Skip to content

Week of October 10, 2026

Bereshit

בְּרֵאשִׁית

This week’s parsha

The Torah opens by telling us where everything came from. Six days of speaking, a world that keeps being called good, a man made out of dust with breath blown into him, a garden, a mistake, two brothers, ten generations. It ends with the world gone wrong and one man who found favor.

בְּרֵאשִׁ֖ית בָּרָ֣א אֱלֹהִ֑ים אֵ֥ת הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וְאֵ֥ת הָאָֽרֶץ׃

In the beginning Elohim created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:1

This week’s songs

New songs for this parsha — the words of the pesukim and the vorts of the mefarshim below, set to be sung. Paste any of them into Suno with its style line and you have the niggun.

Vehinei Tov Meod

Take ATap to play
Take BTap to play
Lyrics & style line

Style for Suno

slow chassidic kumzitz niggun, deep warm male baritone lead with rich male harmonies, nylon acoustic guitar, soft strings, quiet cello, brushed cajon, starts almost whispered and builds to a powerful heartfelt peak, minor key opening into major, warm intimate live-room sound

[Intro — one voice, spoken plainly over a single guitar chord]

פָּרָשַׁת בְּרֵאשִׁית — the week the whole world begins, and the Torah begins with it.

[Chorus — everyone together, slow and warm]

וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד —

and behold, it was very good.

He looked at all of it at once,

and called the whole world good.

[Verse 1 — quiet, unhurried]

There was nothing you could stand on,

only darkness on the deep.

And then a voice said one thing —

יְהִי אוֹר —

let there be light, and there was light.

Rashi says the world was almost built on judgment alone,

but He saw it could not last that way,

so He put mercy first, and joined the justice to it.

That is the world you woke up in.

[Chorus — everyone together, slow and warm]

וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד —

and behold, it was very good.

He looked at all of it at once,

and called the whole world good.

[Verse 2 — a little fuller, harmonies enter]

Day after day He spoke it —

sky and sea and seed and star,

the fish, the birds, the animals,

and after each one, כִּי־טוֹב —

that it was good, that it was good.

Sforno says that finishing one part well is one thing;

holding every part together, complete —

that is why the word is not just טוֹב,

that is why He said מְאֹד.

[Chorus — everyone together, slow and warm]

וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד —

and behold, it was very good.

He looked at all of it at once,

and called the whole world good.

[Verse 3 — softer, almost whispered]

Six days of building, and it still was not done.

Rashi asks what the world was missing.

Rest. It was missing rest.

שַׁבָּת came — and the rest came with it,

and only then the work was finished.

וַיְבָרֶךְ אֱלֹקִים אֶת־יוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי —

He blessed the seventh day

and He made it holy.

[Chorus — everyone together, slow and warm]

וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד —

and behold, it was very good.

He looked at all of it at once,

and called the whole world good.

[Verse 4 — full voice, then pulling back]

He took dust up off the ground

and made a man out of the floor,

וַיִּפַּח בְּאַפָּיו נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים —

and breathed the breath of life into him.

He put him in the garden with one job,

לְעָבְדָהּ וּלְשָׁמְרָהּ —

to work it and to guard it.

The man fell, and the brothers fell after him.

But before any of it, He had already said to Kayin:

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it.

And Rashi says, in five plain words:

if you want to, you can win.

[Chorus — everyone together, slow and warm]

וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד —

and behold, it was very good.

He looked at all of it at once,

and called the whole world good.

[Outro — near silence, one voice, fading]

וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד —

and behold, it was very good.

Yehi Or Vayehi Or

Take ATap to play
Take BTap to play
Lyrics & style line

Style for Suno

fast freilich Jewish wedding dance tune, driving clarinet lead over accordion and upright bass, tight snare and hand-clap groove, male tenor lead with big male call-and-response backing choir, major key, joyful and relentless, bright live band sound

[Intro — spoken fast over a single clarinet run]

פָּרָשַׁת בְּרֵאשִׁית — from the very first word to the very last, here we go.

[Chorus — everyone together, big and bright]

יְהִי אוֹר —

let there be light! (let there be light!)

וַיְהִי־אוֹר —

and there was light! (and there was light!)

