The Torah portion of No’ach lists the generations between No’ach and Avraham and gives some of their history. One of the characters described is Nimrod, son of Kush, son of Cham, son of No’ach. The verse describes him as follows: “He was a mighty hunter before G-d [See below for meaning of this expression.], hence the saying, ‘Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before G-d.’ And the beginning of his kingdom was Bavel... in the land of Shinar.”
Interpretations of "Before G-d"
The words “before G-d” have been explained in various ways:
Hunted People’s Minds and Turned them Away from G-d
Rashi says that Nimrod was called a hunter because he ensnared people and convinced them to rebel against G-d, especially by convincing them to build the Tower of Bavel. In this context, “before G-d” means that he did so “in front of G-d’s face (so to speak),” i.e., purposefully, with the intention to anger the Almighty.
Similarly, Bechor Shor says that Nimrod would steal from and cheat people with the intention of angering G-d. Rabbi Yehudah HaChassid points out that the verse spells “gibor” (strong man) without a “vav” to indicate that he wasn’t the first to rebel against G-d. That title belongs to Adam HaRishon who rebelled against the Almighty by eating from the Tree of Knowledge.
He Would Offer Sacrifices
The simple meaning of the words “gibor tzayid lifnei Hashem,” according to the Ibn Ezra, is that Nimrod would trap animals and offer them as sacrifices to G-d. This presents a positive perspective on Nimrod. (He points out that this isn’t the understanding of the sages.)
Sacrificed to G-d with Evil Intent
The Ramban writes that the Ibn Ezra is exonerating a wicked person by claiming that Nimrod would sacrifice to G-d since our sages have a tradition that Nimrod was wicked. The Pardes Yosef explains that Nimrod would hunt and sacrifice animals in order to appear righteous in front of the people. In fact, however, his heart was full of evil schemes. If Nimrod would have sacrificed with pure intentions, the animals would have come to him willingly and he would not have had to hunt them. Since they sensed that his intentions were impure, they didn’t do so, and he had to hunt them.
Was the First King
According to the Ramban, Nimrod was the first person to become a king. He began by ruling over Babylonia and then expanded his empire to include the nearby areas. Some say that the people chose him as their king because he was a master hunter. In fact, he was unworthy of being a king since he came from a family of slaves. (His grandfather Cham was cursed to be a slave to his brothers.)
Being a king was an additional way in which Nimrod rebelled against G-d as kings are generally arrogant and oppose the kingdom of Heaven. This is why G-d was upset at the Jewish people when they asked to be ruled by a king.
The Most Powerful Hunter
Rashbam, Ramban, and Seforno say that “before G-d” is an expression which means “in the entire world” since G-d is everywhere. (See Gen. 6:11 and Levit. 22:3.) As such, the verse means that he was the greatest hunter in the entire world.
Similarly, Radak says that a “hunter in front of G-d” is an expression for a mighty hunter (i.e., a “Divine” hunter). Some say that Nimrod was the winner of the hunting contests of those times.
In those days, when civilization wasn’t yet organized, wild animals presented a great threat to man, and whoever could successfully kill or trap them was given great honor.
Fulfilled G-d’s Will
Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Berlin explains that the meaning of “before G-d” is that Nimrod fulfilled G-d’s will. Although he was wicked, by becoming a king he was an instrument in the Divine plan since, without a government, man would “swallow each other alive.” This is similar to Nevuchadnetzar who was wicked, yet G-d “used him” to punish several nations.
Nimrod, the Rebel
According to one opinion in the Talmud, Nimrod’s real name was Amrafel. He was called Nimrod because he led a rebellion against the Almighty. (“Nimrod” contains the letters “mered,” which means rebellion.)
Called Kush
According to the Midrash, one of the names of Nimrod was Kush. Some say that since his father’s name was Kush, he was referred to by that name. Others say that Nimrod and Kush were the same person. Although the verse says that Kush fathered Nimrod, this can be understood to mean that Kush established himself as the rebel who was known as Nimrod. The Midrash indicates that Nimrod was black.
Five and Five
The Midrash points out that there were five righteous people regarding whom it says the word “hu” (he) and five wicked people regarding whom it says the same expression. The five righteous men were: our Patriarch Avraham, our Teacher Moshe and Aharon HaKohen, King David, King Chizkiyahu and Ezra the Scribe. While the five wicked men were Nimrod, Esau, Datan and Aviram, King Achaz and King Achashverosh.
The Alshich explains that each of these five righteous men countered the negative effect of the five wicked men. Specifically, Avraham Avinu, by spreading monotheism, countered the negativity of Nimrod who spread paganism.
Garment of Adam
According to the Midrash, No’ach took the garments that G-d had given Adam into the ark with him. Cham took these garments from the ark and later bequeathed them to his grandson, Nimrod. Outfitted in those garments, Nimrod was able to easily capture the animals as all the animals would come and bow to him. This caused the people to accept him as their king since they thought that his dominance over the animals was due to his strength. These garments later came into the possession of Esau, which is how he, too, became a master hunter. Others say that Esau killed Nimrod in order to get these garments.
Ruled Over the World
According to the midrash, Nimrod was one of ten who ruled (or will rule) over the entire world. The others were Adam HaRishon, Yosef HaTzadik, King Solomon, King Achav, Nevuchadnetzar, Koresh, Alexander the Macedonian (known as the Great), King Moshiach and, eventually, only G-d will rule over the world.
The Tower of Bavel
According to the Midrash, Nimrod was the instigator of the project to build the Tower of Bavel, which was built as an act of rebellion against G-d. This can be inferred from the fact that the Torah says that Nimrod became the king of Shinar (Babylonia) which was the same place where the tower was built.
First to Kill and Eat Animals
The Midrash says that Nimrod was the first to kill and consume animals.
Threw Avraham into the Fiery Furnace
Our sages say that one of the names of Nimrod was Amrafel. This name alludes to the fact that he said (“amar”) to throw Avraham (“pol”) into the fiery furnace.
Killed by Avraham or Eisav
Some say that Nimrod was one of the four kings who conquered Sodom and Gemorah and were later killed in battle by Avraham. Others say that Nimrod was killed by Eisav who desired his miraculous cloak.
Reincarnation
It is said that Sancheirev, Nevuchadnetzar, and Gog were/will be reincarnations of Nimrod.
May we counter Nimrod’s influence by following in the ways of Avraham Avinu!
Copyright 2024 by Rabbi Aryeh Citron
Wishing you a Chodesh Tov and a Shabbat Shalom UMevorach!
