The Torah relates in Parashat Bereishit that after the flood, Noach did not leave the ark until ascertaining that the earth had once again become habitable. He did this by twice dispatching a dove (after his first unsuccessful attempt with a raven), which returned the second time with an olive leaf in its mouth (8:11). This indicated to Noach that vegetation had become accessible, and that the earth would soon be habitable.
The term used by the Torah in reference to the olive leaf is “alei zayit taraf.” The words “alei zayit” clearly mean “olive leaf,” but the precise denotation of the word “taraf” in this context is unclear. Targum Onkelos explains this word as “tavir,” which means “broken” or “torn.” As Chizkuni explains (see also Shadal), Noach noticed that the leaf brought by the dove was freshly torn from the tree, and had not fallen. It thus proved that the trees were no longer covered by floodwaters, as the dove was able to remove a leaf from an olive tree.
Rashi, in his commentary, cites a Midrashic reading of this phrase from the Gemara in Masekhet Eruvin (18b). This reading interprets the word “taraf” to mean “food,” and adds that the dove brought back not only a leaf, but a message to Noach: “Let my food be bitter as an olive from the hands of the Almighty, and not sweet as honey from the hands of human beings.” During the months of the flood, the dove was fed quality food each day from Noach. Now, for the first time, it enjoyed the privilege of fending for itself, receiving its food from God’s bountiful Hand, rather than depending on a human being. Alas, the only food it could find was a bitter olive leaf. Nevertheless, the dove expressed its preference for the pungent olive coming from the Hand of God over sweet-tasting goods fed by the hand of Noach. This message is alluded to by the word “taraf,” or “food.”
Rav Shimshon Raphael Hirsch, in his Torah commentary, notes how this Midrashic reading may likely be rooted in the plain meaning of the word taraf. Rav Hirsch claims that the specific designation of taraf (or teref, its more common form) is food secured by one’s own efforts. Thus, for example, the word teref is often used throughout Tanakh to mean “prey,” the food which an animal obtains by killing other creatures. The Torah refers to the dove’s olive leaf as “taraf” to emphasize the dove’s gratification over its opportunity to once again receive its food directly from God, rather than through a gift from Noach.
Rav Hirsch’s comments regarding the connotation of the word “teref” may offer some insight into a verse in Sefer Malakhi (3:10), in which the prophet, conveying God’s message, admonishes the people to bring the required tithes to the Temple treasury. God declares in this context that the tithes serve as “teref be-veiti” – “food in My abode.” As the commentaries explain, this means that the gifts brought to the Mikdash are used to support the kohanim and Leviyim officiating in the Temple. Ironically, God emphasizes that these funds serve as “teref” – a livelihood secured through one’s personal efforts, rather than through dependence on others. Possibly, the people had refused to bring the required gifts to the kohanim and Leviyim because they failed to recognize the importance of their service in the Mikdash. They looked askance at and resented the institution of tithes, claiming that the priestly tribe did not provide any worthwhile service for which they deserved remuneration. God therefore emphasized that these tithes are to be viewed as “teref,” a livelihood rightfully earned by the kohanim and Leviyim through the service they performed in the Mikdash. Contrary to the nation’s misperception, the Jewish people indeed benefited from the rituals performed in the Temple, and those who devoted their time to the Mikdash were therefore no less deserving of a respectable livelihood than anyone else in the nation.