Description

In this podcast, we discuss the first place an “evil inclination” is mentioned in the Bible: the description of the state of humanity before and after the Flood, seen through divine eyes. Unlike the defined “yetzer hara” in later Rabbinic literature, the human “evil inclination” of the Bible is closer to what we will see in future episodes in Second Temple literature: it describes the human tendency toward evil.

Listen to this episode to learn:

• How does the evil inclination attempt to solve the problem of theodicy (justifying God in the face of evil)?
• How can we understand the decision after the Flood despite the “unchanging” human inclination?
• How did Second Temple Jews relate to this story?

Thanks again to Melissa Kantor, who joins me as my trusty interlocutor.

As always, I look forward to your comments and questions! Please comment below.

The post #16: The Inevitability of Evil? The Evil Inclination and the Flood appeared first on Understanding Sin and Evil.