He said one word and the dark broke open,

He said one word and the world was born!

[Verse 1 — fast, clapping]

Day one, He splits the light from the dark, (from the dark!)

He calls them day and night. (day and night!)

Day two, a canopy inside the water, (in the water!)

waters under, waters over. (under and over!)

Day three, the sea runs to one place,

וְתֵרָאֶה הַיַּבָּשָׁה —

and the dry land shows its face! (shows its face!)

Grass and herbs and fruit trees,

every seed inside its own.

[Chorus — everyone together, big and bright]

יְהִי אוֹר —

let there be light! (let there be light!)

וַיְהִי־אוֹר —

and there was light! (and there was light!)

He said one word and the dark broke open,

He said one word and the world was born!

[Verse 2 — faster, clarinet answering each line]

Day four, two great lights up in the sky, (up in the sky!)

the big one for the day, the small one for the night,

and all the stars beside them. (and all the stars!)

Day five, the water swarms with living things

and the birds go up on the wind. (up on the wind!)

Day six, every animal out of the ground,

and then — נַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם —

let us make a man! (let us make a man!)

וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד —

and behold, it was very good!

[Chorus — everyone together, big and bright]

יְהִי אוֹר —

let there be light! (let there be light!)

וַיְהִי־אוֹר —

and there was light! (and there was light!)

He said one word and the dark broke open,

He said one word and the world was born!

[Verse 3 — driving, slightly lower, storytelling]

A garden in עֵדֶן, a river in four,

לְעָבְדָהּ וּלְשָׁמְרָהּ —

work it and guard it, and eat from every tree but one. (but one!)

The snake talked. They ate. They hid.

אַיֶּכָּה —

where are you? He called into the trees.

Out of the garden, into the thorns,

בְּזֵעַת אַפֶּיךָ —

bread by the sweat of your face.

[Verse 4 — full speed, everyone in]

Two brothers and two offerings, and one of them went wrong,

and He said it straight to Kayin before a thing was done:

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it! (you can rule over it!)

Then tents and flocks, כִּנּוֹר וְעוּגָב —

the harp and the flute, the first music in the world! (the first music!)

Ten generations counted out,

and חֲנוֹךְ walked with Hashem.

The world went wrong, and the parsha holds one door:

וְנֹחַ מָצָא חֵן —

and Noach found favor. (found favor!)

[Chorus — everyone together, big and bright]

יְהִי אוֹר —

let there be light! (let there be light!)

וַיְהִי־אוֹר —

and there was light! (and there was light!)

He said one word and the dark broke open,

He said one word and the world was born!

[Outro — clarinet and claps, whole room shouting]

He said one word and the world was born! (the world was born!)

יְהִי אוֹר — and there was light!

Bereishis Bara Elokim

Take ATap to play
Take BTap to play
Lyrics & style line

Style for Suno

spoken-word storyteller over soft Jewish acoustic backing, warm male narrator close to the microphone, fingerpicked nylon guitar, low upright bass, brushed drums and quiet strings, sung male choir chorus with rich harmony between sections, patient and cinematic

[Intro — spoken, warm, one guitar underneath]

פָּרָשַׁת בְּרֵאשִׁית — sit down. This is where all of it starts.

[Chorus — sung, full male choir, warm and open]

בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹקִים —

in the beginning He made the world,

אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָרֶץ —

the heavens and the earth.

He spoke, and there was something.

He looked, and it was good.

[Spoken Word — warm storyteller over soft guitar]

At the start there was nothing you could stand on. Unformed, desolate, darkness over the face of the deep, and the breath of God moving above the water. And then a voice. יְהִי אוֹר — let there be light. And there was light. He saw the light was good and He separated it from the dark and gave them both names. Evening, morning, day one. Then a canopy inside the waters. Then the sea pulled back to one place so the dry land could be seen. Then grass, and herbs with seed in them, and fruit trees carrying their own seed inside the fruit. Every time, the same line: וַיַּרְא אֱלֹקִים כִּי־טוֹב — and God saw that it was good.

