Naamah נעמה (Copy)

(3) ..."Tubal-Cain": R. Yehoshua of Sakhnin said in the name of R. Levi, "This one sweetened (literally, spiced) Cain's sin (some have the variant, 'Cain's work') - Cain would kill, but he did not have with what to kill; but this one 'forged every cutting instrument of copper and iron.'" And the sister of Tubal-Cain was Na’amah. Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: Na’amah was Noah’s wife. Why was she called Na’amah? Because all of her deeds were pleasant (ne’imim). The Rabbis said this is a different Na’amah. Why was she called Na’amah? Because she beat on a drum to draw people to idol worship.

(1) "And God said, Let there be light." and, behold, Rabbi Yitzchak said, "There was"

(2) Rabbi Judah said that this implies 'light' was already in existence, as indicated by "there was". It is not written, "there became light", but "there was".

(3) When the Holy One, Blessed be He, looked over the generations of wicked men, he stored the light for the righteous ones. Thus it is written, "And from the wicked their light is withholden," (Job 38:15) and, "light is sown for the righteous and gladness for those upright in hearts" (Ps. 97:11) And so, God said "Let there be light" just as it is written, "Who raised up the righteous man from the east," (Is. 41:1)

(4) "And God saw the light, it was good;" What was it that He saw, that was good? Rabbi Hiyya said that this implies that He foresaw the actions of the wicked, and still stored the light, for reasons we've said before. But, Rabbi Aba says, "And God saw the light, it was good;" because it was good to hide. He saw its radiance beaming from one end of the world to the other, and He saw that it was better to conceal it, so that sinners might not benefit from it. Rabbi Shimon said that no anger or judgement may be found in "And God saw the light, it was good;" After all, it is written, "Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel" (Num. 24:1) and this is proven by the verse's closing, "And God divided the light from the darkness" (Gen. 1:4), to snuff wrath, even though the Holy One, Blessed be He, later (re-)combined the two.

(5) Come and behold, the supernal radiance [Binah], continues to radiate. Through this radiance, it should bring gladness to all. This is the right, which was crowned with the right to make the engravings. It is written, "How great is Your goodness, which You have laid upon those who fear You and which You have wrought for they who trust in You" (Ps. 31:20). "How great is Your goodness" alludes to the primordial light that the Holy One, blessed be He, stored away. "They who fear You" alludes to the righteous who fear sin, who are aforementioned. "And there was evening and there was morning, the first day" (Gen. 1:5) "And there was evening" from the side of darkness [Nukva] "and there was morning" from the side of light [Zeir Anpin]. And since they join together as one, it is written they are the "first day."

(6) Rabbi Judah says, "If this was so, why is 'there was evening and there was morning' repeated each day?" It is to acknowledge that there cannot be day without night, nor night without day, and that they are inseparable.

(7) Rabbi Yossi said, "The day on which the primal light emerged extended into all the other days, as the word 'day' is repeated in them all." Rabbi Elazar said, "We learn this: they are all called mornings, because morning only relates to the primal light." Rabbi Shimon said, "The first day accompanies all of them, and that all are contained within it." This shows that there is no true distinction between them, and that all are one.

(8) "And God said, Let there be Light." alluding to light spreading downwards. These are the angels created on the first day, who exist on the right side.

(9) "And God saw the light, it was good;" (Gen. 1:4) in which the participle אֶת joins the opaque reflection [Malchut] with the shining reflection [Zeir Anpin] – this union is what was "good". Thus says Rabbi Elazar, "'אֶת' includes the angels who come from the side of light, and shine as brightly as the primal light."