The verse in Genesis (6:14) states: "Craft for you an ark of cypress wood; you shall craft the ark with compartments, and you shall coat it within and without with pitch." Now, Rabbi Isi points out something interesting: the word "craft" (aseh in Hebrew) appears four times in the Torah, but only three times is the material specified. Why this variation?
Rabbi Natan offers a clarification: The ark was to be made of kardinon wood, which is another way of understanding the Hebrew word gofer (cypress). We do get specific materials in other instances, like when God commands "Craft for you flint knives" (Joshua 5:2) or "Craft for you silver trumpets" (Numbers 10:2). So what about the time when the material isn't specified?
That's where the story gets really interesting. In Numbers 21:8, God tells Moses, "Craft for you a serpent." But of what? Rabbi Yudan, citing Rabbi Aivu, uses this as a lesson, drawing from Proverbs 1:5: "Let the wise man hear and gain a lesson." God doesn’t tell Moses what to make the serpent out of. Why?
According to Rabbi Yudan, Moses reasoned, "If I craft it of gold, the word 'serpent' [naḥash] has no connection to 'gold' [zahav]. If of silver [kesef], no connection either." But, he continues, "I will craft it of bronze [neḥoshet], as the words are related." And that’s exactly what happened: "Moses crafted a bronze serpent [neḥash]" (Numbers 21:9).
Isn't that remarkable? The connection between "serpent" and "bronze" exists only in Hebrew. This leads to a profound conclusion: the Torah was given in the sacred tongue, Hebrew. As Rabbi Pinḥas and Rabbi Ḥizkiya state in the name of Rabbi Simon: Just as the Torah was given in the sacred tongue, so, the world was created in the sacred tongue. The very fabric of reality, the building blocks of creation, are intertwined with the Hebrew language.
The passage goes on to illustrate this point further with the words for "man" and "woman." Have you ever heard anyone using related terms in Greek (gyne/anthropos) or Aramaic (gavra/itta)? No! They're completely different words. But in Hebrew, it’s different. We have ish (man) and isha (woman). As Genesis 2:23 says, "This one shall be called Woman [isha], because this was taken from Man [ish]." The relationship is inherent in the language itself.
So, what does all this mean? It suggests that the Hebrew language isn't just a tool for communication; it's a key to understanding the very structure of creation. It’s a reminder that the words we use, especially the words of Torah, are imbued with a deep and resonant power. They connect us not only to each other, but to the divine blueprint of the universe itself. Next time you encounter a seemingly simple word in the Torah, remember the story of Noah's Ark and the bronze serpent. Ask yourself: what deeper connections might be hidden within? You might be surprised at what you discover.