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Genesis 1:9 — “And God said, “Let the water that is beneath the heavens gather into one place, and let the dry land appear,” and it was so.”
“And God said, that is beneath the heavens gather into one place.” [The discussion extends] until the end of the third day. The questions I have identified concerning the verses of this section are as follows:
The first question concerns the words, “Let the water that is beneath the heavens gather into one place” (Genesis 1:9). For the waters are not all in one place: they are found in seas, rivers, and streams. Indeed, Scripture itself says, “And the gathering of the waters He called seas”1 (Genesis 1:10), using the plural. Why, then, does it say that the waters should be gathered into one place?
The second question is why the Holy One, blessed be He, called the dry land eretz, earth, when the term eretz encompasses all four elements. It would have been more appropriate to call it adamah, dry land, or afar, dust, since these are names particular to that element, rather than eretz, which is a general name embracing all the elements. For general terms, as the philosophers have observed, do not disclose the essential nature and essence of a thing. Yet the place of the waters He called seas, rather than waters, since it is not fitting to call the particular by the name of the general.
The third question is why the Torah does not state that the waters were actually gathered together and that the dry land appeared. You cannot answer that this is conveyed by the words, “And it was so”, for on the other days of Creation, even when Scripture says, “And it was so”, it nevertheless goes on to describe how the thing was brought about. Concerning the firmament, it says, “And God made the firmament” (Genesis 1:7); concerning the plants, “The earth brought forth vegetation” (Genesis 1:12); concerning the luminaries, “And God made the two great luminaries” (Genesis 1:16); and concerning the animals, “And God made the beasts of the earth” (Genesis 1:25). Why, then, is the gathering of the waters treated differently?2
The fourth question is why, on the third day, Scripture says twice, “And God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:10, 12), whereas on every other day of Creation it is stated only once. Moreover, what is the meaning of And God saw that it was good? Did some new knowledge concerning the thing He had made arise in Him, blessed be He, after it had been made—namely, that it was good—when He had not known this beforehand? Such a thing is certainly impossible, for everything is always revealed and known before Him.
The fifth question concerns the words, “and fruit trees producing fruit”3 (Genesis 1:11). For once Scripture has said fruit trees, it is already understood that they produce fruit. If we say that it was nevertheless necessary to add producing fruit, then the expression fruit trees itself would appear superfluous.
Rashi explained that the taste of the tree was to have been like the taste of its fruit. The earth, however, did not do this, for Scripture subsequently says, “And the earth brought forth trees producing fruit” (Genesis 1:12), rather than fruit trees. Therefore, when Adam was cursed for his sin, the earth too was called to account for its transgression. This interpretation is taken from Bereshit Rabbah4. Yet according to the plain meaning of the text, this is exceedingly difficult to conceive. How could the earth fail to do what God had decreed? And how can it be said that the earth sinned, when it possesses no intellect?
Moreover, how could the taste of the tree possibly have been like the taste of its fruit? If that were so, the entire tree would itself be fruit, and the fruits would already be present in the very substance of the tree. For, as the natural philosophers have written, fruit consists of the finest and most excellent moisture produced by the tree. How, then, could the tree have the same taste as the fruit, when the tree is thick and coarse, partaking of the nature of earth, whereas the fruit is soft and pleasant, partaking of the nature of water?
The sixth question is why the Torah makes no mention of the formation of vapors and exhalations and of the things produced from them within the earth and the air, nor of the formation of minerals and metals. These constitute the first processes of generation and combination undergone by the elements, whereas Scripture begins by mentioning the formation of plants, which represents the third degree of combination. We cannot say that Scripture omitted the former because of their inferior status, for among metals and stones there are things of great value and usefulness for human needs, life, and practical purposes.
The seventh question is why Scripture does not employ the same language concerning the work performed on each of the days. Indeed, in the account of these days you will find four different forms of expression concerning the works of Creation. The first is that, in some instances, after the command and decree Scripture says, “And God made”, as on the second day in the making of the firmament, on the fourth day in the making of the luminaries, and on the sixth day in the making of the living creatures. The second is that after the declaration and decree it says, “And God created”, as in the formation of the fish, the great sea creatures, and man.
The third form is that the formation of certain things is not attributed to God, either by the language of making or by that of creation. Instead, Scripture says, “And the earth brought forth vegetation” (Genesis 1:12), as though the earth had produced it of itself and the Lord had not wrought all this. The fourth is that neither making nor creation is mentioned as being performed by God, blessed be He, nor is the effect attributed to the element from which it came about, as in the appearance of the dry land and the gathering of the waters. It is therefore appropriate to explain the reason for these significant variations, since everything is the work of God and the handiwork of His hands.
I shall now explain the verses in such a manner that all these questions will be resolved.
(Parashat Bereshit — Genesis 1:9, The Earth Takes Form in the Commentary of Don Isaac Abarbanel)
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