Permission to Eat Meat/2/en
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Permission to Eat Meat
Exegetical Approaches
Never Prohibited
Meat was permitted from the beginning of time and even Adam was always allowed to eat animals.
"הִנֵּה נָתַתִּי לָכֶם אֶת כׇּל עֵשֶׂב זֹרֵעַ זֶרַע ... לְאׇכְלָה" – According to this position, in these words Hashem never intended to limit man's food to vegetation. The exegetes differ, though, in how they understand Hashem's intent:
- Speaking of the majority – R. Saadia explains that Hashem mentioned only vegetation and fruits because these are mankind's major food source while meat is a luxury eaten much less often.
- Description rather than command – Ralbag1 asserts that these words are not a command to man at all but rather a further description of man's creation and nature.2 Hashem is simply saying that He created humans with the ability to eat vegetation, even though grasses and plants are far from man's nature and one might have not expected this ability.3
- Contrast to animals – Shadal asserts that the verse serves to contrast man, who is given seeds and fruit to eat, with the animals who were only given grasses to consume. The difference highlights man's greater intellect (only he had knowledge to sow and plant) and flows from the prior blessing regarding man's authority over animals.
"And you shall rule over the fish" – According to Shadal, it is this phrase that alludes to the fact that Adam was allowed to kill animals for food. He points out that it is impossible to rule over fish unless one takes them out of the water, which inevitably leads to their deaths.4 Thus, it is clear that Hashem had no issue with man killing animals for utilitarian purposes.
Why not mention meat explicitly?
- Minority discounted – According to R. Saadia, this case is is similar to many in which people highlight the majority, and make no mention of a minority even though they do not mean to exclude it.
- Obvious – For Ralbag the ability for man to eat meat was obvious and thus did not need to be stated. It was the capacity to eat vegetation that was surprising and as such, it was only this that was mentioned.
- Prevent unnecessary killing – Shadal asserts that Hashem only alluded to the permission to eat meat rather than saying so explicitly so as not to encourage man to spill blood.
"כׇּל רֶמֶשׂ אֲשֶׁר הוּא חַי לָכֶם יִהְיֶה לְאׇכְלָה" – Ralbag and Shadal assert that Hashem explicitly states that man has permission to eat meat after the flood, not to introduce a new command, but rather to juxtapose the fact with the prohibition to spill man's blood and to tear a limb from a live animal (אבר מן החי). Hashem warns that although man is allowed to kill animals, this leniency does not extend to people, nor is one allowed to act cruelly towards animals even for the purpose of eating.
Proofs from nature – Shadal attempts to prove that Hashem could never have intended for man to eat only vegetables from the physiology of humans. Man's teeth and body are were created with the ability to eat and digest meat, not just greens.5 If Hashem had not wanted man to be carnivorous, He would not have equipped his body with such abilities.6
Philosophical motivations – Ralbag is bothered by the idea that Hashem's will might change. He asserts that it is not possible that Hashem could originally prohibit meat from mankind and then change His mind to allow it after the flood.7
Evaluation of eating meat – This position does not set up vegetarianism as an ideal and sees no problem with killing animals for food.
Sacrifices before the flood
Were animals always carnivorous? According to this position, animals, too, were always allowed to eat meat.8 In fact, R, Saadia points to the fact that many animals are predators as evidence that meat was always allowed. Though no where in Torah are they explicitly told they can eat meat, they nonetheless do, which suggests that it was understood that they could and thus, the command in Chapter 9 was not actually coming to permit that which was prohibited beforehand, or it would have mentioned animals as well.
Prohibited After Adam's Sin Until the Flood
Adam was initially allowed to eat meat but after sinning in the garden, he lost this privilege until the flood atoned for his sins.
Sources:Rashba, Tzeror Hamor #2
"הִנֵּה נָתַתִּי לָכֶם אֶת כׇּל עֵשֶׂב זֹרֵעַ זֶרַע ... לְאׇכְלָה" – According to this position, this statement was first said to Adm after he sinned by eating of the Tree of Knowledge in the garden.9 Originally he was permitted to eat meat but after the sin Hashem limited his food to vegetation.10
Why the change? Rashba explains that in sinning, man let his physical side overcome his intellectual side, lowering him to the level of animals. Once he was no longer distinguished from beasts and no longer superior to them he lost the privilege of killing them to serve himself (although he was still permitted to sacrifice of them for Hashem).11
"כׇּל רֶמֶשׂ אֲשֶׁר הוּא חַי לָכֶם יִהְיֶה לְאׇכְלָה" – Since the flood served to atone for Adam's sin, afterwards Hashem renewed permission to eat meat, but accompanied the statement with a reminder that spilling human blood is prohibited.
Parallel Cases – Rashba suggests that the stages here parallel the stages regarding the permission granted to eat meat for pleasure (בשר תאוה) in the desert. He suggests that initially this was permitted, but with the sin of the Golden Calf, such meat was prohibited and only sacrificial meat was allowed. With entry into Israel, the nation was forgiven and permission to eat meat was renewed.
Evaluation of eating meat – This position views eating animals as the norm and a sign of man's superiority, while a diet lacking meat is considered a punishment.
Were animals always carnivorous?
Permitted After the Flood
Man was not given permission to eat meat until after the flood. Commentators differ in their understanding of the reason for the change.
Permission was granted as a reward
As a reward for caring for the animals on the ark, Noach and future generations were given permission to eat meat.
Permission was a concession
After the flood, mankind was allowed to eat animals as a concession to human frailties.
Original prohibition was a practical necessity
Adam was not prohibited from eating meat for any fundamental reason, but rather due to the scarcity of animals at the time or lack of knowledge regarding how to cook them.
