LearnNoah7Laws (2025)-3/
Noahite Nazarites? Nuns?
Sins of the Flesh!
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Rabbi Zvi Aviner
Noahidesevencommandmenrts.com
It is commonly believed that the best way to serve God and live righteously is to retract from this world’s affair and seclude ourselves in a monastery as a Nazarite or a nun. There, in the Monastery, one may overcome the attraction of the sins of the flesh, and let our sprit win over our body.
The phrase Sins of the Flesh refers to indulging into the pleasures of the world, like excessive drinking, excessive sex and the like. A Nazarite in the Torah ispresented as one who has witnessed other people stumbling over drunkenness and ADULTERY and therefore vowed to avoid himself from wine for some period. Is he holy? The Torah obliges him/her to bring a sin offering at the end of his Nazarite period, because, as the verse says, he has sinned with his soul, implying that becoming a Nazarite is a sort of a sin, a taint on the soul.
This means that running away from society is not a good thing in the Torah eyes. She prefers us to encounter directly the attraction of the sins of the flesh and overcome them.
Why is it so?
What are the Sins of the Flesh?
Who has planted them in us and for what purpose?
Why are they so attractive?
To answer that, we need to go to Adam creation.
Last class we learned that Adam was created to stand a trial and a judgment.
In fact, the entire world was created to withstand a Trial and a judgment, as it says
At the Beginning, ELKM created the Heavens and the earth,
Where the Term ELKM refers in Hebrew to a Mighty JUDGE, (even a human judge). If you mistranslate the Name as G-d, you’ve lost the message.
Hence, the world is an awesome Court Theater, where its CREATOR sits as a JUDGE.
Today, we may have a better insight of that statement. We know today that the Universe we see has deeper levels concealed from us. These levels may assume different shapes and forms pending on Consciousness.
Our Universe, Moses says, was crystalized and shaped by the CREATOR ELKM specifically as a Courtroom, for our Moral Trial and Judgment.
In general, amoral Trial needs the following ingredients –
- A Moral Standard
- A set of Laws, reflecting the moral standard.
- Definition of Sin – a transgression of the Laws
- Setting up rewards and retributions
- Selecting a Judge, a Court, for the trial
- In Adam case, creating Adam for the Trial
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Ingredients of Adam’s Moral trial
1 Moral Standard
2 Moral Laws
3 Define Sin
4 Rewards and Retributions
- A Judge
- A qualified subject: Adam
Ge ch1 presents those ingredients for Adam’s trial.
Let’s start with number 5- the setting up of the proper Heavenly Court (by the CREATOR) for Adam Trial.
In general, when you stand before a court, you would expect the judge to seek first the fact, the truth, without bias. He/she need to establish what happened and decide the true verdict according to the law.
Only then would the judge exercise mitigating factors and apply mercy to the final verdict. Mercy is a second step in the process, above or besides the law.
That is exactly how the Heavenly court is presented in Genesis Ch 1. At first, the Torah presents ELKM as the Attribute of judgment who seeks the Absolute Truth with Absolute Justice.
That is how the world was created and that is how the world, including Adam, is judged.
But as the verse says, that was at the Beginning. As it says
At the beginning ELKM created the Heavens and the Earth.
But later on, at the end of Ch1, the Attribute of MERCY and FORGIVENESS appears in the text, applying Mercy and Forgiveness to Adam’s final verdict.
Genesis Ch 1 as a Courtroom
ELKM –1—2—3—4—5—-6– — —MERCY (YHVH)
Adam
Let’s focus on ELKM and His Ways,
Let’s recall that the term ELKM is not a god but rather an Attribute of the Infinite, nameless CREATOR who is above our conception or any description.
At CREATION, that infinite Nameless CREATOR elected to ascend on the throne of JUDGMENT while creating the world. He assumed the Name ELKM.
On other occasions, the Infinite CREATOR would ascend on other Thrones and assume other Names.
When He sits on the throne of MERCY he is called yhvh.
Elkm then is a special mode of kingship, elected by the CREATOR to build, judge and run the world.
