{"id":66550,"date":"2019-12-05T12:39:44","date_gmt":"2019-12-05T10:39:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=66550"},"modified":"2023-07-02T13:56:24","modified_gmt":"2023-07-02T10:56:24","slug":"air-water-earth-and-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/air-water-earth-and-fire\/","title":{"rendered":"Air, Water, Earth, and Fire"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[460,702,436,435],"acf":{"old_id":"66550","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":34243,"related_cahpter":"366","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Refuge, shelter, shade, bulwark","content":"

At first glance, there appears to be no connection between our chapter and the classical and medieval concept of the \u201cfour elements,\u201d named in the title, from which the world was ostensibly created. Leave it to Malbim* to find one. He took his cue from v.2: \u201cEvery one of them shall be like a refuge from gales, a shelter from rainstorms; like brooks of water in a desert, like the shade of a massive rock in a languishing land.\u201d His commentary:<\/span><\/p>\n

By this means, Hezekiah, despite being a man created naturally from the four elements, could dominate all the four elements. He would be like a refuge from a tempestuous storm (the element of air) and a shelter from rainstorms (the element of water), like brooks of water in arid, desolate places in which water protects (against the element of fire). So, will he be a bulwark of shade of a massive rock in a parched land (representing the element of earth).<\/span><\/p>\n

Verse 4 led Malbim to consider yet another component of the physical universe: sensory perception. The verse reads: \u201cAnd the minds of the thoughtless shall attend and note, and the tongues of mumblers shall speak with fluent eloquence.\u201d Malbim observed:<\/span><\/p>\n

[Isaiah] added: Not only will they themselves understand, but \u201cthe tongue of mumblers shall speak with fluent eloquence\u201d to instruct others. Just as he said that [Hezekiah] would serve as a bulwark against the four elements, he now said that his senses of sight and hearing, speech and intellect would also improve.<\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, the moral dimension makes its appearance in v. 6: \u201cFor the villain speaks villainy and plots treachery; to act impiously and to preach disloyalty against the LORD; to leave the hungry unsatisfied and deprive the thirsty of drink.\u201d Malbim first parsed villainy in two:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. One who is wicked in action and conscience, who speaks evil even in public without shame, and makes peace with it in both his heart and conscience.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. One whose wickedness covers the three items on which human perfection depend:<\/span>\n
      \n
    1. beliefs<\/span><\/li>\n
    2. behavior towards God<\/span><\/li>\n
    3. interpersonal relations<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \u201cTo act impiously\u201d addresses the behavior towards God\u2026 \u201cto preach disloyalty against the Lord\u201d addresses beliefs, and \u201cto leave the hungry unsatisfied\u201d addresses interpersonal relations.<\/span><\/p>\n

      The notion that every human being is a microcosmos (a miniature universe) was popular during the Renaissance and may have reached Malbim via his readings in 19<\/span>th<\/span> century German philosophy.<\/span><\/p>\n

      *For the significance of Malbim\u2019s commentary to the Book of Isaiah,<\/span> see our introduction to chapter 1.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":46354,"id":46354,"title":"num1-Fire-earth-air-water","filename":"num1-Fire-earth-air-water.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/make-yourself-like-wilderness\/num1-fire-earth-air-water\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"num1-fire-earth-air-water","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":46264,"date":"2018-12-25 04:27:56","modified":"2019-12-05 10:39:41","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":480,"height":480,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water.jpg","medium_large-width":480,"medium_large-height":480,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water.jpg","large-width":480,"large-height":480,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water.jpg","1536x1536-width":480,"1536x1536-height":480,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water.jpg","2048x2048-width":480,"2048x2048-height":480,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water.jpg","post_full_size-width":480,"post_full_size-height":480,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/num1-Fire-earth-air-water-420x420.jpg","home_baner-width":420,"home_baner-height":420}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":""},"tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"Air, 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