> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # A Hidden Message in Genesis 2: The Formation of Humankind - URL: https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/a-hidden-message-in-genesis-2-the-formation-of-humankind/ - Published: 2026-10-04T17:00:59.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-04T21:55:42.000Z - Description: Hidden in the Book of Genesis is a hint about the creation of humankind and our purpose on Earth. But you need to look at the Hebrew, as you won't find it in the English, Greek, or Latin. - Author: James - The Hidden Orchard - Tags: Mysticism and Spirituality, Torah, Midrash The Book of Genesis opens with the creation of our universe. Chapter two begins a closer look, particularly at the formation of humans and animals. > "G\_D formed a Human from the soil, blowing into his nostrils the breath of life: the Human became a living being." - Genesis 2:7 There is a lot packed into this verse, particularly as it pertains to the design of the human soul¹. But notice how this verse tells us we were *formed* and not created. This is because our physical bodies were built from the foundational elements of our universe, and our souls were made prior². Genesis 2:7 holds a deeper clue you won't see in the English. The Hebrew features an unusual spelling of the word *formed (yatzer)*. This extra letter caught the attention of the ancient commentators. ## An Extra Yod - ויצר or וייצר The tenth letter of the Hebrew Aleph-Bet is a Yod (י). We've looked at a famous Midrash on this before, one that Jesus himself taught his students³. Here, the word *formed* (Vayitzer) has an extra Yod where it normally has only one. This does not change the way we pronounce the word, but hints at something deeper. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/42/83/428353f5-28f5-49d6-91c9-54e532499977/content/images/2026/10/Screenshot-2026-10-03-at-8.57.35---PM.png) Sefaria.org JPS translation A few verses later, the same word is used to describe the formation of animals, but this time, spelled normally (וַיִּצֶר), with only one Yod. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/42/83/428353f5-28f5-49d6-91c9-54e532499977/content/images/2026/10/Screenshot-2026-10-03-at-8.56.25---PM.png) Sefaria.org JPS translation Some may write this off as a scribal or copyist error, but the Rabbis asked: why are these words spelled differently? ## Classical Opinions An ancient Midrash⁴ explores some ideas. The two Yods seem to represent something *extra* given to humans, not invested in animals. One opinion posits these two represent man and woman, hinting at the unique relationship when they become one. Another idea describes how human beings have been created from both the upper world (the realm of the Angels) and the lower world (the realm of animals and animate living things). The idea that a Yod represents the upper world is one that appears throughout Rabbinic literature. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/42/83/428353f5-28f5-49d6-91c9-54e532499977/content/images/2026/10/image-2.png) ## Two Inclinations One suggestion connects this to the two inclinations given to human beings, the Yetzer HaTov (the good inclination) and the Yetzer HaRa⁵. This read is built off of the idea that the Hebrew word for formed and inclination share a similar root. In some discussions, the Yetzer HaRa, our evil inclination, is equated with our ego and personal impulse towards selfishness. Other times, this mystical tradition likens this inclination to an Angel (and sometimes Satan) that walks with us through life, testing and challenging us. Nevertheless, the Sages seem to view the evil inclination as a unique feature of our soul, given to us for a greater purpose. This assumption helps us make sense of this hint in Genesis. ## Two Worlds Another explanation of the two Yods is a hint that humans have been created for two worlds: this world and the World to Come⁶. Our present world is known as the Olam HaZe. This is the reality of our current time-space existence; a world of duality where good and evil coexist. Not a bug but a feature, this duality allows for free will. Humans have the equal opportunity to choose between good and bad, right and wrong. We can give to others or consume for our own gain. Navigating these daily decisions becomes the path of spiritual development, and directly correlate to the afterlife experience we enter when we exit this world. ## Resurrection of the Dead This clue in Genesis is another hint to the idea known as the Resurrection of the Dead. Though the Sadducees rejected this tradition, the early Rabbis and the Apostolic community upheld it. The students of Hillel and Shammai discussed these two Yods and their meaning. The school of Hillel understood this as a hint that humans will undergo a kind oof transformation as we enter the World to Come, similar to the formation we experienced in this world: > The formation that takes place in this world and the formation that takes place in the World to Come are not the same. In this world, it \[man’s formation in the womb\] begins with skin and flesh and finishes with sinews and bones, but in the future, it will begin with sinews and bones and finish with skin and flesh, as that is what it says regarding the corpses of Ezekiel: “I saw, and behold, there were sinews upon them, and flesh grew, \[and skin covered them\]” (Ezekiel 37:8). This two-stage resurrection of the dead echoes the words of the Gospel as Thomas asked to see Jesus's wounds after the resurrection⁷. ## Putting it Together As is often the case, the Rabbinic discussion is not trying to find the single correct answer. Many times, discussions stack ideas that, in sum, point to a unifying reality that incorporates all of their ideas. In this, we can see that humans have been formed with a unique soul composition, one that comes with a complex and important gift of free will. How we use our power to choose for good or bad determines the spiritual health of this world and has eternal consequences in the World to Come. Where materialism seeks to view humans in the category of animals, the Torah has long reminded us that we have been created for much more. ## Sign up for more... Exploring Jewish Mysticism, Spirituality, and Rediscovering the New Testament Through the Wisdom of Kabbalah | The Hidden Orchard Subscribe, it's free! Email sent! Check your inbox to complete your signup. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. --- **Notes:** ¹ [The Human Soul](https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/the-human-soul/) ² [The Pre-existence of the Soul](https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/preexistence-of-the-soul/) ³ [Abolishing the Torah](https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/abolishing-the-torah/) ⁴ Genesis Rabbah 14 ⁵ [The Evil Inclination - The Yetzer Hara](https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/the-evil-inclination/) ⁶ [What Comes After Heaven? A Guide to the World of Souls and the Olam HaBa](https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/what-comes-after-heaven-a-guide-to-the-world-of-souls-and-the-olam-haba/) ⁷ [Was Thomas a Doubter? The Pharisees' Tradition and the Resurrection.](https://www.thehiddenorchard.com/was-thomas-a-doubter-the-pharisees-tradition-and-the-resurrection/) [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/42/83/428353f5-28f5-49d6-91c9-54e532499977/content/images/2026/04/reading-the-beatitudes.001-1.jpeg)](https://amzn.to/48q2DEq?ref=thehiddenorchard.com)