It’s more than just a pretty arc of color after the rain, especially when we look at it through the lens of ancient Jewish thought. The Torah tells us that after the flood, God set a bow in the clouds as a sign of the covenant with Noah, a promise never again to destroy all life with a flood (Genesis 9:13). But what kind of bow is it, exactly?
Some folks see it simply as the rainbow we all know, what some call "Jupiter’s belt" because of its shape. But Philo of Alexandria, the 1st-century Jewish philosopher, wasn't so sure. In The Midrash of Philo, he delves deep into this symbol, questioning its very nature.
Philo asks, if this bow is "the bow of God," shouldn't it have its own distinct essence? After all, God says, "I will set my bow in the clouds." Something "set" by God, he argues, must be more than just a fleeting appearance of sunlight on a wet cloud – a phaenomenon, as he calls it, that is "non-existent and incorporeal." : We never see rainbows at night, even when there are clouds. And even during the day, when the sky is completely overcast, rainbows are often absent. So, Philo challenges, how can this always-elusive phenomenon be the enduring symbol of God’s covenant?
He suggests that the bow might signify something far deeper: God's mercy tempered with justice. Even in moments of divine "bitterness," there won't be a total annihilation. The image of the bow, he says, suggests a restraint, a moderation. The flood itself, though devastating, wasn't "an unmeasured vehemence."
Furthermore, Philo points out that a bow isn't a weapon in itself; it's an instrument. It launches an arrow which strikes only a part of the target, leaving the rest unharmed. This, he suggests, symbolizes that any future divine judgment will never be total; the whole Earth will never again be consumed by a deluge.
So, what is this bow, then? Philo sees it as a symbolic representation of God's invisible power, "dissolved according to the figure of tranquility, and condensed in accordance with a cloud." It's a divine force that prevents the clouds from completely dissolving into water, preventing another catastrophic flood. It's like a bridle, checking the air's "rebellious" tendency to overfill and saturate the world with water.
It's a beautiful image, isn't it? This bow isn't just a weather phenomenon; it's a constant reminder of God's promise, a symbol of divine restraint and enduring mercy. It reminds us that even in the darkest of times, there's always a promise of renewal and a safeguard against utter destruction. Maybe next time you see a rainbow, you'll think of Philo, and the deeper meaning he found hidden within those vibrant colors.
Some persons imagine that by the bow he means that thing which by some is called Jupiter's belt, from its figure, dwelling on its continual similitude to the rainbow; but I do not perceive that that has been positively asserted. In the first place, because the bow aforesaid ought to have a peculiar and essential nature of its own, because it is called the bow of God; for he says, "I will set my bow in the clouds." But that which belongs to God and is said to have been set in any place as his, indicates plainly that it is not devoid of essence or of substance. But the belt of Jupiter has not, properly speaking, any separate nature of its own, but is merely an appearance of the solar rays on a wet cloud, all the phaenomena of which are non-existent and incorporeal. And moreover, this is a further proof of that, that it is never seen at night, though clouds exist by night as well as by day. In the second place, we must also say that even in the day-time, when clouds obscure the whole face of heaven, the belt of Jupiter is never at all seen in them. But what remains may also be affirmed without any falsehood, when the Maker of the law says, "I will set my bow in the clouds;" for, behold, while clouds are present there is no appearance of the belt of Jupiter visible. But he said, "Where there is a collection of clouds let there be a bow seen in the clouds." Still it often happens, when the clouds are collected and when the air is obscured and thickened, that no appearance of a rainbow is seen anywhere. We must consider, therefore, whether haply the sacred historian indicates something else by this mention of the bow, namely, that in the very exercise of the mercy of God, and also in the moment of his bitterness towards men on earth, there still shall not be any ultimate destruction of them, in the fashion of a bow, which is too soft and unfit for such a purpose, nor shall there be any violence added, so as to cause a rapid destruction, but there shall be a moderate determination, each attribute being carefully measured; for the great deluge took place with a breaking asunder and disruption of the clouds and of all things; as he himself asserts, when he says, "The fountains of the deep were broken up." And yet it was not an unmeasured vehemence. Moreover, a bow is not itself a weapon, but only an instrument for the use of weapons, namely, for the arrow which strikes; and the arrow being sent forth by means of the bow strikes a part which is at a distance, while the parts which are nearest to it remain unhurt. And this is given as a proof that the whole earth shall never for the future suffer any deluge, since no one arrow ever hits all places, but only those which are at a distance. Therefore the divine virtue, being invisible, is symbolically indicated by the bow in the cloud; being in truth dissolved according to the figure of tranquillity, and condensed in accordance with a cloud; so that it does not permit all the clouds to be altogether dissolved into water, so that the earth may not be made a lake by an inundation, which it carefully forbids, and arranges the condensation of air, checking it as by a bridle, though it is at that time the more accustomed to exhibit itself as rebellious by reason of its excessive fulness. For by reason of the clouds it also shows itself to be replenished, dripping, and saturated.