RLKM
Indeed, G Ch 1 presents ELKM as both a BUILDER and a JUDGE.
You see him building the World in Six long Days, like a six floors house which is Nature.
Each floor or a Day of CREATION is a stage in the real world’s history. As we’ll see in detail in another class.
And at the end of each Day, ELKM passes a judgment on the Day He has just finished.
Yes, He is indeed a BUILDER and a JUDGE.
And when He judges a Day, He does that as a BUILDER, in terms of efficiency and reaching his goal of finishing the building. There is no Morality or Mercy here.
If He is pleased with the Day and its creatures, He would issue a ‘good’ verdict, allowing the Day to stay and support the next one on top. As it says at the end of each day
And ELKM saw that it was good,
And there was evening
and there was morning, day three,
Again, the term good here is in the builder’s eyes.
So, if He is not pleased, He would eliminate the passing Day and its creatures, as He did to the dinosaurs, for instance.
Moreover, you see the way He judges in nature.
He rules Nature by Measure for Measure. Paying rewards and retributions in a precise way.
Under Him, animals eat other animals, for they too are to be eaten soon. They cause pains, only to suffer pains in return, in BSOLUTE JUSTICE.
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We need to remember ELKM’s ways since we still live and judged by Him.
ELKM is harsh and merciless, yet KIND. He is also the ultimate Provider, who takes care of his creatures’ needs.
But as he gives, He asks something in return in a full cycle of give and take, Measure for Measure.
He provides livelihood for His creatures, and they in turn must abide by His Laws, such as the laws of nature that he has set.
The same rule applies to Adam.
As a Provider, when he made Adam, He gave Adam ample of blessings and talents, more than to any other creature before us. Those talents assure Adam successful life in our habitat.
But in return He expects Adam to abide by His Laws, in Adam case are moral laws that reflect ELKM’s Own Moral Standard.
Moreover, He turned the very gifts given to Adam
As a platform for Adam moral trial/
What are the talents?
You see that in the verses.
When ELKM was planning to make Adam,
He spoke in the plural for the first time saying
Let us make an Adam in Our form and our Image.
To whom was He speaking? Consulting?
The answer is –
He Consulted whoever is mentioned in the chapter.
To each one he said LET US make an Adam together …
So that each consulted provided a layer, a blessing, in Adam’s body and mind.
Thus, ELKM consulted
- The Six Days and made Adam. Adam is a summary…
- The Wisdom by which He created the world, and made..
Adam mind is built to uncover all the mysteries of the world
- His sense of art and beauty – referred by the verse as the spirit of ELKM…and made a layer and a blessing in Adam …art, music, sense of beuty..
- His own self and made Adam’s Self – Consciousness, a great blessing and a gift from the CREATOR .
- The Sex Drive in Nature and made it a strong Drive in Adam, a blessing and a Gift designed to enrich Adam’s life and motivate him to create and be important, as it is said “And he blessed them be fruitful and Multiply”
- The Drive to Dominate and Wield Power, abandoned in Nature, and planted it as a very strong Drive in Adam, to motivate him to make a name for himself and be important, as it says “And He blessed them, “Rule Over…”
He consulted those entities and created Adam layer by layer, each consultant providing a blessed layer.
(All those consultations were precious gifts by ELKM to Adam. As the Provider, ELKM cares for the success of his creatures on Earth.)
Those talents would help Adam to survive and thrive on our planet Earth. They would enrich our lives and drive us to create and achieve our goals.
But at the same time, ELKM is asking Adam something in return – to abide by His Moral Laws according to His moral standard.
He says to Adam – Do not turn those blessings into sins against me or against your fellowmen.
I gave you a freedom of choice – do not commit IDOLATRY
I planted in you a strong Sex Drive – do not commit ADALTERY
I made you as the apex of the animal kingdom, able to kill for food and protection – do not commit MURDER
I planted in you a strong sense of ownership and territory – then do not commit THEFT.
I planted in you a strong drive to dominate – then do not commit INJJUSTICE
I planted in you a strong Self – then do not commit BLASPHEMY
Here we see now the moral standard of ELKM’s laws –
ELKM is concerned how we treat each other.
