God wanted to create a human being. The angels said no. According to the Chronicles of Jerahmeel, a 12th-century Hebrew chronicle compiled by Jerahmeel ben Solomon, God first approached the company of Michael and said, "Let us make man in our image." The angels replied, "What is man that You should remember him?" God stretched out His little finger and destroyed every angel in the company. Only Michael survived.
He then turned to Gabriel's company with the same request. Same answer. Same result. An entire angelic host, obliterated.
The third company, led by an angel named Boel, watched what had happened to the others. Boel told his companions, "If we repeat what they said, He will destroy us too. Better to comply." They agreed. God rewarded Boel by renaming him Raphael, "because through your counsel you saved your entire host."
God then sent Gabriel to gather dust from the four corners of the earth. But the earth refused. "I am destined to become a curse through this man," the earth said. "If God Himself does not take the dust, no one else shall." So God personally reached down, scooped up the dust, and formed Adam from four colors: white for bones and sinews, black for intestines, red for blood, and green for skin.
Adam's creation took twelve hours. In the first hour God gathered the dust. By the fourth, He breathed a soul into the body. In the sixth hour, Adam named every animal. In the seventh, Eve was joined to him, built from a rib and flesh taken from his heart. By the tenth hour, Adam had already transgressed the command about the forbidden fruit. By the twelfth, he was expelled from Eden.
When Adam first stood, his height stretched from east to west. Every creature thought he was their creator and bowed before him. Adam corrected them: "Come, let us crown the One who actually made us."
VI. (1) On the sixth day He brought forth from the
earth all kinds of animals, male and female, and the
Behemoth that lies on a thousand hills, from which it
obtains its food every day. In the night-time the food
grows again as if the hills had not been touched, as it is
said, ' Its food is from the produce of the mountains, and
it drinks from the waters of the Jordan;' for the waters
of the Jordan encompass all the land of Israel, one half of
which is above, and the other of which is below the earth,
as it is said, ' For He can draw up the Jordan in his mouth.'
The Behemoth is preserved for the day on which it is to be
brought as a sacrifice on the occasion of the great banquet
of the righteous, as it is said, ' Its Maker will approach it
with His sword.' (2) Everything in the world was origin-
ally created before Adam, who was created last, on the sixth
day, on the eve of Sabbath, lest people might say that God
had a helper in the work of the creation.
(3) When God wished to create the world He called the
company of angels commanded by the archangel Michael,
and said unto them: ' Let us make man in our image,
according to our likeness.' Whereupon they replied:
' What is man, that Thou shouldst remember him; and the
son of man, that Thou shouldst think of him?' At this
God immediately stretched forth His little finger among
them and destroyed them, so that Michael alone was left.
He then called the company of angels commanded by
Gabriel, and said: ' Let us make man in our image.'
They also replied: ' What is man, that Thou shouldst
remember him?' God again stretched forth His finger
and destroyed them. (4) He then called Boel and his
company, and said to them: ' Let us make man in our
own image.' At which Boel said to his associates: ' See
what has happened to those who said. What is man
that Thou shouldst remember him? they were all de-
stroyed. If we repeat what they have said. He will do
the same to us, and in the end He will perform His will.
It is therefore better that we comply with His wish.' They
therefore immediately answered, and said: ' Lord of the
world, it is w^ell that Thou hast thought to create man; do
Thou create him according to Thy will, and we shall act as
attendants and servants upon him, and reveal unto him all
our secrets.' (5) God then said to Boel: ' From this day
henceforth thy name shall not be called Boel, but Raphael,
because, through thy counsel, thou hast saved all thy host,
so that they were not consumed like the other companies.'
(6) God then called Gabriel, and said unto him: ' Go and
bring Me dust from the four corners of the earth, and I
will create man out of it.' Gabriel then went to gather
dust from the earth, but the earth drove him away and
would not allow him to take dust from it. Gabriel there-
upon said: ' Why, 0 earth, dost thou not hearken to the
voice of thy Lord, who founded thee upon the w^aters
without props and without pillars?' The earth replied,
and said: ' I am destined to become a curse, and to be
cursed through man, and if God Himself does not take the
dust from me, no one else shall ever do so.' (7) When
God saw this He stretched forth His hand, took of the
dust, and created therewith the first man on the sixth da3^
God created the matter of man in four colours, white,
black, red and green. The bones and the sinews are white,
the intestines black, the blood red, and the skin of the body
green (livid). When the soul departs from the body, the
body immediately becomes livid. (8) The Torah (Law) then
16 [VI. 9
said to God, ' 0 Lord of the universe, this man whom Thou
hast created will be short-lived, and he will sin before Thee;
what will become of him?' God replied: ' Is it to no
purpose that I am called slow to anger, of abundant mercy
and truth? He who returns to Me in repentance, I will
pardon.' The Torah said, ' If so, do Thy will. (9) But why
did God create man from the four corners of the earth, and
not from the dust of one single spot?' ' Because man goeth
to the four corners of the earth, and when he dies, the
earth shall not be able to say. Thou wast not created
from me, therefore thou shalt not be buried in me; go to
the place whence thou wast created, and there be buried.
Thus, wherever a man ends his days, there shall he rest.
God created man poor and from dust, and to dust shall he
return; therefore has the dust been taken from the four
corners of the earth.'
