Musar על סוכה 57:19

Adam ruined this state of affairs by interfering with the סוד היין, the mystical properties of the grapes. [I suppose that this is based on the tree of knowledge having been a grape bearing tree. Ed.] He followed an evil path by squeezing a cluster of grapes (and consuming its juice). Had he not done so, that "wine" would have remained in the state of what our sages call the יין המשומר בענביו, "the wine that remained preserved within its grapes (compare Berachot 34).” In that event he would have been like "the cistern that does not lose a single drop” [hyperbole for total recall, see Avot 2,11. Ed.]. He would have retained all the holiness that had been his when he was created. When Adam sinned, he did not only lose some of his former glory, fall from a "high roof" (to the ground), but he fell into a "very deep pit" (below the ground). This was a בור רק, an empty pit [allusion to the pit Joseph had been thrown in. Genesis 37,24], since it did not even contain the ingredients for the survival of the species. The species was wiped out at the time of the deluge as a direct consequence of Adam having polluted that "drop of sacred semen," and made it "evil smelling." Due to G–d's personal intervention, Noach was saved seeing he was righteous, and the righteous are the foundation of the universe. The present universe was founded by him as a result.

These 70 שרים also symbolize the need for the כתנות עור, the leather garments (given to Adam by G–d after the sin) in our world, in exchange for the כתנות אור, the garments woven of "light," that Adam wore before the sin. That letter א in those original garments worn only by the members of the Celestial High Court is symbolised in our world by the 71st member of the Sanhedrin the president, the most renowned expert of his day. The allusion to this in scripture is Song of Songs 5,11: ראשו כתם, His head is finest gold. The Sanhedrin in our world, called אל-הים with the expert (the 71st judge) added, amounts to the same numerical value as 86+1 [87= פז] This is what the angel alluded to when he said to Jacob-Israel: כי שרית עם אלה-ים. The word פז is a combination of the numerical values of two of G–d's names, both of which between them were involved in the how and why of the Creation. We have stated on other occasions that the first 42 letters of the Torah, up to and including the letter ב in the word ובהו, make up the attribute of G–d involved in the creative process. [The Gaon Rabbi Eliyahu of Vilna elaborates on this name in his commentary on Isaiah. Ed.] We have also explained that the whole purpose of the Creation was אדם העליון, the concept of man in his most elevated form; we have also demonstrated that only ישראל is described as אדם in the Torah. The numerical value of אדם is 45. 45+42 equals 87= פז. An indication that Israel is this פז, fine gold, is found in the fact that Israel counts according to the lunar calendar. The moon is called לבנה, its numerical value is 87. This means Israel equals 87.