopian" and alludes to the blackness of Nimrod's character. He is presumably associating Nimrod with his father, Kush, or Ethiopia. In his work, On Giants, Philo alternatively posits that the name means "deserter" and refers to one who has gone over to the enemy side.  It is not clear, though, where this definition comes from.

² According to the midrash Nimrod did not even possess any extraordinary strength or skills as hunter.  Rather, he had inherited from Noach the cloak which Hashem had made for Adam and Chavvah and whenever he wore it the animals became subdued before him.

³ See Bereshit Rabbah and Rashi's understanding of the similar phrase "אִישׁ יֹדֵעַ צַיִד" by Esav, which they also suggest refers to one who is deceitful and traps people with his words.

⁴ He combines this with the simple meaning of the term, a hunter of animals.

⁵ The Midrash compares the phrase to the similar language used to describe the sinners of Sedom "וְאַנְשֵׁי סְדֹם רָעִים וְחַטָּאִים לַי"י" (Bereshit 13:13).

⁶ Ramban compares the usage to the similar phrase in Bereshit 6:11, "וַתִּשָּׁחֵת הָאָרֶץ לִפְנֵי הָאֱלֹהִים" which he claims means that everyone on earth was corrupt.

⁷ He compares it to Yonah 3:3, "וְנִינְוֵה הָיְתָה עִיר גְּדוֹלָה לֵאלֹהִים".

⁸ See Josephus, Bavli Chulin, Bereshit Rabbah, Pirkei deRabbi Eliezer, Rashi and Seforno.

⁹ Ramban points to the fact that Assyria is referred to as "אֶרֶץ נִמְרֹד" in Michah 5:5.