The Legends of the Jews, vol 1 | Page 8

letter of Shaw, lie,
and of Sheker, falsehood, and that incapacitated it. Resh had no better
luck. It was pointed out that it was the initial letter of Ra', wicked, and
Rasha' evil, and after that the distinction it enjoys of being the first
letter in the Name of God, Rahum, the Merciful, counted for naught.
The Kof was rejected, because Kelalah, curse, outweighs the advantage
of being the first in Kadosh, the Holy One. In vain did Zadde call
attention to Zaddik, the Righteous One; there was Zarot, the
misfortunes of Israel, to testify against it. Pe had Podeh, redeemer, to
its credit, but Pesha: transgression, reflected dishonor upon it. 'Ain was
declared unfit, because, though it begins 'Anawah, humility, it performs
the same service for 'Erwah, immorality. Samek said: "O Lord, may it
be Thy will to begin the creation with me, for Thou art called Samek,
after me, the Upholder of all that fall." But God said: "Thou art needed

in the place in which thou art;[11] thou must continue to uphold all that
fall." Nun introduces Ner, "the lamp of the Lord," which is "the spirit of
men," but it also introduces Ner, "the lamp of the wicked," which will
be put out by God. Mem starts Melek, king, one of the titles of God. As
it is the first letter of Mehumah, confusion, as well, it had no chance of
accomplishing its desire. The claim of Lamed bore its refutation within
itself. It advanced the argument that it was the first letter of Luhot, the
celestial tables for the Ten Commandments; it forgot that the tables
were shivered in pieces by Moses. Kaf was sure of victory Kisseh, the
throne of God, Kabod, His honor, and Keter, His crown, all begin with
it. God had to remind it that He would smite together His hands, Kaf, in
despair over the misfortunes of Israel. Yod at first sight seemed the
appropriate letter for the beginning of creation, on account of its
association with Yah, God, if only Yezer ha-Ra' the evil inclination,
had not happened to begin with it, too. Tet is identified with Tob, the
good. However, the truly good is not in this world; it belongs to the
world to come. Het is the first letter of Hanun, the Gracious One; but
this advantage is offset by its place in the word for sin, Hattat. Zain
suggests Zakor, remembrance, but it is itself the word for weapon, the
doer of mischief. Waw and He compose the Ineffable Name of God;
they are therefore too exalted to be pressed into the service of the
mundane world. If Dalet Wad stood only for Dabar, the Divine Word, it
would have been used, but it stands also for Din, justice, and under the
rule of law without love the world would have fallen to ruin. Finally, in
spite of reminding one of Gadol, great, Gimel would not do, because
Gemul, retribution, starts with it.
After the claims of all these letters had been disposed of, Bet stepped
before the Holy One, blessed be He, and pleaded before Him: "O Lord
of the world! May it be Thy will to create Thy world through me,
seeing that all the dwellers in the world give praise daily unto Thee
through me, as it is said, 'Blessed be the Lord forever. Amen, and
Amen.' " The Holy One, blessed be He, at once granted the petition of
Bet. He said, "Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord." And
He created His world through Bet, as it is said, "Bereshit God created
the heaven and the earth." The only letter that had refrained from
urging its claims was the modest Alef, and God rewarded it later for its
humility by giving it the first place in the Decalogue.[12]

THE FIRST DAY
On the first day of creation God produced ten things:[13] the heavens
and the earth, Tohu and Bohu, light and darkness, wind and water, the
duration of the day[14] and the duration of the night.[15]
Though the heavens and the earth consist of entirely different
elements,[16] they were yet created as a unit, "like the pot and its
cover."[17] The heavens were fashioned from the light of God's
garment, and the earth from the snow under the Divine Throne.[18]
Tohu is a green band which encompasses the whole world, and
dispenses darkness, and Bohu consists of stones in the abyss, the
producers of the waters. The light created at the very beginning is not
the same as the light emitted by the sun, the moon, and the stars, which
appeared only on the fourth day. The light of the first day was of a sort
that would have enabled man to see the world at a glance from