[Spoken Word — steady, building slightly]

Two great lights in the sky, the big one to rule the day and the small one the night, and the stars with them. Water swarming with living creatures, birds across the face of the sky, and a blessing on all of it — פְּרוּ וּרְבוּ — be fruitful and multiply. Animals out of the ground, every one of its own kind. And then, on the sixth day, a sentence He had not used all week: נַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם בְּצַלְמֵנוּ — let us make man in our image. Male and female He created them, blessed them, and handed them the whole world for food. Then He looked at everything together and said something new: וְהִנֵּה־טוֹב מְאֹד — and behold, it was very good.

[Spoken Word — quieter, close in]

The heavens and the earth were finished, and on the seventh day He stopped, and He blessed that day and made it holy. He formed the man out of dust from the earth, וַיִּפַּח בְּאַפָּיו נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים — and blew into his nostrils the breath of life — and man became a living soul. A garden in Eden, the Tree of Life in the middle and the Tree of Knowledge beside it, one job, לְעָבְדָהּ וּלְשָׁמְרָהּ — to work it and to guard it — and one rule. Every tree but that one.

[Chorus — sung, full male choir, warm and open]

בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹקִים —

in the beginning He made the world,

אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָרֶץ —

the heavens and the earth.

He spoke, and there was something.

He looked, and it was good.

[Spoken Word — plain, unhurried, no drama]

לֹא־טוֹב הֱיוֹת הָאָדָם לְבַדּוֹ — it is not good for the man to be alone. Every animal came to be named, and none of them was a helper for him, so his wife was built from his own side. The serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field. She saw the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes; she took, and ate, and gave to her husband, and he ate. And the first question God asked a human being was אַיֶּכָּה — where are you? Each one passed the blame along, and each one heard what would follow: the serpent on its belly, pain in bearing children, and for the man a ground that grows thorns, בְּזֵעַת אַפֶּיךָ תֹּאכַל לֶחֶם — bread by the sweat of your face, until you return to the dust you were taken from. And then, before He sends them out of the garden, He makes them coats of leather Himself and clothes them.

[Spoken Word — the last one, low and steady]

Kayin brings from the fruit of the ground; Hevel brings from the firstborn of his flock and from the best of them, and Hevel's offering is regarded and Kayin's is not, and his face falls. God speaks to him first, while there is still a choice: הֲלוֹא אִם־תֵּיטִיב שְׂאֵת — if you improve there is forgiveness — and if not, sin is crouching at the opening, its desire toward you, וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ — but you can rule over it. He did not, and in the field his brother was killed, and God asked him where his brother was, and he said he did not know. Then six words hold the door open for next week: וְנֹחַ מָצָא חֵן — and Noach found favor.

[Chorus — sung, full male choir, warm and open]

בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹקִים —

in the beginning He made the world,

אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָרֶץ —

the heavens and the earth.

He spoke, and there was something.

He looked, and it was good.

[Outro — spoken, almost no music, then one guitar chord]

He spoke, and there was something. He looked, and it was good.

Veatah Timshol Bo

Take ATap to play
Take BTap to play
Lyrics & style line

Style for Suno

anthemic stadium rock, clean delayed electric guitar in the verses opening into huge distorted walls in the chorus, big room drums, low synth pad, male rock tenor lead with a large male singalong choir, quiet intimate verse building to a massive soaring chorus, wide cinematic production

[Intro — spoken, dry, over one clean guitar note]

פָּרָשַׁת בְּרֵאשִׁית — the first week of the world, and the first choice in it.

[Verse 1 — quiet, single guitar, close vocal]

You made the light before You made the day.

You made the ground before You made me.

You took the dust up in Your hand

and breathed a living soul in me.

וַיִּפַּח בְּאַפָּיו נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים —

You breathed the breath of life in me.

[Pre-Chorus — drums enter, building hard]

And You said it to the first man's son,

before a single thing was done —

not after. Before.

[Chorus — everyone together, massive, wide open]

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

Rashi says it in five words:

if you want to, you can win.

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

[Verse 2 — quiet again, guitar and bass only]

Six days of building, and it was not done.

Rashi asks what the world was missing.

Rest. It was only missing rest.

שַׁבָּת came, and the work was finished.

וַיְקַדֵּשׁ אֹתוֹ —

and He made that day holy.

