Active Directive
And God said, “Let us make a human in our image, by our likeness, to hold sway over the fish of the sea and the fowl of the heavens and the cattle and the wild beasts and all the crawling things that crawl upon the earth. Genesis 1:26 Robert Alter
Hold sway – Most of Alter’s translation of this verse is familiar. “Image,” “likeness,” and all the living creatures of the earth—we’ve heard all this dozens of times. But notice how he chooses to translate the Hebrew verb rādâ. “Hold sway” isn’t typical. He explains:
The verb radah is not the normal Hebrew verb for “rule” (the latter is reflected in “dominion” of verse 16), and in most of the contexts in which it occurs it seems to suggest an absolute or even fierce exercise of mastery.[1]
TWOT points out that the allusion to this verse found in Psalm 8:6 uses the second verb, māšal; a verb used more frequently to express the idea of “rule.” In other verses, rādâ “is limited to human rather than divine dominion,”[2] and includes victory over enemies and the subjugation of Gentile nations. Māšal, on the other hand, “usually receives the translation ‘to rule,’ but the precise nature of the rule is as various as the real situations in which the action or state so designated occur. It seems to be the situation in all languages and cultures that words for oversight, rule, government must be defined in relation to the situation out of which the function arises.”[3] For example, Genesis 1:18 speaks of the “rule” of the sun and moon. Genesis 3:16 seems to indicate the husband’s “rule” of the wife. Cain is told to “rule” over sin’s temptation. Genesis 37:8 speaks of Joseph’s “rule” over his family. Alter’s explanation of rādâ elucidates the difference. Rādâ is forceful, intentional, deliberate. Māšal appears to be ontological, that is, just the way things are or are intended to be. At any rate, the use of rādâ in Genesis 1:26 implies that even at the moment of human creation, God knew it was going to take work. Life in the Garden (yet to come in the story line) was never intended to be a passive paradise. Any attempt to paint a picture of a return to the Garden cannot overlook this fact. The same can be said for our view of Heaven after death. It’s not going to be Elysium. Work has always been built into what it means to be human.
Alter’s note helps us realize that blood, sweat, and tears are the human way. “A fierce exercise of mastery” requires more than being born (or dying). We are here to bring restoration to the creation. The grand project of being is to become who you are. That will require the best you’ve got and all you’ve got. “Mastery” is the goal. Go for it!
Topical Index: rādâ, māšal, rule, mastery, Genesis 1:26
[1] Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible: Volume 1 The Five Books of Moses, p. 12 footnote
[2] White, W. (1999). 2121 רָדָה. R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 833). Chicago: Moody Press.
[3] Culver, R. D. (1999). 1259 מָשַׁל. R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 534). Chicago: Moody Press.
