Tokonaki Sanuali 21, 2023
A Bad Frame of Mind
Fakautuutu ‘a e kovi ‘a e tangata ‘i māmani,
GENESIS 6:5
THE LORD SAW THAT THE WICKEDNESS OF MAN WAS GREAT IN THE EARTH, AND THAT EVERY INTENTION OF THE THOUGHTS OF HIS HEART WAS ONLY EVIL CONTINUALLY.
SENESI 6:5
Pea na‘e ‘afio‘i ‘e Sihova kuo fakautuutu ‘a e kovi ‘a e tangata ‘i māmani, pea ‘oku kovi ‘atā ‘a e filio‘i kotoa pē ‘o e ngaahi fakakaukau ‘a hono loto ma‘u ai pē
In six chapters, we've gone from people being "very good" to "every intention of the thoughts of his heart [being] only evil continually." Things fell apart precipitously. The word for "intention" is yetzer. Because yetzer is also connected with forming and framing, we can think of it as a "frame of mind," a holistic outlook on life. And in this case, it's all bad. Rabbis spoke of people having a yetzer ha-tov ("propensity to good") and yetzer ha-ra ("propensity to evil"). God "knows our yetzer ['frame']; he remembers that we are dust" (Ps. 103:14). And in Noah's day, this "human dust" was about to get very, very muddy.
One thing we can always count on: with every disaster, the Lord also creates a way of redemption. Every burning house has an open door. And this story's "open door" is in the side of an ark. In it the God who "formed [yatzar] the man of dust from the ground" (Gen. 2:7) saved a family by which to re-form humanity. And, finally, he rescued us all through the Redeemer whom he "formed [yatzar]... from the womb to be his servant" (Isa. 49:5).
O Lord, you who saw
the days formed for us when as yet there was none of them, create in us clean
hearts (Pss. 139:16; 51:10).
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