Let us make man (Bereshis 1:26)

Ever see a picture where most of it was covered up except for a little bit. You think the picture is of one thing and imagine what the covered-up area looks like. Then, the covering is removed and the picture is totally different than what you expected.

This week’s parsha has a very strange verse: G-d says “let us make man”. Why does He say “us” when G-d is One? Is there more than one G-d, Heaven forbid?

Rashi explains the verse: Hashem asked His angels what they thought regarding creating man. Hashem, of course, did not need their help. He wanted to teach a lesson: Hashem, who is Almighty, consulted with those lower than Him. So, therefore, how much more must humans have modesty and consult with those we consider less than ourselves. By stating “Let us make man”, though, Hashem opened a way for heretics to say there is more than one G-d. Hashem felt the lesson of consulting with others was more important to teach than to worry about the heretics. Anyway, He has an easy answer for the heretics – look at the next verse. The next verse clearly states in the singular that Hashem (Himself) created man.

There are missionaries from other religions who try to quote a verse from the Bible to prove they are correct. The problem is that they only quote one or two verses and do not look at the full picture. Looking at the complete chapter or book which includes that verse will clearly show that the verse is being taken out of context.

There are two lessons I think we can learn from this. First, whenever a heretic states that a verse proves they are correct, always read all of the verses before and after that verse; they will show that the heretic is incorrect.

Second, this is a great lesson for life. Whenever we see someone doing something which seems totally wrong, realize you might not have the entire picture. We might only be seeing one verse by itself. If we don’t look at the entire context, we are going to misunderstand it. To see the entire context of what other people are doing means we need to see everything they have ever done. So be very careful when judging others – you might be looking at a picture that is covered up.

Good Shabbos!
-y.e.s.
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