His Truth about Israel Right from the Start

This week, the Jewish people began our yearly cycle of reading the Bible. We start with Genesis 1:1: 

בְּראשית  ברא אֱלֹהִ֑ים אֵ֥ת הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וְאֵ֥ת הָאָֽרֶץ 

“In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth…” 

The original version is in Hebrew, and the first two words say it all.  

The second Hebrew word,  בָּרָ֣א (created), is a verb. It’s singular, third person. It’s like saying, “David Bednar delivers a nasty slider to Juan Soto. A second later, he (singular, third person) hit it 450 feet for a three-run blast.” 

These two Hebrew words tell us a lot:  

1. God is One. The verb, in the singular rather than plural, tells us that God is One and His Name is One. 
2. God is not human. When God created the heavens and the earth on the first day, there were no people. They were created on the sixth day. God is not a person.  
3. God creates everything. The earth, the skies, the birds, flowers, food, plants, animals that walk the earth and swim the seas are the creation of the One God of all existence.
4. God owns everything. If He built it, He owns it. He creates the lands and the leaders who rule over them. He dictates life and death, the beginning and end for all of us — including nations and empires. 
5. God created the world for a purpose. The world has a beginning, an end, and a reason for its existence.  

What was God’s Purpose in Creating the World? 

“In the beginning,” has a simple English meaning. But in the original language of the Bible, it’s not so simple.  

Any Israeli child can give you a list of other Hebrew words to say, “In the beginning”. Why did God use this word?

Are there other instances of the word “Raysheet,” (בראשית) the original Hebrew term for “the beginning” in the Bible? Can we establish a context?  

There are multiple instances where the word “Raysheet” appears. One refers to the Bible itself, the other to Israel.  In a single word, God says three things: 

1. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.¹ 
2. For the sake of the Bible, God created the heavens and the earth. (The actual word that opens the Bible, B’raysheet, starts with “B” which means, “it” “at” or “for the sake of”)¹
3. For the sake of Israel, God created the heavens and the earth.² 

In the very first word, all explanations point to our purpose in life.

For the sake of Israel and for the sake of everyone who follows their Bible, God created the heavens and the earth.  His plan from day one has always been: For us to know Him. For us to serve Him.  

A lot has changed since the beginning of creation. We invented cars, computers, and even combustion engines for rocket ships. Nevertheless, our purpose in His world continues.  

God’s Statement to the UN 

God has another purpose for starting the Torah with His creation of the world.  

According to Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki or Shlomo ben Yitzchak), God establishes ownership of the world in the first words. As the owner of heaven and earth, God can give any part of His universe to anyone He pleases. He can give the Land of Israel to the seven Canaanite nations, and He did³. For their sins, He can take the Land away from them and give the Land to His holy nation, and He did.⁴ 

For our sins, He can take the Land away from us and give it to Esau, which He did during the Roman conquest and exile. He can take the Land away from Esau and give it back to us, which He doing with the current ingathering of the exiles.  

The word “B’raysheet” sounds a lot like the word “B’rayshut,” meaning, “In His authority.”  Hashem exercises His authority to choose which nation will rule over which land. He chooses who will rule over which nation.  

He chooses the Land of Israel for the nation of Israel.  

No nation, no group of nations, nor even the United Nations can overrule His word – regardless of how many trillions of dollars they produce in AI-powered global cloud networks.  

It’s all His, and He commands that it’s all ours.  

In the first word of His Torah.  

Editor’s Notes: 

¹ Bereishit (Genesis) 1:1 

² Some examples: Shemot (Exodus) 23:19, Vayikra (Leviticus) 2:14 and 23:10, Devarim (Deuteronomy) 11:12, Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 26:1 

³ Bereishit 10:15-19 

⁴ Book of Yehoshua (Joshua) 

*** 

David Ben Horin lives in Afula with his family, 60,000 passionate Israelis, and Matilda, our local camel. Follow his channel, The Conquest of Israel.