Parshat Bereshit begins with the story of the creation of the world. Almost every time Hashem creates something, the Torah says “And Hashem saw that it was good.” One exception is the creation of man. Nehama Leibowitz asks why it doesn’t say that Hashem saw that man was good, like it does for everything else. The answer (from Rambam) is that man is the only one of Hashem’s creations that has the power to control his own destiny. Man was the only being created with free will. Hashem could not say that Man was good because it is up to Man whether or not he will be good. This theme is seen again later in the story of the garden of Eden.
In the second chapter of Parshat Bereshit, Hashem rests from everything “That Hashem created to do,” “Asher Bara Elokim La’asot.” Hashem created the world for us “to do” things to it both good and bad. What happens to the world depends on our actions, on what we do with our free will (Ramban).
As we start a new year we have another chance to improve the world and its future by making the right choices. However just as Adam and Eve’s one mistake changed the world forever, so could one of ours. That is how human beings are different from all of Hashem’s other creations.