A gentile asked Hilel, the head of the Torah Academy in jdrusalem living in the 2nd C BC: What iis the essence o fhe torah said on. One leg?
Hillel said –
Whatever you hate to be dome to yourself,
Do not do to others.
He used a negative description, that fits ELKM ways. All the laws are negative.
Thus, all the sins in the world
Are in truth the sins of the flesh
Since they are derived from our
Innermost drives, planted in us at CREATION
As a part of our Moral Trial.
The Talmud says that ELKM gave Adam and his wife in the Garden of Eden the Six Comm, besides ordering them on the forbidden fruit.
Then they also learned in Eden what sin is and what are its bad consequences.
Then, when He chased them out of eden
It says that He made them “skin coats.’
Tradition says that those were the primordial drives that were activated while going down to Earth.
All those Drive we have seen at Adam creation in ch1,
Were now activated to rule Adam here on Earth.
They are the Sins of the Flesh in the widest meaning.
Moreover, to start the trial on Earth
ELKM placed in Adam and Eve
a “Good Drive” to abide by the Laws, Yetzer Tov,
and a ‘Bad Drive” to transgress the laws – Yetzer Ra.
Henceforth Mankind is driven
Either abide by ELKM Laws
or transgress them.
What is the goal of the trial?
Elkm is harsh but fair. He would not place Adam in such an awesome trial without telling Adam the goal and the purpose of the trial.
And the goal is also told in the same miraculous verse that describes how Adam is made.
When ELKM says Let us…
The q is – does He has a form and an image?
Afterall, he is beyond our conception!
So Rashi explains-
At CREATION, ELKM had an Image and form of an Ideal Adam on his mind, that Adam should finally become in history..
In fact the verse says; Let us, Adam, me and you, make an ideal adam that is on my mind.
By keeping the torah, by Abiding with eLKM’s Laws,
Adam will improve himself so that he will win his Trial.
So if we retract from the world into monestary,
We would miss the chance to improve ourselves.
Like an olympic runner who decides to quit and sit on the side bench fearing he might lose.
BUT THE STORY OF OUR JUDGMENT IS NOT YET COMPLETE.
Could Adam, with his Free will and big Ego
Really stand the harsh scrutiny of ELKM?
Rashi sys that ELKM therefore made another consultation – number 7 –
And turned to another Attribute of the Infinite CREATOR,
the Attribute of MERCY, COMPASSION and FORGIVENESS whose name appears at the end of ch1 as an Acronym YHVH and said to her
Let us…
Her advent in the New Heavenly Court would offer Adam a chance to repent, start all over again and finally win his trial and see the next Day.
With her in the Court, Adam must abide not only with the negative Moral Laws of ELKM,
But also perform positive merciful deeds to find face in YHVH eyes.
As it is said on noah –
On that consultation we’ll learn next time.
All these Comm of Adam are negative, what not to do.
But what about things to do?
What about living piously, refraining from indulging in the pleasure of the flesh? It seems that there is nothing in E Laws against it!
What about Charity, Compassion, helping the poor, healing the sick, redeeming the oppressed, helping the desolate? Are these holy actions a part of our Trial and Judgment?
Obviously, the story is not yet completed.
Indeed, yhvh entered elkM world to participate in the new HC, create Adam.
Hence G Ch 1 depicts the final HC judging Adam –
To win, Adam has to abide by eLKM Laws and by yhvh’s values.
On noah it says
On that seventh consultation with YHVH
we’ll dwell next class.
Thus,
He turned every talent, every blessing He has given to Adam, into a platform for the Sins of the Flesh,
for Adam’s moral trial and judgment
.
Thus –
Speaking in the plural has opened the door for IDOLATRTY
Consulting the Sex Drive has also opened the door for ADALTERY.
Consulting the Six Days to make Adam
has opened the door for many features we’ve inherited from Nature such as BLOODSHED,
a sense of KEEPING TRITORY
a STRUGGLE TO DOMINATE.
