Two by two they came to Noah to the ark, male and female,

as God had commanded Noah.

(Bereishit 7:9)

 

Two by two they came to Noah to the ark, male and female, as God had commanded Noah. It seems proper to interpret [the notion of] God's commanding that two [come to the ark] from each [species as] simply referring to the ingrained nature of animals, for nature is also called God. They came to the ark of their own accord and that is [the meaning of]

Two by two they came to Noah... as God had commanded Noah. But the additional sets of five from the clean species that He commanded [to come to the ark] - that was [spoken by] the attribute of mercy as it is written, and the Lord [the Tetragammatron - associated with mercy] said to Noah, "Take seven by seven from all the clean animals." The attribute of mercy transcends nature, so they did not come of their own accord and Noah had to bring them in; human beings must also invite and prepare animals when bringing them for sacrifice.

(R. Yohanatan Eibuschitz, Ahavat Yehonatan Bereishit 7:9)

 

Two by two they came to Noah... as God had commanded Noah - The Lord commanded Noah to take in the animals, but the execution of the command was not up to Noah - especially as it concerned wild beasts. It was not up to Noah that they came to him two by two, and that only those arrived, so that they preserved the purity of their species. Here is revealed the truth that is so important in all of Scripture: The same God who commands man is the One who commands nature. In other words: The Lord is God. This truth is revealed by a factual occurrence. The Lord's command was given to Noah so that he could freely uphold it, and by the Lord's command all the animals gathered together so that Noah would be able to do as he had been commanded. Indeed, the God of nature is the God of man; the Lord's command controls nature, and the Lord's commands are also given to man in order that he freely choose to follow them.

(Rabbi S. R. Hirsch ad loc)

 

Were born to them - and he begot

Between Survival and Responsibility

Yosse Hattab

The verse which seems to me the most important in our parasha demands explication. It states a vital principle, in the original meaning of the term. It is thanks to that principle that the People Israel has survived all attempts to destroy it - and such threats are still with us.

I am referring to Bereishit 10:11: These are the generations of Shem: Shem was one hundred years old, and he begot Arpachshad, two years after the Flood.

In 10:1 we find a somewhat different formulation: And these are the generations of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and sons were born to them after the Flood.

Such are the formulations describing each of the sons and their progenies. Let us take notice of the significant, indeed fateful difference between the verses, between were born to them and he begot.

All children are born to their parents, but not all parents beget their children.

And... were born to them [vayivaldu] - not really intentionally, but rather as a natural biological phenomenon... to preserve the race, but unintentionally, without a goal, unrelated to the values of family or people, unconcerned with the born individual as an independent entity in his own right. There is not enough space to analyze each verse individually, to point out the differences between Ham, Japheth, and Shem and all the shades between them.

Contrast that verse to: and he begot, which refers to a willed deed aimed towards a conscious end. Shem's generations are listed twice in Bereishit, once in 10:21-32 and again in our verse (11:10), where the description undergoes a transformation of mindset.

Our verse is the only one in the list which combines the two expressions, 1) to beget intentionally as opposed to were born and 2) after the Flood.

Let us consider for a moment how the passengers of the ark experienced the Flood. Let us imagine what happened there. We can be helped by the images of flooding in Pakistan and Eastern Europe that we saw two months ago, as well as by pictures from many other such scenes.

Great streams of water force people to take refuge on the rooftops of their homes; they must climb to higher places in the desperate hope that the rains will end by the time they reach the summit. This was a false hope for the people of the Flood. Forty days and forty nights. The water rises, it smothers them, masses of people are drowning, corpses float on the surface. Babes in their arms, mothers flee for the high ground but the waters continue to rise. They are suffocated as "the water is to their right and to their left, to their front and back, below and above them."

The ark has a window. Its passengers can watch these events but are unable to help. They can hear the screams, the crying, and the awful pain accompanying humanity's annihilation.

It is a bit of gallows humor that this parasha is called Noah [literally: "comfortable" or "easy"], given that it is the most horrific section in all of Scripture and certainly the least "comfortable."

The concept of "Shoah" is exclusively reserved for reference to the holocaust of 5700-5705. "The Flood" is exclusively reserved for reference to the flood of our parasha. Even God was not prepared to undergo such an event again, even if humanity would repeat its sins. And humanity did indeed repeat its sins!

The parallel between the two events forces itself upon us. Only the survivors know what happened and they must contend with their experiences. Such a trauma can drive one to madness and, indeed, Noah goes off and gets drunk, Ham mit'hamem ["goes into heat"] and turns to sensuality. Japheth [Yafet] goes in the opposite direction. Faced with absolute extreme ugliness, he thinks only of beauty (yifat Elohim leYafet - "may God grant beauty to Japheth") - a defensive and pathological denial.

It is not in vain that Shem was called Shem ["name"]; he had to give a name to existence, rather than ignore it [tit'alem] pathologically (or become dumbstruck - teyalem). For perhaps two years he sank into post traumatic stress disorder, but then he founded a yeshiva together with his great-great-grandson, Eber. The yeshiva was intended to give speech - a name - to the world, to study it, to learn how to prevent catastrophes by finding ways to avoid violence and govern the world peacefully. In short, to prepare the way for our Father Abraham.

