God Made the World Before Announcing His Own Name

Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 2:7

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

Shimon ben Azzai says: "and Your humility makes me great" (Psalms 18:36). A mortal of flesh and blood mentions his own name first and afterward his titles of honor — "so-and-so Augustus," "so-and-so the Patrician." But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not so. Rather, He first created the needs of His world, and only afterward mentioned His name, as it is said, "In the beginning created" [bereshit bara] — and only afterward "God" [Elohim].

Themes

CreationHumilityTorah

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