As we read in Bereishit, the Torah begins with a description of creation. "In the beginning G-d created the heaven and the earth." The Sage Rabbi Isaac asks a logical question, quoted by the famous commentator Rashi in his discussion of the Torah's very first verse: If the Torah is a book of law, it should have begun with a commandment, the first of which pertains to the calculation of months. Why then, does it open with an account of creation?
Rabbi Isaac answers his own question, based on a verse in Psalms, "He declared to His people the strength of His works, in order that He might give them the heritage of the nations": "For should the peoples of the world say to Israel, 'You are robbers, because you took by force the lands of the seven nations of Canaan,' Israel may reply to them, 'All the earth belongs to the Holy One, blessed be He. He created it and gave it to whom He pleased; when He so desired He gave it to them, and when He so desired He took it from them and gave it to us."
This answer is surprising, as it seems to imply that the entire order of the Torah was changed solely to counter the Gentiles' argument that the Jewish people "stole" the Land of Israel. Is the Gentiles' claim really so valid that it would justify such a drastic step? Moreover, why wouldn't a refutation in the Oral Law (Mishna, Talmud, etc.) have been sufficient? Why was it necessary to change the order of the Written Law (the Five Books of Moses)?
We must therefore conclude that opening the Torah with "In the beginning" is intended not only as an answer to the Gentiles, but also contains an important teaching for the Jews themselves.
In general, the life of the Jew can be divided into two areas: the realm of Torah and mitzvot, and the secular realm. When the Torah demands that a Jew observe its commandments, the request is viewed as logical and acceptable. But when it demands that a Jew's personal life also be sanctified, that all of his actions be done for the sake of heaven, on the surface it seems like an invasion of privacy.
Indeed, this is the deeper meaning of the argument, "You are robbers, because you took by force the lands of the seven nations of Canaan." The "seven nations of Canaan" are symbolic of the secular domain, the physical, "earthly" aspects of a Jew's existence. By what right can a Jew be expected to "take them by force" and subjugate even these areas to the realm of holiness?
The answer is, "All the earth belongs to the Holy One." In truth, every area of life belongs to G-d. Yes, G-d created a certain distinction between the material and spiritual realms, but He also wants us to imbue our physical existence with holiness. "When He so desired He gave it to them [the secular realm], and when He so desired He took it from them and gave it to us [to the realm of holiness]." When a Jew sanctifies all areas of his life, he fulfills G-d's will and draws holiness down into the physical world.
Reprinted from the Parshat Bereishit 5762/2001 edition of L’Chaim. Adapted from Volume 20 of Likutei Sichot.
