(יח) וַיֵּ֖צֵא־נֹ֑חַ וּבָנָ֛יו וְאִשְׁתּ֥וֹ וּנְשֵֽׁי־בָנָ֖יו אִתּֽוֹ׃ (יט) כָּל־הַֽחַיָּ֗ה כָּל־הָרֶ֙מֶשׂ֙ וְכָל־הָע֔וֹף כֹּ֖ל רוֹמֵ֣שׂ עַל־הָאָ֑רֶץ לְמִשְׁפְּחֹ֣תֵיהֶ֔ם יָצְא֖וּ מִן־הַתֵּבָֽה׃ (כ) וַיִּ֥בֶן נֹ֛חַ מִזְבֵּ֖חַ לַֽיהוָ֑ה וַיִּקַּ֞ח מִכֹּ֣ל ׀ הַבְּהֵמָ֣ה הַטְּהוֹרָ֗ה וּמִכֹּל֙ הָע֣וֹף הַטָּהֹ֔ר וַיַּ֥עַל עֹלֹ֖ת בַּמִּזְבֵּֽחַ׃ (כא) וַיָּ֣רַח יְהוָה֮ אֶת־רֵ֣יחַ הַנִּיחֹחַ֒ וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֶל־לִבּ֗וֹ לֹֽא־אֹ֠סִף לְקַלֵּ֨ל ע֤וֹד אֶת־הָֽאֲדָמָה֙ בַּעֲב֣וּר הָֽאָדָ֔ם כִּ֠י יֵ֣צֶר לֵ֧ב הָאָדָ֛ם רַ֖ע מִנְּעֻרָ֑יו וְלֹֽא־אֹסִ֥ף ע֛וֹד לְהַכּ֥וֹת אֶת־כָּל־חַ֖י כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשִֽׂיתִי׃ (כב) עֹ֖ד כָּל־יְמֵ֣י הָאָ֑רֶץ זֶ֡רַע וְ֠קָצִיר וְקֹ֨ר וָחֹ֜ם וְקַ֧יִץ וָחֹ֛רֶף וְי֥וֹם וָלַ֖יְלָה לֹ֥א יִשְׁבֹּֽתוּ׃
(18) So Noah came out, together with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives. (19) Every animal, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that stirs on earth came out of the ark by families. (20) Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and, taking of every clean animal and of every clean bird, he offered burnt offerings on the altar. (21) The LORD smelled the pleasing odor, and the LORD said to Himself: “Never again will I doom the earth because of man, since the devisings of man’s mind are evil from his youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living being, as I have done. (22) So long as the earth endures, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Summer and winter, Day and night Shall not cease.”
How would you characterize what God says after the Flood?
Explain in your own words (some of) the benefits of the world following this pronouncement.
מַה־שֶּֽׁהָיָה֙ ה֣וּא שֶׁיִּהְיֶ֔ה וּמַה־שֶׁנַּֽעֲשָׂ֔ה ה֖וּא שֶׁיֵּעָשֶׂ֑ה וְאֵ֥ין כָּל־חָדָ֖שׁ תַּ֥חַת הַשָּֽׁמֶשׁ׃
Only that which has happened shall happen, Only that which has occurred will occur; and there is nothing new under the sun!