Shem was someone engaged in naming things, and I am certain that he had reasons to name his son "Arpachshad." I searched through the commentaries found in Mikra'ot Gedolot but found no explanation of that name. Sefer Toldot HaShemot tells us that Arpachshad was the king of the Kasdim. KSD - the first letters of Kasdim - form the last three letters of his name, but I found no explanation of that strange appellation. In this case, gematria may be of some assistance. And the name might also allude to his being one of Abraham's ancestors - that same Abraham who came from Ur Kasdim.

The message here is important; as I wrote above, it is fateful and foundational for the People Israel from its inception and unto the Days of the Messiah.

Catastrophes and attempted liquidations could not destroy us; there is no "Final Solution" to the People Israel. If we survived Noah we can survive anything, and indeed our people has proved its outstanding vitality throughout the generations. The danger that truly threatens us is that of disunity, of haflaga ["dispersal" used in reference to the generation which built the Tower of Babel] - that is the threat from within. That is a different drasha but it comes from the same parasha; perhaps it was no accident that both stories were written in the same parasha. There are catastrophes which are acts of God and there are threats which spring from human actions.

Perhaps that is the message for us: to cleave to the approach taken by Shem and Arpachshad, to overcome the difficulties, to connect, to believe in the future, and to bring children into the People Israel and into the world - for there is still much to be done in order to rectify the world into the Kingdom of God.

Dr. Yosse Hattab is a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst.

 

These are the generations of Noah, Noah... Noah walked with God. Why [is Noah's name mentioned] three times in the verse? He is one of three who saw three worlds: Noah, Daniel, and Job:

Noah saw the world settled, he saw it destroyed, and he again saw it settled.

Daniel saw the First Temple, he saw it destroyed, and he saw it rebuilt as the Second Temple.

Job saw his house standing, and its destruction, and again he saw it settled.

(Tanhuma [Warsaw edition] Noah 5)

 

We live during a very unusual and unique era, and we are not always aware of its nature. My beard has still not turned white with age, and yet during the course of my life I have seen, as our Sages have said, "A world formed, a world destroyed, and a world rebuilt." I have seen Jews being led to Auschwitz; I have seen Jews dance at the establishment of the State of Israel; I have seen the great victories of the Six-Day War; I have traveled with soldiers to the Suez Canal... I have lived through an epoch, in the shortest span of time. It is hard to believe that in such a short lifetime one could witness so many changes...

Today, the State of Israel stands at the focal point of world history. It is clear that we are living in a period of great change and, as such, it demands of us great deeds...

I am the man, poor in worthy deeds, who has seen communities in desolation, and who has merited to behold a land rebuilt.

Sorrow and sighing, while I was upon a strange and foreign land; gladness and joy, when I came up to Jerusalem.

Deliver my life from the sword... I will declare Thy name to my brethren; in the midst of the congregation I will praise Thee (Psalms 22:21-23).

For Your loving-kindness is better than life (63:4)

For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee" (Isaiah 54:7).

One thing remains clear:

Upon Mount Zion there shall be a deliverance (Obadiah 1:17).

(From a talk given by HaRav Yehudah Amital in Yeshivat Har Etzion on Rosh Hodesh Adar 5745 http://www.vbm-torah.org/archive/rya0-40.htm)

 

The Raven Also has Rights

The dog that used to protect Abel's sheep guarded over his corpse against all beasts of the field and from all birds of the skies, and Adam and his helper sat and wept and mourned over him, and they knew not what to do, for burial was not customary. A raven, whose companion had died, said: I will teach this man what to do. What did he do? He took his companion and dug in the earth, covered his eyes, and buried him. Adam said: I shall do as did this raven. He took Abel's corpse, dug in the earth, and buried it, and the Holy One, Blessed Be He, rewarded the ravens generously in this world. What was their reward? They give birth to white offspring, and they flee from them, thinking them to be offspring of serpents. Then The Holy One, Blessed Be He, brings mosquitoes and provides their nourishment and they eat: Who provides food for the raven. Yet more, they cry out for rain on the earth and The Holy One, Blessed Be He, hears their voice and sends rain upon the face of the earth, as is written: He gives bread to the beasts, to the raven which cries out.

 (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, 21)

 

Dependence upon Land Desecrates

Then began Noah, man of the soil - Because he was dependant upon the soil, he became unconsecrated. At first he was a righteous and wholehearted man, but now, a man of the soil.

(Tanhuma Bereishit 13)

 

The Generation of the Dispersal - Oppressive Unity and Rectifying Dispersal

Come, let us descend and confuse their language, so that one will not understand the language of his companion (Bereishit 11:7).

lest we be scattered upon the face of the entire earth We must understand why they feared that some of them might leave to live in another land; this is clearly related to their sharing uniform words. Since people are dissimilar, they feared that some people would adopt a different opinion. Therefore they took care that no one would leave their settlement and that anyone who strayed from their common uniform words would be sentenced to death by fire, as they did to our father Abraham. Thus their common uniform words became their stumbling block, for they decided to kill anyone who did not think like them.

