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Text Excerpt
דכתיב: ״ותשחת הארץ לפני האלהים״. ותנא דבי רבי ישמעאל: בכל מקום שנאמר השחתה, אינו אלא דבר ערוה ועבודה זרה. דבר ערוה – שנאמר: ״כי השחית כל בשר את דרכו״. עבודה זרה – דכתיב: ״פן תשחתון ועשיתם וגו׳״.
as it is written: “And the earth was corrupt before God” (Genesis 6:11), presumably referring to a transgression, and the school of R' Yishmael taught: Anywhere that the term corruption is stated, it is referring to nothing other than a matter of licentiousness and idol worship. The Talmud cites proofs for this claim: Corruption refers to a matter of licentiousness, as it is stated: “For all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth” (Genesis 6:12); the word “way” alludes to sex. And corruption also refers to idol worship, as it is written: “Lest you deal corruptly, and make you a graven image” (Deuteronomy 4:16).
ואידך, אורחייהו דקא מגלי.
The Talmud asks: And how do the other tanna’im, who do not derive from the verse “And the earth was corrupt before God” that the descendants of Noah are prohibited from engaging in idol worship and forbidden sex, interpret this verse? The Talmud answers: In their opinion, the verse merely exposes the behavior of the generation of Noah.
שפיכות דמים, דכתיב: ״שפך דם האדם וגו׳״. ואידך? קטלייהו הוא דקמגלי.
According to the school of Menashe, the prohibition of murder for the descendants of Noah is stated separately in the Torah, as it is written: “One who sheds the blood of man, by man his blood should be shed” (Genesis 9:6). The Talmud asks: And how do the other tanna’im interpret this verse? The Talmud answers: In their opinion, the verse reveals the type of death penalty administered to the descendants of Noah, but it is not the source for the prohibition of murder.
גזל, דכתיב: ״כירק עשב נתתי לכם את כל״. ואמר רבי לוי: כירק עשב, ולא כירק גנה. ואידך? ההוא למישרי בשר הוא דאתא.
The prohibition of robbery is stated, according to the school of Menashe, as it is written: “Every moving thing that is alive should be for food for you; like the green herbs I have given you all” (Genesis 9:3). And R' Levi says: Like the green herbs that sprout all over by themselves and are ownerless, and not like the vegetation of a garden, which belongs to the garden’s owner alone. This indicates that robbery is prohibited. The Talmud asks: And how do the other tanna’im interpret this verse? The Talmud answers: In their opinion, that verse comes to permit the consumption of meat.