[Pre-Chorus — drums enter, building hard]

And You said it to the first man's son,

before a single thing was done —

not after. Before.

[Chorus — everyone together, massive, wide open]

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

Rashi says it in five words:

if you want to, you can win.

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

[Bridge — near silence, one voice and a pad, then it explodes]

He called into the trees, אַיֶּכָּה —

where are you?

He is still asking.

And Sforno says the whole world only got the word מְאֹד,

very good, when every part of it stood complete.

So stand.

So stand.

[Chorus — everyone together, massive, wide open]

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

Rashi says it in five words:

if you want to, you can win.

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it!

[Outro — full choir, guitars ringing out, slowing to a stop]

וְאַתָּה תִּמְשָׁל־בּוֹ —

you can rule over it.

וְנֹחַ מָצָא חֵן —

and Noach found favor.

The door is still open.

The parsha in brief

It starts with nothing you could stand on. The earth was unformed and desolate, darkness was over the surface of the abyss, and the breath of God hovered above the water. Then a voice: let there be light. And there was light. He saw that the light was good, He separated it from the darkness, and He gave them names — day and night. Evening came, morning came, one day. And that is how the whole week goes. He speaks, and a canopy separates the waters. He speaks, and the water gathers into one place so the dry land can be seen. He speaks, and the earth sprouts grass and seed-bearing herbs and fruit trees with their seed inside them. He hangs the two great lights in the sky, the large one to rule the day and the small one to rule the night, and the stars with them. He fills the water with swarming creatures and the air with birds and blesses them to be fruitful and multiply, and He brings out of the ground every kind of animal. After almost every single one, the same four words: and God saw that it was good. Rashi notices which Name the first verse uses — the Name that means judgment, not the Name of mercy — because at first the plan was a world run by strict justice, and He saw that a world like that could not endure, so He gave precedence to mercy and joined the justice to it. That is the world we woke up in.

On the sixth day He says something He has not said all week: let us make man in our image. He creates man, male and female, blesses them, and hands them the whole world — every seed-yielding herb, every fruit tree, for food. Then He looks at all of it at once, and this time good is not enough: and behold, it was very good. Sforno says that is exactly the point of the extra word — finishing one part well is one thing, finishing the whole project so that all the parts fit together is something greater, and only now, with everything standing complete, does the Torah reach for מְאֹד. The heavens and the earth were finished. On the seventh day He stopped, and He blessed that day and made it holy. Rashi asks what the world was still lacking after six days of work, since everything had already been made. Rest. Shabbos came — rest came, and only then was the work finished. Midrash Tanchuma adds one small thing about that week: of all six days, only the sixth carries an extra letter, the ה whose number is five, teaching that everything made in those days was made on one condition — that Israel would accept the five books of the Torah.

Then the Torah goes back and tells the story of the man up close. No rain had fallen and there was nobody to work the ground, so a mist came up and watered the soil, and God formed the man out of dust and blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. He planted a garden in Eden and put him there, with the Tree of Life in the middle and the Tree of Knowledge beside it, and gave him one job — to work it and to protect it — and one rule: eat from every tree except that one. It is not good for the man to be alone, He said, and He brought every animal to see what the man would call them, and the man named every one of them and still found no helper for himself, and so his wife was built from his own side and brought to him. The serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field. It told the woman she would not die. She saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and she took, and ate, and gave to her husband, and he ate. Their eyes opened, they knew they were naked, and when they heard the voice of God moving in the garden at the breeze of the day, they hid among the trees. God called to the man and asked him one question: where are you? Each answer passed the blame to someone else, and each of the three heard what would follow — the serpent to crawl and eat dust, the woman pain in childbirth, the man a ground that grows thorns and bread earned by the sweat of his face until he returns to the dust he came from. Then, before He sends them out, God makes them leather coats with His own hands and clothes them.

