This week’s Torah reading, Bereshit covers a period of more than a thousand years. Clearly, then, the portion does not recount every event that occurred during this period, but only those of particular importance to the continued development of humanity in future generations.
The portion tells us about two people named Chanoch. One was the son of Cain. After his birth, the Torah relates that Cain built a city and named the city after his son Chanoch. The second was a descendant of Seth, about whom the Torah says: “Chanoch walked with G-d, and he was no more, for G-d had taken him.”
Fathers and Sons
It is understandable why the Torah tells us what happened to the second Chanoch, since this is part of the account of the generations. But why does the Torah tell us that Cain built a city and named it after his son Chanoch? What significance does this fact have for the continuation of human history?
The explanation is that in both of these men we find qualities that contrast with those of their fathers.
Cain killed his brother Abel, thereby harming the settlement and development of the world. Yet a city was built in the name of his son, symbolizing the building and establishment of civilization. The second Chanoch, by contrast, was personally righteous, but he withdrew from involvement with the world. Therefore, G-d took him before his time.
Complete Repentance
The building of a city in the name of Cain’s son Chanoch expresses the completeness of Cain’s repentance. Complete teshuvah does not mean merely confessing and recognizing the seriousness of one’s sin. Nor is it enough simply to bear the punishment. Rather, the person who sinned must take practical action that expresses the very opposite of the sin.
Cain had sinned by destroying a life and bringing destruction into the world. His repentance therefore found expression in bringing a new life into the world—Chanoch—and in building a city named after him.
In this way, Cain taught the path of teshuvah for all future generations. Indeed, the Midrash says that Adam learned from Cain about “the power of teshuvah.” This is why the Torah specifically mentions Cain’s building of the city and naming it after Chanoch: it demonstrated the completeness of Cain’s repentance for killing his brother Abel.
Do Not Disconnect
The story of the second Chanoch teaches us the opposite lesson: a person should not be righteous while remaining disconnected from the world.
Chanoch was indeed a tzaddik. But because his Divine service involved separating himself from the world rather than influencing it, this was not the proper path. Ultimately, G-d took him from the world before his time.
The two men named Chanoch therefore teach us the need for balance between two values. On the one hand, there must be attachment to G-d and elevation above worldly concerns. On the other hand, there must be involvement in building and developing the world.
A Jew’s Divine service must contain both of these elements and should not turn exclusively toward either extreme. This combination—personal spiritual elevation together with descending into the world in order to build and improve it—is symbolized by the two men named Chanoch, who bequeathed this lesson as a guide for all future generations.
(the Rebbe, Likkutei Sichot, Vol. 35)