(HaNaTzIV MiVolozhin's, HaAmek Davar Bereishit 11:4)

 

Will not understand: This one requests a brick, and that one brings mortar; this [first] one stands and cracks his skull.

(Rashi ad loc, Judaica Press translation)

 

Let us descend - that is to say, to nip it in the bud. I will confuse their language so that they do not arrive at the final evil; they will not understand each other and they will have to quarrel, and they will separate from each other.

Not understand [literally, "hear"] - they will not understand, and it does derive from the notion of hearing, since it refers to the heart's hearing.

(Rabbi Y.S.R. Reggio ad loc)

 

The World's Existence Depends Upon Law, Morality, and Interpersonal Respect

The world exists thanks to law, you can see that the flood came to the world because they lacked law, they stole and robbed from each other, as it is written, the land became full of robbery. And if this is so, then one who judges, upholding the law faithfully, causes the world to persist in its existence. It is as if he becomes a partner [to the Creator].

(Siftei Hakhamim Shemot 18:9)

 

The earth was corrupt before elohim [elohim - usually understood as "God" here understood in a secular sense]: Before the great ones who were on the earth, who would take the women by force.

And the earth became full of hamas [robbery]: What is the difference between hamas and gezel [another term for robbery]? Rabbi said: Hamas is [robbery of property] worth [at least] a penny while gezel is [robbery of property] worth less than a penny. This is what the people of the generation of the Flood would do: one of them would take a basket full of lupini beans to the market. This one would come and take less than a penny's worth and another one would come and take less than a penny's worth, so that he [the owner] would not be able to demand legal recompense. The Holy One blessed be He said to them: You acted improperly, so I shall also treat you improperly and unfairly, as it is written - Their haughtiness, which is absorbed within them-does it not leave [them]? They die, and not with wisdom (Job 4) - without the Torah's wisdom.

(Hizkuni Bereishit 6:11)

 

Now that the exile is prolonged because of our many sins, Israel must separate itself from the vanities of the world, and must hold on to the seal of The Holy One, Blessed Be He, which is truth; Israel must sanctify itself even by [refraining from questionable] acts which are legally permitted (Yevamot 20a); one should not lie, neither to Jew nor to gentile, and not deceive them in anyway, as is written: The remnant of Israel will not perform iniquities and will not speak falsely, and their mouths shall not house deceptive tongues (Zephaniah 3:13). Furthermore it is written And I will sow her in the land as My own (Hosea 2:25) - a person sows one kur of seed in order to harvest a number of kurim, so The Holy One, Blessed Be He sowed Israel among the nations in order that it be joined by converts (Pesahim 87b) As long as they [Israel] deal with them honestly, they will cleave to them. The Holy One, Blessed Be He, is stringent even regarding theft from the wicked, as is written, And the land was rife with lawlessness (Bereishit 1:11)

"It once happened that Rabbi Shimon ben Shetah purchased a donkey from an Ishmaelite. His students noticed a precious stone hanging from its neck. They said to Rabbi Shimon: Rabbi, It is the blessing of the Lord that enriches (Proverbs 10:22). He replied: I bought a donkey; I did not buy a precious stone. He went and returned the stone to the Ishmaelite. The Ishmaelite said of him: Blessed is the God of Shimon ben Shetah!" (Devarim Rabba 3:3)

And thus in the Jerusalem Talmud (Bava Metzia 2:5): "The elderly sages purchased wheat from the gentiles, and discovered a hidden bag of coins, and they returned it. Proclaimed the gentiles: Blessed is the Lord of the Jews!" And so there were many cases where they returned things in order to sanctify His Name.

(Orhot Tzadikkim, Gate 23, The Truth)

 

Midrashei Tzafon

From the pen of our member, Ronen Ahituv

And God saw the earth, and behold it had become corrupted (6:12)

But was the earth corrupted? Wasn't it the flesh which had been corrupted, for it is said: for all flesh had corrupted!

But it also says: Now the earth was corrupt before God.

But was the earth corrupted? Doesn't it say: and the earth was filled with violence! And elsewhere it says: Do not destroy [tash'hit - from the same root as hish'hit/corrupted] its trees (Devarim 20:19).

Rather, what would the people of the Generation of the Flood do? If one of them needed a stick for his donkey or a staff for his hand, he would cut down a tree and take a stick from it.

And Tubal-Cain would smelt iron, and feed the fire with trees, and heat up the earth and destroy it.

And the smoke would rise up and the sun would beat down on them and burn them, and they had no trees to save them from their evil, for it is said: and the sun beat down on Jonah's head and he fainted (Jonah 4:8). And they did not repent.

He brought the waters of the Flood upon them, and later what did He say? A pact between Me and the earth (9:13). But was the pact with the earth? Doesn't it say, between Me and between you and between every living creature among all flesh (9:15)!

Rather, the pact stipulated that if man does not corrupt the earth there will be no flood.

 

 

 

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