Outside the garden the story becomes a family. Kayin works the soil and Hevel keeps sheep. Kayin brings an offering from the fruit of the ground; Hevel brings from the firstborn of his flock and from the very best of them, and God pays regard to Hevel's offering and not to Kayin's, and Kayin's face falls. God speaks to him before anything happens, and speaks to him as if he still has a choice, because he does: if you improve there is forgiveness, and if not, sin is crouching at the opening — its desire is toward you, but you can rule over it. Rashi says exactly that, in five words: if you want to, you can win. Kayin does not, and in the field he kills his brother, and God asks him where his brother is, and he says he does not know. He is told the ground will not give him its strength anymore and that he will be a wanderer; God puts a mark on him so nobody will kill him, and he goes out and builds a city. His descendants invent tents and herds, the harp and the flute, and tools of copper and iron. Adam and Chavah have another son, Sheis, and the Torah starts the list over — ten generations, each with its years, and after almost every name the same three words: and he died. Almost. Chanoch walked with God, and he was no longer there, because God took him. By the end, the earth is full of people and full of wrong, and the Torah says it once, plainly: every inclination of man's heart was only for evil, all day long, and God grieved in His heart. And then the last line of the parsha, six words long, holding the door open — and Noach found favor in the eyes of Hashem.

At the Shabbos table

  1. What did Hashem say on the first day, and what happened?
  2. Adam and Chavah were given one rule in the garden. What was it, and what happened after they broke it?
  3. Rashi asks what the world was still missing after six whole days of creation. What was the answer?

Answers

  1. He said let there be light — and there was light.
  2. They could eat from every tree except the Tree of Knowledge. After they ate from it they hid among the trees, Hashem called out where are you, and they were sent out of the garden — but first He made them leather coats and clothed them.
  3. Rest. Shabbos came, rest came, and only then was the work finished.

“As humanity goes, so goes the world.”

The whole parsha, aliyah by aliyah

All seven aliyos, in order, with the verse ranges as they are leined. The account of what happens stays to what the pesukim say; anything that explains why is quoted below.

  1. 1.Six days and the seventh

    Genesis 1:1-2:3

    In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and the earth was unformed and desolate, with darkness over the surface of the abyss. He said, Let there be light, and there was light, and He divided the light from the darkness and called them day and night. Day by day He spoke: a canopy dividing the waters, dry land and seas, grass and seed-bearing trees, the sun and the moon and the stars, fish and birds, animals and creeping things — and after almost every one, the Torah says that God saw that it was good. On the sixth day He said, Let us make man in our image, and He created man, male and female, blessed them, and gave every seed-yielding herb and fruit for food. Then He looked at everything He had made, and behold it was very good. The heavens and the earth were finished, and on the seventh day He abstained from all His work, and He blessed the seventh day and made it holy.

    וַיַּ֤רְא אֱלֹהִים֙ אֶת־כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָשָׂ֔ה וְהִנֵּה־ט֖וֹב מְאֹ֑ד וַֽיְהִי־עֶ֥רֶב וַֽיְהִי־בֹ֖קֶר י֥וֹם הַשִּׁשִּֽׁי׃ (פ)

    Elohim saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good. It became evening and it became morning, the sixth day.

    Genesis 1:31

  2. 2.The garden and the man

    Genesis 2:4-2:19

    The Torah tells the story of the man again and closer up. No rain had fallen yet and there was no man to work the soil, so a mist rose from the earth and watered the ground. Adonoy Elohim formed the man out of dust from the ground, blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. He planted a garden in Eden and put the man there, with every tree that is pleasant to look at and good for food, and the Tree of Life in the middle of the garden and the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil. A river went out of Eden and split into four. He placed the man in the garden to work it and to protect it, and commanded him: eat from every tree, but not from the Tree of Knowledge, for on the day you eat from it you will surely die. Then He said it is not good for the man to be alone, and brought every animal and bird to the man to see what he would call them.

    וַיִּיצֶר֩ יְהוָ֨ה אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֶת־הָֽאָדָ֗ם עָפָר֙ מִן־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה וַיִּפַּ֥ח בְּאַפָּ֖יו נִשְׁמַ֣ת חַיִּ֑ים וַֽיְהִ֥י הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ חַיָּֽה׃

    Adonoy Elohim then formed the man, dust from the ground, and He blew into his nostrils the breath of life. And so man became a living soul.

