Let US make man II

Answered by Rabbi Mordechai DixlerFurther responses from Rabbi Eliahu Levenson

Question

Genesis 1:26 reads “And G-d said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness..” I know that G-d is one, but I don’t understand why this verse says “us” if he is one. I don’t know if this is an error in the translation or if it was translated this way for a reason. I was hoping that someone could tell me how the original text reads and how it is supposed to be translated.

Answer

The translation of “Let us make man..” is correct. However, from the next verse (Genesis 1:27) it is obvious that God created man on His own: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” In this verse God is referred to in the singular.

Why does verse 26 sound as if more than one being created man? To that there are many explanations. One that is given by the classic 13th century Spanish commentator the “Ramban” (or “Nachmanides”) is that God wanted to show us the exalted nature of mankind. When He created the animals He said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind…(1:24).” This means the material for the animals came only from the earth. When He created man the soul came directly from Him, while in creating the body He used materials from the earth – “Let US..” The sole creator remained God Himself; just the supplies were a combination of the two. This can be seen explicitly in Genesis 2:7 where it says, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

This gives us some insight into the unique challenge of man. Amidst his dual nature he struggles to connect to the Divine, while fighting to extricate himself from his roots in the ground. We all hope and pray that we successfully meet that challenge.

Much luck with your studies of the Bible. As you are discovering, it is a wellspring of ideas; an instruction manual for life.

Best Wishes,
Rabbi Mordechai Dixler

Follow-up question

Question

The answer that was submitted seems a bit off to me. Why would G-d refer to the earth and creation as a part of himself; as a part of who he is? I understand the concept of the dual nature of man, but this seems to imply the necessity of G-d to use the earth which is not a part of himself, to create man. For he did not form the animals out of the clay of the earth.

Answer

I’ll give you another way to view the “US” of Bereishis (Genesis) 1:26:

G-d’s creation of Man required three stages, seen in Bereishis 1:26, 1:27, and 2:7.

Stage one, in Verse 1:26, is “asah,” the planning stage. In this stage G-d took counsel with others of His creations, let’s say, as a possible example, that G-d took counsel with the Earth and the Sun. All of this would be figurative for our benefit, as G-d is showing us by example proper ways to relate to others, even those of lesser status. G-d does not need this counsel but takes it anyway, raising the stature of those He is taking counsel with.

Stage two, in Verse 1:27, is “bara,” creation ex nihilo (from nothing). This ONLY G-d can do and in this Verse G-d is spoken of in the SINGULAR.

Stage three, in Verse 2:7, is “yeetzar,” the finishing stage, where G-d added the neshama (human soul), and dust from around the world allowing Man to settle the land everywhere. This too ONLY G-d can do, so again G-d is spoken of in the SINGULAR.

Regards, Eliahu Levenson