[Avodah] Long Lifespans in Bereishis

[Micha Berger]

Our old chaver R' Rich Wolpoe posted this article by R/Dr Mitchell First.
It's a nice survey of opinions about all those long lifespans in seifer
Bereishis
<http://nishmablog.blogspot.com/2017/10/the-long-lifespans-in-genesis.html>:

    NishmaBlog
    From RRW
    Guest Blogger: Mitchell First
    Thursday, 19 October 2017

    The Long Lifespans in Genesis

    The Longevity of the Ancients Recorded in Genesis

    ... Josephus (late 1st century). Here is his statement in
    Antiquities, book I:
	"               ...For, in the first place, they were beloved of
	God and the creatures of God himself; their diet too was more
	conducive to longevity: it was then natural that they should
	live so long. Again, alike for their merits and to promote
	the utility of their discoveries in astronomy and geometry,
	God would accord them a longer life...."

    Now I will survey the views of our Geonim and Rishonim.

    R. Saadiah Gaon (10th cent.) discusses this issue in his introduction
    to Tehillim. He writes that the longevity of these early generations
    was part of God's plan for the rapid proliferation of mankind on
    the earth.....

    R. Yehudah Ha-Levi (12th cent.) discusses the issue in the Kuzari
    (sec. 95). He believes that it was only the individuals listed who
    lived long. Each of the individuals listed was the heart and essence
    of his generation and was physically and spiritually perfect.
    The Divine Flow was transmitted from one generation to another
    through these exceptional individuals.

    Rambam, in a famous passage in the Guide to the Perplexed (II,
    chap. 47) writes: "I say that only the persons named lived so long,
    whilst other people enjoyed the ordinary length of life. The men
    named were exceptions, either in consequence of different causes,
    as e.g., their food or mode of living, or by way of miracle."

    Ramban (comm. to Gen. 5:4) quotes Rambam's view and then disagrees,
    ... individuals with long lifespans named in the Bible were not
    exceptional in their lifespans. Rather, the entire world had long
    lifespans before the Flood. But after the Flood, the world atmosphere
    changed and this caused the gradual reduction in lifespans.

    Most of the Rishonim who discussed the issue thereafter followed
    the approach of either the Rambam or the Ramban. Either way, they
    were taking the Genesis lifespan numbers literally. (An underlying
    factor that motivated Rishonim to accept the Genesis lifespan numbers
    literally was that the count from creation was calculated based on
    these numbers.)

    Josephus had mentioned that one of the reasons that God allowed
    their longevity was to promote the utility of their discoveries
    in astronomy and geometry. This idea of longevity to enable the
    acquisition of knowledge and make discoveries (and write them to
    be passed down) is also included in several of our Rishonim. See,
    e.g., the commentary of the Radak to Gen. 5:4 and of the Ralbag to
    Gen. chap. 5 (p. 136), and the Rashbatz (R. Shimon b. Tzemach Duran,
    Magen Avot, comm. to Avot 5:21).

    Rashbatz also mentions the idea that the early generations were
    close in time to Adam and Adam ... was made by God from the earth....

    Another idea found in some of our Rishonim is that those early
    individuals did not chase after "ta'avat ha-guf," which reduces the
    lifespan. See, e.g., the commentary of the Radak to Gen. 5:4.
    ...

    ... R. Moses Ibn Tibbon (late 13th cent.) He suggests that
    the years given for people's lives were actually the years of
    "malkhutam ve-nimuseihim," i.e., the dynasties and/or customs that
    they established.

    ... R. Levi ben Hayyim (early 14th cent.).... concludes that in his
    opinion the names mentioned were just roshei avot. In other words,
    the number of years given for each individual reflects the total of
    the years of the several generations of individuals named for that
    first individual.

    R. Nissim of Marseilles (early 14th century) ... took the same
    approach as R. Moses Ibn Tibbon. The numbers ... included the
    total years of the descendants who followed his customs and lifestyle.

    The most interesting approach I saw was that of R. Eleazar Ashkenazi
    ben Nathan ha-Bavli (14th century), in his work Tzafnat Paneach,
    pp. 29-30. ... First, R. Eleazar refers to the view
    that perhaps the individual numbers were not to be taken literally,
    and points to other statements in the Torah that were not meant to
    be taken literally, e.g., 1) the Land of Israel was "flowing with
    milk and honey," and 2) the cities in Canaan were "fortified up to
    the Heaven" (Deut. 1:28). (See further Moreh Nevuchim, II,47.)

    But then R. Eleazar suggests the following creative approach. In
    listing these individual numbers, the Torah was merely recording the
    legends about these figures, even though they were not accurate. The
    important thing was to provide data from which the total years from
    Creation to Matan Torah could be derived, so that the people would
    be able to know the length of time between these two periods. Even
    though the numbers for the individual lifespans were not accurate,
    the Torah made sure that the total that would be arrived at would
    be accurate....

    ... Prof. Natan Aviezer of Bar-Ilan University.... in a post at
    the Bar Ilan University weekly parshah site for parshat Noach,
    1998... explains that modern science has figured out that aging is
    largely caused by genes, and not by a wearing out of our bodies. He
    then suggests that when God stated at Gen. 6:3 that man would be
    limited to 120 years, this was when God first introduced the gene
    for aging into the human gene pool.

    If you have not found any of the above answers satisfying, I have
    some good news. R. Saadiah Gaon writes (Emunot Ve-Deot, end of
    chap. 7) that in the era of the redemption the human lifespan will
    be approximately 500 years. Presumably, at that time we won't be
    bothered by those long lifespans in Genesis anymore!

    (Note that Radak, comm. to Is. 65:20, is a bit stingier. He predicts
    lifespans of only 300 to 500 years. See also his commentary to
    Ps. 92:15. But the 12th century Babylonian Gaon R. Samuel b. Ali
    predicts lifespans closer to 1000 years!)

    I would like to acknowledge that most of the material above came
    from an article by Prof. Daniel Lasker of Ben-Gurion University,
    in Mechkarim Be-Halakha U-Be-Mishpat Ha-Ivri, vol. 26-27 (2009-10).

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             I slept and dreamt that life was joy.
micha at aishdas.org        I awoke and found that life was duty.
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