    Genesis 2:7

  3. 3.The tree and the questions

    Genesis 2:20-3:21

    The man named every animal, but for himself he found no helper, so God caused a deep sleep to fall on him, took one of his ribs and built it into a woman, and brought her to him. The serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field, and it told the woman that they would not die, and she saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and she took its fruit and ate, and gave to her husband and he ate. Their eyes were opened, they knew they were naked, they sewed fig leaves, and when they heard the voice of God moving in the garden at the breeze of the day, they hid among the trees. God called to the man and said, Where are you? The man said the woman gave him the fruit, the woman said the serpent deceived her, and each one received a consequence: the serpent to crawl on its belly and eat dust, the woman pain in bearing children, the man a cursed ground that grows thorns and thistles, bread by the sweat of his face until he returns to the dust he was taken from. The man called his wife Chavah, because she had become the mother of all living, and God made leather coats for the two of them and clothed them.

    וַיִּקְרָ֛א יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהִ֖ים אֶל־הָֽאָדָ֑ם וַיֹּ֥אמֶר ל֖וֹ אַיֶּֽכָּה׃

    Adonoy Elohim called to the man, and He said, Where are you?

    Genesis 3:9

  4. 4.Kayin and Hevel

    Genesis 3:22-4:18

    God sent the man out of the Garden of Eden to till the soil he was taken from, and stationed the Cherubim and the flame of the rotating sword at the east of the garden to guard the way to the Tree of Life. Chavah gave birth to Kayin and then to Hevel; Hevel became a shepherd and Kayin worked the soil. Kayin brought an offering from the fruit of the soil, and Hevel brought from the firstborn of his flock and from the best of them, and God paid regard to Hevel and his offering but not to Kayin's, and Kayin became very angry. God said to him: why are you angry? If you improve, there is forgiveness; and if you do not, sin rests at the opening — its desire is unto you, but you can dominate it. Kayin spoke to his brother in the field and killed him, and God asked, Where is your brother Hevel, and Kayin answered that he did not know, am I my brother's keeper. Kayin was told the ground would no longer give him its strength and that he would be a wanderer, God placed a mark on him so that no one would kill him, and he settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden, where a son was born to him and he built a city.

    הֲל֤וֹא אִם־תֵּיטִיב֙ שְׂאֵ֔ת וְאִם֙ לֹ֣א תֵיטִ֔יב לַפֶּ֖תַח חַטָּ֣את רֹבֵ֑ץ וְאֵלֶ֙יךָ֙ תְּשׁ֣וּקָת֔וֹ וְאַתָּ֖ה תִּמְשָׁל־בּֽוֹ׃

    Is this not so—if you improve, there is forgiveness, but if you do not improve, sin rests at the opening. Its desire is unto you, but you can dominate it.

    Genesis 4:7

  5. 5.The first crafts

    Genesis 4:19-4:22

    Lemech married two women, Adah and Tzillah. Adah gave birth to Yaval, who was the father of those who live in tents and breed cattle. His brother Yuval was the father of all who play the harp and the flute. Tzillah gave birth to Tuval Kayin, who sharpened everything which cuts copper and iron, and his sister was Naamah. In four verses the world gets shepherding, music and metalwork.

    וְשֵׁ֥ם אָחִ֖יו יוּבָ֑ל ה֣וּא הָיָ֔ה אֲבִ֕י כָּל־תֹּפֵ֥שׂ כִּנּ֖וֹר וְעוּגָֽב׃

    His brother’s name was Yuval. He was the father of all who handle [play] the harp and flute.

    Genesis 4:21

  6. 6.Ten generations of names

    Genesis 4:23-5:24

    Lemech spoke to his wives and told them to listen to his voice, and said that if Kayin would be avenged sevenfold, then for Lemech it would be seventy-seven fold. Adam and Chavah had another son and named him Sheis, because God had granted another offspring in place of Hevel, and to Sheis was born Enosh, and then men began to call idols by the Name. The Torah starts the list over: this is the book of the generations of man, on the day God created man He made him in the likeness of God, male and female He created them and blessed them and named them Adam. Then the years are counted one generation at a time — Adam nine hundred and thirty, Sheis nine hundred and twelve, Enosh, Keinan, Mahalaleil, Yered — and after each one the same three words, and he died. Chanoch is different: he walked with God, and all his days were three hundred and sixty-five years, and he was no longer there, for God took him.