(א) לַכֹּ֖ל זְמָ֑ן וְעֵ֥ת לְכָל־חֵ֖פֶץ תַּ֥חַת הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃ (ב) עֵ֥ת לָלֶ֖דֶת
וְעֵ֣ת לָמ֑וּת
עֵ֣ת לָטַ֔עַת
וְעֵ֖ת לַעֲק֥וֹר נָטֽוּעַ׃
(ג) עֵ֤ת לַהֲרוֹג֙
וְעֵ֣ת לִרְפּ֔וֹא
עֵ֥ת לִפְר֖וֹץ
וְעֵ֥ת לִבְנֽוֹת׃
(ד) עֵ֤ת לִבְכּוֹת֙
וְעֵ֣ת לִשְׂח֔וֹק
עֵ֥ת סְפ֖וֹד
וְעֵ֥ת רְקֽוֹד׃
(ה) עֵ֚ת לְהַשְׁלִ֣יךְ אֲבָנִ֔ים
וְעֵ֖ת כְּנ֣וֹס אֲבָנִ֑ים
עֵ֣ת לַחֲב֔וֹק
וְעֵ֖ת לִרְחֹ֥ק מֵחַבֵּֽק׃
(ו) עֵ֤ת לְבַקֵּשׁ֙
וְעֵ֣ת לְאַבֵּ֔ד
עֵ֥ת לִשְׁמ֖וֹר
וְעֵ֥ת לְהַשְׁלִֽיךְ׃
(ז) עֵ֤ת לִקְר֙וֹעַ֙
וְעֵ֣ת לִתְפּ֔וֹר
עֵ֥ת לַחֲשׁ֖וֹת
וְעֵ֥ת לְדַבֵּֽר׃
(ח) עֵ֤ת לֶֽאֱהֹב֙
וְעֵ֣ת לִשְׂנֹ֔א
עֵ֥ת מִלְחָמָ֖ה וְעֵ֥ת שָׁלֽוֹם׃
(1) A season is set for everything, a time for every experience under heaven:
(2) A time for being born and
a time for dying,
A time for planting and
a time for uprooting the planted;
(3) A time for slaying and
a time for healing,
A time for tearing down and
a time for building up;
(4) A time for weeping and
a time for laughing,
A time for wailing and
a time for dancing;
(5) A time for throwing stones and
a time for gathering stones,
A time for embracing and
a time for shunning embraces;
(6) A time for seeking and
a time for losing,
A time for keeping and
a time for discarding;
(7) A time for ripping and
a time for sewing,
A time for silence and
a time for speaking;
(8) A time for loving and
a time for hating;
A time for war and
a time for peace.
Question for each source:
1. Do you find the message fundamentally optimistic or pessimistic? What word(s) or line(s) help you make that determination?
לאה גולדברג
הדרך יפה עד מאד – אמר הנער.הדרך קשה עד מאד – אמר העלם.הדרך ארכה עד מאד – אמר הגבר.ישב הזקן לנוח בצד הדרך
צובעה השקיעה שיבתו בפז ואדם,הדשא מבהיק לרגליו בטל-הערב,צפור אחרונה של יום מעליו מזמרת:- התזכר מה יפתה, מה קשתה, מה ארכה הדרך?
אמרת: יום רודף יום ולילה – לילה.הנה ימים באים, - בלבך אמרת.ותראה ערבים ובקרים פוקדים חלוניך,ותאמר: הלא אין חדש תחת השמש.
והנה אתה בא בימים, זקנת ושבת,וימיך ספורים ויקר מנינם שבעתים,ותדע: כל יום אחרון תחת השמש,ותדע: חדש כל יום תחת השמש
Lea Goldberg
The path is so lovely – said the boy.The path is so hard – said the lad.The path is so long – said the man.The grandfather sat on the side of the path to rest.
Sunset paints his grey head gold and red,the grass glows at his feet in the evening dew,above him the day’s last bird sings—Will you remember how lovely, how hard, how long was the path?
You said: Day chases day and night – night.In your heart you said: Now the time has come.You see evenings and mornings visit your window,and you say: There is nothing new under the sun.
Now with the days, you have whitened and agedyour days numbered and tenfold dearer,and you know: Every day is the last under the sun,and you know: Every day is new under the sun.
"I sometimes dream of situations that can’t possibly come true. I audaciously imagine, for example, that I get a chance to chat with the Ecclesiastes, the author of that moving lament on the vanity of all human endeavors. I would bow very deeply before him, because he is, after all, one of the greatest poets, for me at least. That done, I would grab his hand. “‘There’s nothing new under the sun’: that’s what you wrote, Ecclesiastes. But you yourself were born new under the sun. And the poem you created is also new under the sun, since no one wrote it down before you. And all your readers are also new under the sun, since those who lived before you couldn’t read your poem. And that cypress that you’re sitting under hasn’t been growing since the dawn of time. It came into being by way of another cypress similar to yours, but not exactly the same. And Ecclesiastes, I’d also like to ask you what new thing under the sun you’re planning to work on now? A further supplement to the thoughts you’ve already expressed? Or maybe you’re tempted to contradict some of them now? In your earlier work you mentioned joy – so what if it’s fleeting? So maybe your new-under-the-sun poem will be about joy? Have you taken notes yet, do you have drafts? I doubt you’ll say, ‘I’ve written everything down, I’ve got nothing left to add.’ There’s no poet in the world who can say this, least of all a great poet like yourself.”"
- Wislawa Szymborska, Nobel Laureate for Poetry, 1996 Acceptance Speech