Derasha 1 on Bereishis 4:16

TT #172 · Parashas Bereishis · Fourth Aliyah · Passuk 16

Complete Passuk

וַיֵּ֥צֵא קַ֖יִן מִלִּפְנֵ֣י יְהֹוָ֑ה וַיֵּ֥שֶׁב בְּאֶֽרֶץ־נ֖וֹד קִדְמַת־עֵֽדֶן׃

Chabad / Judaica Press

Source Citation

TT points to Sanhedrin 37b (verified).

E-Daf image (Sanhedrin 37b)

Core Text

Core Textאָמַר רַב יְהוּדָה בְּרֵיהּ דְּרַב חִיָּא: גָּלוּת מְכַפֶּרֶת עָוֺן מֶחֱצָה. מֵעִיקָּרָא כְּתִיב וְהָיִיתִי נָע וָנָד, וּלְבַסּוֹף כְּתִיב וַיֵּשֶׁב בְּאֶרֶץ נוֹד.
English of Core Text: Rav Yehudah son of Rav Chiyya said: Exile atones for half the iniquity. At first it is written “I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer,” and at the end it is written “and he settled in the land of Nod.”
On the daf / in context: The change from “na va-nad” to settled residence in “Nod” is taken as evidence that the exile itself effected partial atonement.
Type of Learning: Custom (exile atones for half)
What Is Learned: Exile atones for half of a sin; Kayin’s transition from wandering to settling illustrates the point.