    וַיִּתְהַלֵּ֥ךְ חֲנ֖וֹךְ אֶת־הָֽאֱלֹהִ֑ים וְאֵינֶ֕נּוּ כִּֽי־לָקַ֥ח אֹת֖וֹ אֱלֹהִֽים׃ (פ)

    Chanoch walked with Elohim, and he was no longer [there] for Elohim took him.

    Genesis 5:24

  7. 7.The world goes wrong

    Genesis 5:25-6:8

    Mesushelach lived nine hundred and sixty-nine years, longer than anyone, and he had a son Lemech, and Lemech had a son and named him Noach, saying that this one will bring us rest from our work and from the anguish of our hands, from the soil which God has cursed. Noach was five hundred years old and had three sons, Sheim, Cham and Yafes. Men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and the sons of the rulers took wives from whomever they chose, and God said that His spirit would not judge man forever, and set his days at a hundred and twenty years. Then the Torah says it plainly: God saw that man's wickedness had increased on the earth, and that every inclination of his heart was only for evil, all day long, and He grieved in His heart and said He would obliterate what He had made. The parsha ends on one short line — and Noach found favor in the eyes of God.

    וְנֹ֕חַ מָ֥צָא חֵ֖ן בְּעֵינֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃ (פ)

    But Noach found favor in the eyes of Adonoy.

    Genesis 6:8

From the mefarshim

Every one of these is the mefaresh’s own words, fetched and checked — not a summary.

  1. 1.Rashi — mercy joined to justice, so the world could stand

    ברא אלהים וְלֹא נֶאֱמַר בָּרָא ה', שֶׁבַּתְּחִלָּה עָלָה בְמַחֲשָׁבָה לִבְרֹאתוֹ בְּמִדַּת הַדִּין, רָאָה שֶׁאֵין הָעוֹלָם מִתְקַיֵּם, הִקְדִּים מִדַּת רַחֲמִים וְשִׁתְּפָהּ לְמִהַ"דִּ, וְהַיְינוּ דִּכְתִיב בְּיוֹם עֲשׂוֹת ה' אֱלֹהִים אֶרֶץ וְשָׁמָיִם:

    ברא אלהים GOD [AS JUDGE] CREATED — It does not state 'ברא ה “The Lord (the Merciful One) created, because at first God intended to create it (the world) to be placed under the attribute (rule) of strict justice, but He realised that the world could not thus endure and therefore gave precedence to Divine Mercy allying it with Divine Justice. It is to this that what is written in (Genesis 2:4) alludes — “In the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven”.

    Rashi on Genesis 1:1:3

  2. 2.Midrash Tanchuma — why only the sixth day gets the extra letter

    וְתַנְיָא, אָמַר רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן לָקִישׁ, לָמָּה נֶאֱמַר בְּמַעֲשֵׂה בְרֵאשִׁית יוֹם אֶחָד, יוֹם שֵׁנִי, יוֹם שְׁלִישִׁי, יוֹם רְבִיעִי, יוֹם חֲמִישִׁי, יוֹם הַשִּׁשִּׁי, הֵ״‎א יְתֵרָה לָמָּה? שֶׁהֲרֵי בְּכֻלָּן לֹא נֶאֱמַר אֶלָּא יוֹם אֶחָד, יוֹם שֵׁנִי, וְכֵן לְכֻלָּם. מְלַמֵּד, שֶׁהִתְנָה הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עִם מַעֲשֵׂה בְרֵאשִׁית וְאָמַר לָהֶם: אִם יִשְׂרָאֵל מְקַבְּלִים הַתּוֹרָה שֶׁיֵּשׁ בָּהּ חֲמִשָּׁה סְפָרִים, מוּטָב, וְאִם לָאו, אֲנִי מַחֲזִיר אֶתְכֶם לְתֹהוּ וָבֹהוּ. וְכֵן בְּנֵי קֹרַח אָמְרוּ, נְמוֹגִים אֶרֶץ וְכָל ישְׁבֶיהָ אָנֹכִי תִכַּנְתִּי עַמּוּדֶיהָ סֶלָה (תהלים עה, ד). זוֹ הַתּוֹרָה שֶׁפָּתַח הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא

