Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, an ancient Jewish text, has a pretty unsettling answer: the north. Specifically, it tells us that the north is "the abode of the destroying spirits, earthquakes, winds, demons, lightnings and thunders." Yikes! It's from there, the text chillingly states, that "evil issues forth into the world," backing this up with a verse from Jeremiah (1:14): "Out of the north evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the earth." A comforting thought. But before we all start stocking up on anti-north repellent, let's shift gears to something a little more…constructive. The text goes on to explore the very foundations of creation, and how those same foundations are key to both our past and our future.
The text states that "by ten Sayings was the world created." This refers to the ten utterances of God in the creation narrative in Genesis 1, where God says, “Let there be…” and something comes into existence. And these ten Sayings, according to Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, are comprised of three divine attributes: wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. We see this reflected in Proverbs 3:19-20: "The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens, by his knowledge the depths were broken up."
These three attributes – chochmah (wisdom), binah (understanding), and da’at (knowledge) – aren't just abstract concepts. They're the building blocks of… well, everything!
The text argues that these same three attributes were instrumental in building the Mishkan, the Tabernacle in the desert. Remember Bezalel, the artisan chosen to oversee the construction? Exodus 31:3 says that God filled him "with the spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, and with knowledge."
And it doesn’t stop there. The same three attributes were also essential in building the first Temple in Jerusalem. We read in 1 Kings 7:14 about Hiram, the skilled craftsman from Tyre: "He was filled with wisdom and understanding and knowledge."
So, what does all this mean? Is it just a neat pattern? Maybe not. Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer suggests that these same three attributes – wisdom, understanding, and knowledge – will be crucial when the Temple is rebuilt in the future. The text quotes Proverbs 24:3-4: "Through wisdom is an house builded; and by understanding it is established; and by knowledge are the chambers filled." The same divine qualities used to create the world, to build the Tabernacle, and to construct the first Temple are the very qualities we need to rebuild, to restore, and to create a better future. Perhaps the antidote to the chaos from the north isn't just avoidance, but actively cultivating wisdom, understanding, and knowledge within ourselves and our communities. Maybe, just maybe, the key to a brighter future lies not in fearing the darkness, but in building with divine light.