Those Drive can push Adam to
MURDER, THEFT, and INJUSTICE.
6 Days Let us very good
ELKM 1—2—3—4—5—6——-x–Adam——–xx–Sabbath
Wisdom Be Fruitful
Spirit Rule Over
(hat moses is telling us is that
As Adam is born into God’s Courtroom, he faces at first a JUDGE who seeks the Truth only. He considers the mere facts, the details of Adam behavior, as recorded by the angles in the book of life.
Tradition says that this book is open once a year on the Anniversary of CREATION, the RH Holiday, and the JUDGE would use it to issue His Truthful Verdict in Absolute Justice.
Only then, as a second step, the JUDGE would also consider MERCY, COMPASSION and FORGIVENESS to come up with the final Verdict, deciding our fate for the next year.
(In other words – you would not elect a judge in your town if he or she is bragging to be merciful. You would opt for a judge who would be hard on the criminals. That judge may or may not exercise mercy, pending on the case.)
G h 1 depicts the Heavenly Court as it runs and judges the world, including Adam:
T(he first verse in Ch 1 says that at the Beginning, the world was created by the JUDGE. ELKM.
That was at the beginning.
But later, at the end, the world and Adam will see MERCY. )
We’ve discussed the Judge, the Laws, and the specific makeup of Adam for our moral trial.
Now we can go back to point 1 of a moral judgment that we mentioned above and see –
what is the Moral standard – the basic theme of Adam’s trial?
That q was posed by a gentile to Hillel, the famous head of the torah academy 2nd Century BC. He asked Hillel to tell him the essence of the torah while standing on one foot –
He had first asked other rabbis the same q but they chased him away. Hillel, on the other hand, said
“Whatever you hate to be done to yourself,
do not dd to it to others.’
That is the essence, Hillel said, the rest is yours to learn.
According to Hillel, the main moral concern of the Torah is the relationship between Man and Man, rather than between Man and G-d.
Besides IDOLATRY, all other five Laws are between Man and Man.
Note that Hillel used a negative language. Do not do to others… He was using the language of the Attribute of JUSTICE, ELKM, Measure for Measure. (emulate ELKM)
What are the rewards?
What would Adam gain by winning?
AMAZINGLY, the Torah gives the answer in the same verse that describes our makeup and the base of our Laws
– saying
Let us make an Adam in Our Form and our Image
The verse is not readily understood,
God has neither form nor image.
So, what does the verse mean?
Says Rashi – when creating Adam, God had an IMAGE and a FORM of an IDEAL ADAM on His mind. Like a print of the ideal Adam, which Adam ought to become
By giving Adam the Six Comm and the rest of the Torah,
He would guide Adam how to improve himself and win his trial. Only then would Adam be Very Good and see the Eternal Sabbath to Come.
As if saying to Adam – me and you will make the IDEAL ADAM together.
BUT WE MAY NOW ANSWER OUR Q-
COULD MANKIND BECOME THE IDEAL ADAM
BY ESCAPING FROM THE WORLD INTO A
SECLUSION IN A MONESTSARY?
CERTAINLLY NOT.
Indeed,
On the Nazarite, the Torah prescribes a special sin offering that is brought because “he/she has sinned over his soul,’ meaning has lost the opportunity that g-d has given him to improve himself and be an ideal Adam
It is like the Olympic runner who decides to quit and sit on the side bench fearing that he would lose. Stepping aside would not take us to see the greatness we deserve.
The q is – so far, we’ve discussed the Six Comm of Adam telling Adam what NOT to do.
But what about doing good things, like
1 Helping the weak and the poor,
2 Redeeming the oppressed and the downtrodden
3 Healing the sick and relieving pains,
4 Feeding the hungry and helping the desolate,
5 Treating others with compassion and forgiveness
- Bringing holiness and true joy to our mundane world
What about doing those things?
Are they too part of our trial?
Top see that, we need to discuss ONE MORE CONSULTATION done at Adam creation – consultation number 7.
With whom else did ELKM consult?
Remember, whoever he/she is,
his Name should be mentioned in the miraculous chapter 1.