Parshas Bereishis 5786
- Torah Tavlin
- Oct 17
- 2 min read
שירו לה' שיר חדש תהלתו מקצה הארץ יורדי הים ומלאו איים וישביהם ... (ישעי' מב-י)
Yeshaya HaNavi exhorts Bnei Yisroel: “Sing to Hashem a new song, praise from the ends of the earth. You who sail the sea and you creatures in it, your coastlands and their inhabitants!” Chazal wonder why the Navi uses the words “praise from the ends of the earth” to espouse praise for the Almighty, while the second half of the posuk seems to be more mystifying “those who sail the sea ... and the creatures in it.” What is the understanding of the elaborate wording?
Based on the words of the Ibn Ezra zt”l and the Malbim zt”l we can say as follows: There is a fundamental difference between wonders that have already taken place to wonders that Hashem intends to do in the future. Wonders that have taken place, even supernatural and nature-defying, become fathomable after they are performed and rooted in the essence of the earth itself. Thus, even though they are supernatural, mortals on earth can find a way to humanize them and even “understand” them. But wonders that Hashem intends to perform are completely unfathomable as Hashem can do anything and we cannot imagine His possibilities or capabilities.
Since humans dwell on the earth, we have come to believe that we have some understanding of it. However, the deep sea and the heavens remain a mystery to us. Though we may study them, we still have very little understanding of how they work. Thus, the Navi says that we can better praise Hashem with what we feel more comfortable with - the earth, rather than attempting to praise Hashem “via the sea.”