[Avodah] Local, Non-Global or Global Flood

[Micha Berger]

On Mon, Nov 29, 2010 at 07:15:01PM -0500, Zev Sero wrote:
> Since when is "yamim" meaning year the plural of "yom"?
>
> At any rate, the Radak does not say what you claim he says.  Surely
> you must at least recognise that.

The Radaq's Seifer Shorashim makes this comment about yamim under the
entry "yom'. I have no idea how could can reach the conclusion that he
isn't discussing the word yom. To reiterate the reference: In the Radaq,
see <http://www.daat.ac.il/daat/vl/radak/radak03.pdf> pg 136, middle of
amudah 272, starting with "Aval qasheh".)

Or are youy engaging in misdkirectio by objecting to my use of an example
the Radaq doesn't give ("yamim achadim") in language as though he doesn't
make the same overall point?

The Radaq next discusses "yom" as a synonym for "eis", a point in time
rather than a duration.

On Mon, Nov 29, 2010 at 07:26:28PM -0500, Zev Sero wrote:
>> You still ignore issues like the use of "yom" in Bereishis 2:4 to describe
>> that the previous pereq told us took a week -- or an unstated amount
>> of time plus a week.

> Fine.  No, it doesn't.  Rashi is very very clear on this.  It means
> the first day and not a minute longer...

Yes, the pasuq is very clear that Adam was made on "yom asos H' Elokim
eretz veshamayhim", named the animal on that yom, gets a wife on that
day, eats from the eitz hadaas on that day. Look at the events that
pasuq introduces. Fine, it's literally the first yom... but was Adam
formed from the mud on the first day?

Rashi still doesn't mention yom in his commentary -- no yom, no "not
a minute longer". What Rashi does speak of is the haskhalah, which is
beri'ah yeish mei'ayin before everything in place. There is no indication
this was on day 1 rather than before day one -- and in fact Rashi on
1:1 says (like the Ramban) that is was before. Not even during any yom
of the previous pereq.

So, Rashi says "yom asos shamayim va'aretz" is the period that includes
the time period from before the yom echad, before tohu vavohu (again, see
1:1). And we know from the parsashah whose events it describes that we
are now being told that yom is when man is created and commits the first
cheit. The the only way to understand that is if the "yom" is a period
previously described as taking a week.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             It's never too late
micha at aishdas.org        to become the person
http://www.aishdas.org   you might have been.
Fax: (270) 514-1507                      - George Elliot