    It has been taught on the authority of R. Simeon the son of Lakish: Why does Scripture say of the creation process (simply) first day, second day, third day, fourth day, fifth day, the sixth day, adding the definite article (heh)5The numerical value of heh is five. only in this instance, so that it reads the sixth day? This is to teach us, the rabbi explained, that God made an agreement with the works of creation in which he declared: If Israel accepts the Torah, in which there are five books, well and good, but if not I will return you to a state unformed and void (Gen. 1:2). Hence the sons of Korah exclaimed: When the earth and the inhabitants thereof trembled, I Myself established the pillars of it (Ps. 75:4). The word pillars in this verse refers to the Torah, which the Holy One, blessed be He, revealed at Sinai.

    Midrash Tanchuma, Bereshit 1:8

  3. 3.Sforno — each piece was good, all of it together was very good

    אֶת כָּל אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה וְהִנֵּה טוֹב מְאֹד. תַּכְלִית הַמְּצִיאוּת בִּכְלָלוֹ טוֹב מְאֹד יוֹתֵר מִן הַתַּכְלִיתִיּוֹת הַפְּרָטִיּוֹת הַמְכֻוָּנוֹת אֵלָיו.

    את כל אשר עשה והנה טוב מאד, the accomplishment of a project containing many different parts is greater than the accomplishment of each part of such project successfully. Now that G’d had completed the entire project successfully, the Torah described this with the additional word מאד instead of merely טוב.

    Sforno on Genesis 1:31:1

  4. 4.Rashi — what was the world still missing? Rest

    ויכל אלהים ביום השביעי. ר' שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹמֵר בָּשָׂר וָדָם, שֶׁאֵינוֹ יוֹדֵעַ עִתָּיו וּרְגָעָיו צָרִיך לְהוֹסִיף מֵחֹל עַל הַקֹּדֶשׁ, הַקָּבָּ"ה שֶׁיּוֹדֵעַ עִתָּיו וּרְגָעָיו, נִכְנָס בֹּו כְּחוּט הַשַּׂעֲרָה, וְנִרְאֶה כְאִלּוּ כִלָּה בוֹ בַיֹּום. דָּ"אַ מֶה הָיָה הָעוֹלָם חָסֵר? מְנוּחָה, בָּאת שַׁבָּת בָּאת מְנוּחָה, כָּלְתָה וְנִגְמְרָה הַמְּלָאכָה:

    ויכל אלהים ביום השביעי AND ON THE SEVENTH DAY GOD FINISHED — R. Simeon says: A human being (literally, flesh and blood) who cannot know exactly his times and moments (who cannot accurately determine the point of time that marks the division between one period and that which follows it) must needs add from the week-day and observe it as the holy day (the Sabbath), but the Holy One, blessed be He, who knows His times and moments, began it (the seventh day) to a very hair’s breadth (with extreme exactness) and it therefore appeared as though He had completed His work on that very day (Genesis Rabbah 10:9). Another explanation: What did the world lack? Rest! Sabbath came — Rest came; and the work was thus finished and completed (Genesis Rabbah 10:9)!

    Rashi on Genesis 2:2:1

  5. 5.Rashi — you can rule over it, if you want to

    ואתה תמשל בו. אִם תִּרְצֶה תִּתְגַּבֵּר עָלָיו:

    ואתה תמשול בו NEVERTHELESS THOU MAYEST RULE OVER IT — If you desire to, you can gain the victory over it (Kiddushin 30b).

    Rashi on Genesis 4:7:4

Vorts & shmuessen on this parsha

Good vorts and shmuessen on this parsha from around the Torah world — a taste of each, and the link to learn it properly. Every excerpt is verbatim, checked against the page itself.

No AI writes Torah here — every pasuk, Rashi and Midrash is fetched word-for-word from Sefaria and checked before it prints. Read exactly how.

Texts from Sefaria — Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934 (Public Domain) · Midrash Tanchuma -- Torat Emet (Public Domain) · Midrash Tanhuma-Yelammedenu, trans. Samuel A. Berman (CC-BY) · Vocalized Edition (Public Domain) · Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash (CC-BY) · Tanach with Ta'amei Hamikra (Public Domain) · Metsudah Chumash, Metsudah Publications, 2009 (CC-BY)