'Because there was no man to work the soil'
A seemingly contradictory account of the creation of vegetation and trees teaches a deep message about our relationship to G-d.
We read in our Parasha - which describes the Creation of our world, and all in it -that:(1:11)’G-d said: ‘Let the earth sprout vegetation: herbage yielding seed, fruit trees yielding fruit...And it was so. And the earth brought forth vegetation…And G-d saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.’
Why, then, does the Torah thereafter state:(2:5) ’Now all the trees of the field were not yet on the earth and all the herb of the field had not yet sprouted, for Hashem G-d had not sent rain upon the earth and there was no man to work the soil.’?
Rashi brings the answer of the Gemara (Chullin 60b):’ ‘And there was no man. ’The plants had not yet emerged , but they stood at the entrance of the ground until the sixth day. And why? Because there was no man to work the soil, and no one recognized the benefit of rain; but when man came and understood that they were essential to the world, he prayed for them, and they [the rains] fell, and the trees and the herbs sprouted.’
Rav Zalman Sorotzkin comments:’’Because G-d had not sent rain’: Was the earth not covered by water for some time - and in the natural order of things, should not the dampness have been enough for the vegetation to grow, without the need for rain - as the Nile watered the land of Egypt?
‘In the way of a miracle, the earth revealed itself on the third day, as dry, so that man and the animals should not wallow in the mire, in these early days.’
Might we add: So that the events that ensued when man was created, and prayed for rain, could occur.
The Midrash Rabba adds:’There was no man to work the land’:’To cause people to serve Hashem - as Eliyahu and Honi haMa’agel were to do’.
The Maharal - on this Rashi - comments:’Prayed for them’:’Meaning, that if if no one prayed for rain, He would not have sent rain, as man recognizes their benefit, as if he did not pray for them, he would be is an ingrate, which is worse than one who does nor recognize the benefit of rain.’
The Be’er baSadeh - also on our Rashi - comments:’Meaning, that Hashem did not send down rain until there was man who would come and who would recognize the benefit of rain - this because Hashem yearns for man’s prayers, as if not so, why would Hashem care if there is someone who recognized the goodness of rains - or not - and this can be learned from what the Torah relates, that the vegetation waited at the opening of the earth, and did not sprout, until man came and prayed for rain.’
Rav Yerucham Leibowitz - the revered mashgiach of the Mir yeshiva - derives from this a foundation of our avodat Hashem: that man is not given anything without praying for it.
He notes that this can be learned from the Torah, where we find in many instances, that the Avot - despite their lofty stature - did not achieve anything without first praying for it- Avraham said to Hashem( Lech Lecha 15:2):’O Lord, What will you give me, since I am going childless..’- as Sarah was barren, without a child.
Hashem only gave her a child, after she prayed; so too, Yitzchak and Rivkah, and we read in the Torah (Vayelech 29:31):’And Hashem saw that Leah was hated, and He opened her womb’, and Rachel was childless, until she said to Yaakov: Give me sons’, and, as she later said:’And He also heard my voice’ - when her prayers were answered.
Would we not have thought that the Avot and the Immahot had enough merits, to have children? - yet, despite this, they did not bear children without praying for them.
We therefore find - concludes the Rav - that from the outset of Creation, when nothing would sprout, nor be given - neither physical nor spiritual - until man would come and took them by his prayer.
Rav Pinchas Friedman offers a beautiful insight, on this matter:’Hashem placed on Adam the holy service of being the שליח ציבור: the prayer leader, to pray for all the parts of Creation - this because, as we learn from the Zohar Hakadosh, man is composed within him, of all parts of Creation - and, by his prayer, he can open all the pipes of blessings from Above.
‘In fulfilling this holy role - by his prayers - he can atone for the sin of Adam and Chava, his prayers being an expression of הכרת טוב: to Hashem, for all His gifts and blessings to man - all having been ready for him, before his creation - thus atoning for their ingratitude.
‘We therefore have a clear lesson, that until there was someone who would recognize the goodness of rain, Hashem did not bring down rain on earth - and nothing sprouted from the third day, till the sixth day, when man was created, and recognized that they were needed for the world, and prayed for them - so that Adam haRishon would understand how important the attribute of הכרת הטוב: gratitude, is in the eyes of Hashem.’
Rav Chaim Friedlander also brings our Rashi, and comments on it:’Hashem created all His creations complete and developed - all except for the vegetation and the the trees.
‘Why did He create them differently, and not complete? So that man would recognize the benefit of rains, to pray for them - till man was created, on the sixth day, and he prayed for them, and they came down.
‘Rav Levenstein said, that from these sayings of our Sages, we learn a clear fundamental principle::Hashem, from His side, wants to give and to benefit - as we see from the rest of creation, where all were created complete - we can therefore surmise that, so too, the vegetation and trees would be complete; yet Hashem delayed them, so that they they stopped at the mouth of the earth, so as to give man the עבודה: the work ‘to work the earth’, which is to pray.
‘Before Adam Harishon sinned, he was at the spiritual level of Gan Eden, and was not required to plough and sow, his work being only spiritual, as to which our Sages said: ‘Which is the work of Hashem? It is prayer’.
‘Let us add, as to this matter, that, as we have learned, the first עבודה: work of Adam Harishon in Gan Eden, was to pray for rain - here we ask: did the great sage Adam Harishon not know that all came from Hashem, so that Hashem waited for his prayer, showing that he knew and recognized the benefit of rains?
‘Rather, Hashem taught this at the very outset of creation, that - apart from the very recognition of creation by Hashem - its continued existence is only by the Will of Hashem- and, so that rains fall, the service of prayer by man, was required - at all times, the continuing existence of creation, is only by Hashem, and at all times, His chessed is required anew.
‘We find, therefore, that Hashem creates a state of ‘lack’, so that we should pray and understand that all of creation is from the hand of Hashem, and this is the role of prayer: to instill in us that we are ‘lacking’, and that even that which we have, is from Hashem, and that each and every instant we need His good graces, for the continued existence of the world.
‘From these sayings of our Sages, a further important point emerges - as Rashi comments:’There was no one to recognize the benefit of rains’ - man can pray a complete heart-felt prayer only if he has the inner feeling of הכרת הטוב: gratitude; when he lives in the clear knowledge that he receives all his needs from Hashem, only then is he truly able to pray and to thank and bless Hashem for this - should he lack this feeling, and take everything for granted, his prayer lacks any real meaning.
‘Right from the outset of creation - as the sixth day drew to a close - Hashem wanted to teach this wondrous foundation of הכרת הטוב, that man needs to be grateful to his Benefactor, and not to think that he deserves everything, as if understood - had Hashem created all in a complete state, Adam Harishon would have thought that this was what was supposed to be, and that anything he received was ‘as it should be’, in the way of the world.’
A parting insight from the Maskil leDavid - Rav David Pardo: ‘The reason that Hashem did not yet send down rain - until man was created, and prayed for them - was to teach His creations for all their generations, that whether rains fall - or not - depends on our deeds - if we act in we are commanded, then, as we read:’(Eikev 11:13-14)’And it will be, if you hearken to My commandments..I will give you the rain of your land, at its time..’ - and, if not (11:17):’’He will close off the heavens, and there will be no rain.’’.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/416347
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