(10) There are twelve hours in the day; in the first
hour He gathered the dust for man, in the second He
hardened it, in the third He shaped it in the form of man,
in the fourth the soul was thrust into it, in the fifth man
stood on his legs, in the sixth he gave names to all the
birds and animals, in the seventh Eve was joined to him,
in the eighth they produced two children, in the ninth
they were commanded concerning the fruits of the trees,
in the tenth he transgressed the command, in the eleventh
he was judged, in the twelfth hour he was driven out, as it
is said, ' And He drove Adam out of the Garden of Eden.'
(11) God kneaded and moulded the dust for the first man
in a pure place. He covered him with skin and sinews, and
gave to it a human shape, but there was not yet any breath
or soul in it. What did God do? He breathed with the
breath of His mouth, and thrust the soul into him, as it is
said, 'And He breathed in his nostrils the breath of life'
Adam then stood up and gazed above and below, saw all
the creatures which God had created, and was amazed
with wonderment, and he began to extol and praise his
Creator, and said: 'How great are Thy works, 0 Lord!'
(12) He stood upon his feet, and was in the likeness of
God; his height extended from the east to the west, as it
is said, 'Behind and in front Thou hast formed me.'
Behind, that is the west, and in front, that is the east.
All the creatures saw him and were afraid of him; they
thought he was their creator, and prostrated themselves
before him. Adam then said to the animals: ' Why do
you come and prostrate yourselves before me? Come, let
us all go and invest Him who created us with majesty
and strength, and crown Him King over us. If the people
do not show allegiance to the King, the King claims it by
Himself, and if the people do not praise the King, the King
causes Himself to be praised.' As soon as Adam had spoken,
all the creatures assented and invested their Creator with
majesty and strength, and proclaimed Him King over them,
and said: ' The Lord the King is clothed with majesty.'
(13) Now, Adam walked about the Garden of Eden like
one of the ministering angels. God said: ' Just as I am
alone in My world, so is Adam; just as I have no com-
panion, neither has Adam. To-morrow the creatures will
say, " He does not propagate, he is surely our creator." It
is not good for man to be alone, I will make a helpmeet for
him.' (14) When the earth heard the word 'helpmeet' it
shook and trembled, and said to its Creator: ' 0 Lord of the
world, I am not able to provide for the whole of mankind.'
To which God replied: ' I will feed the whole of mankind.'
And God made a compact with the earth, and God created
the sleep of life, so that when man lies down and goes to
sleep, he is fed, strengthened and refreshed, and this is the
healing and the feeding which God provides, as it is said,
* Then I slept, then I felt refreshed.' God moreover assists
the earth and waters it, so that it yields its fruits as food
for all the creatures; but, in spite of all this, man obtains
his food in toil and trouble.
(15) God had pity upon Adam; in order not to give him
pain He caused a deep sleep to fall upon him, during which
time He took the bone of one of his ribs and flesh from his
heart and made of it a helpmeet for him, and placed her
before him. When he awoke from his sleep and saw
18 [VI. 16
her standing before him, he said: ' This is woman; bone
of my bone, and flesh of my flesh.' (16) While he was yet
alone, he was called Adam. K. Joshua b. Qorha said that
his name was Adam on account of the flesh and blood (of
which he was composed). God said to him, ' Thou art
Adam.' But when a helpmeet was made for him he was
called Living Being — i.e., Fiery Being (Heb. t^*N*). God
then added two letters of His name to it and made the
name of man to be c*^N*, and the name of woman nci'j^,
saying, ' If they walk in My ways and observe My Command-
ments, behold My name will abide with them and deliver
them from all trouble; but if not, behold I will take away
My name from them, so that their names will become
again ^i^), i^i< ' — i.e., fire consuming fire.
YII. (1) God created ten canopies for Adam in the
Garden of Eden, and all of them were made of precious
stones, of pearls and of gold. Each bridegroom has as a
rule but one canopy, a king has three, but in order to show
great honour to the first man He made ten canopies for him
in the Garden of Eden, as it is said, ' Thou hast been in
Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was thy
covering, the sardius, the topaz, and the diamond, the beryl,
the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and
the carbuncle, and gold; the workmanship of thy tabrets
and of thy pipes (was prepared) for thee on the day when
thou wast created.' These represent the ten canopies.
The angels were beating their timbrels and dancing to the
pipes, as it is said, * The workmanship of thy tabrets and
of thy pipes.'
(2) On the day when the first man was created God said to
the ministering angels, ' Come, let us descend and show
kindness to man and his helper, for upon kindness the
world rests.' He further said, ' Kindness is much more
acceptable to Me than the sacrifices of burnt-ofi'erings
which the Israelites are destined in the future to offer to
Me upon the altar,' as it is said, ' Eor kindness do I desire
and not sacrifices.' The ministering angels walked before
Adam like shepherds who watch the flocks of birds, as it
is said, * For He commanded His angels to watch over thee
in all thy ways.' They were like unto a bridal pair, and
God may be compared to a precentor, for just as the pre-
centor in the midst of the congregation blesses the bridal
pair under the canopy, so did God bless man and his
helpmeet, as it is said, 'And God blessed them, and said
unto them, Be fruitful and multiply.' And they did so, as
it is said, ' And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived
and bore him Cain, and said, I have begotten a man of the
Lord.' Why was Cain thus called? Because he was
formed from Adam and his wife and from God.
I will now add here the description of the formation of a
child by these three agencies, as it is contained in the
book called n^Tin ni^^"' (Yesirath ha-velad), which is as
follows:
The Formation of the Child.
