Parshas Noach
Chizuk for Wartime
He Merited His Own Parshah as Reward for Distributing Wine/A Tzadik Enjoys Seeing a Tzadik/People Liked Him and Hashem Liked Him/He Was a “Holech”/Despite His Wisdom, He Was a Simple Man/The Greatness of Temimus/The Benefits of Being Happy With One’s Lot/Their Punishment Was Depression/Recognizing What is Secondary and What is Most Important/Defeating the Yeitzer Hara in Two Ways/”Raboseinu” Explained it as a Praise/Even Those Who Explained it Negatively Agree That He Was a Tzadik/Bringing Oneself Into the Teiva/Saved in the Merit of Tzedaka Cheshbon Hanefesh/Teshuva Removes Harsh Decrees/Emunah in Troubling Times/Hashem Never Forgets/The Neshamos Agree to be Born/How He Acts With Those Close to Him/How Hashem Appears
אֵלֶּה תּוֹלְדֹת נֹחַ נֹחַ וגו' תָ ּמִ ים הָיָה בְ ּדֹרֹתָיו אֶת הָאֱלֹקִים הִתְ הַלֶּךְ נֹחַ (ו, ט)
These are the generations of Noach, Noach... was simple in his generations. Hashem walked with Noach. (6:9)
He Merited His Own Parshah as Reward for Distributing Wine
The Tiferes Shlomo of Radmosk zy”a had a chasid who was very wealthy and very generous. Whenever he came to visit the Rebbe, he would sponsor whiskey and cake for all of the chasidim. Understandably, he was very well-liked by the chasidim, and they gave him much honor. There was a man who envied this fellow and begrudged all the honor he received. He asked the Rebbe, “What’s so great about giving out drinks? He isn’t a talmid chochom or a tzadik. All he does is pay for whiskey!” The Tiferes Shlomo replied, “There are two Parshios in the Torah that begin with the words ‘eileh toldos’. One is Parshas Noach, and the other is Parshas Toldos, which begins: ‘Eileh toldos Yitzchok.’ It is obvious that Yitzchok deserves his own Parshah, but why did Noach, a man who planted a vineyard and got drunk, deserve to have a Parshah named after him?” He answered, “Yes, it is true that Noach planted a vineyard but he gave drinks to all his friends. The way of the world is that people respect and honor someone who gives them good drinks, so everyone honored Noach, to the extent that a Parshah in the Torah is named after him as a sign of this respect.”
A Tzadik Enjoys Seeing a Tzadik:
Sefer Dibros Chaim quotes Rav Eliezer Dovid of Radoshitz zy”a (a grandson of the Saba Kadisha of Radoshitz zy”a) as explaining the pasuk as follows: “Eileh toldos Noach” - these are the toldos (the results of the work) of Noach. “Noach ish tzadik” - he was noach (pleased) when he saw a man who was a tzadik. He had a nachas ruach when he saw a tzadik because a tzadik greatly enjoys meeting another tzadik.
People Liked Him and Hashem Liked Him:
The Medrash notes that Noach’s name is mentioned twice in a row: “These are the generations of Noach, Noach...” It says that this means that he was pleasant noach” to the One Above and pleasant to those below. This a hint to Chazal’s statement (Avos 2:10): “Anyone who is considered pleasant by people will be considered pleasant by Hashem.” Rav Moshe of Kozhnitz zy”a (a son of the Magid of Kozhnitz zy”a) explains (in his Sefer Beer Moshe) this to mean that when one is beloved by people, it is a sign that he is beloved by Hashem as well.
He Was a “Holech”:
Sefer Od Yosef Chai (Parshas Lech Lecha) explains the words “es Ha’Elokim hishalech Noach” (Hashem walked with Noach) by saying that angels are referred to as “omdim” (standers, see Zechariah 3:7) because they always stand in the same place. They have no free will and, therefore, they cannot rise to a higher place due to their goodness or sink to a lower place due to their badness. Tzadikim, on the other hand, are called “holchim” (goers) because they constantly rise to higher placers due to their good deeds. The Torah is praising Noach by calling him a “holech”. He was always seeking to go to a higher place in avodas Hashem, and was never satisfied with his current level. For that reason, he was considered to be a genuine tzadik.
Despite His Wisdom, He Was a Simple Man:
The Baal Haturim writes that the last letters of the words “es HaElokim hishalech Noach” spell out the word “chochom” (a wise man). Sefer Divrei Yisroel asks why this hint is necessary. If Noach was a tzadik, isn’t it obvious that he was wise? Furthermore, the pasuk stated (Kehilos 10:12) that a chochom finds favor in the eyes of Hashem. If so, since it is stated that Noach found favor in Hashem’s eyes (Bereishis 10:18), he must have been a wise man. He answers that even if one is very wise and uses his intellect to serve Hashem, the main thing still is to serve Him with “temimus” (simplicity) as is stated (Devarim 18:13): “You shall be simple with Hashem, your G-d.” Rashi explains this to mean that one should serve Him unquestioningly and not inquire about the future. Accordingly, the pasuk can be translated as saying that Noach walked simply with Hashem, even though – as the final letters of the verse connote – he was a very smart, wise man who could have relied on his intellect. With this in mind, the Divrei Yisroel explains the pasuk in Mishlei (10:9): “Holech b’tam yeilech betach.” (One who walks with simplicity will walk with security.) The final letters of these words also spell the word “chochom”. Thus, this is also a hint that the main thing is to unquestioningly trust in Hashem, even if one is wise and smart. He also uses this lesson to explain the aforementioned Medrash that says that Noach was pleasant with both “the upper and the lower”. He states that one who possesses the middah of temimus will love everyone, as he will never question Hashem’s ways and will accept whatever happens to him, no matter what. Thus, the Medrash can be understood to be saying that whether Noach found himself on the top or on the bottom, he was always pleasant and happy, as he accepted everything with temimus.
The Greatness of Temimus:
The Chozeh of Lublin zy”a said: There is a question regarding which level is greater – that of temimus or that of “gadlus” (greatness). He brought a proof that temimus is greater from a halacha. The rule is that if one has two rolls of bread in front of him, one of which is bigger but is not a whole loaf and one of which is smaller but is whole, one should make his bracha on the smaller, whole roll. This is a proof that it is better to be “tamim” than to be “big”.
The Benefits of Being Happy With One’s Lot:
The Medrash (Rabbah 30:8) states: “Noach was a tzadik. ‘He was’ perfect...” Whenever the word “haya”, he was, is used, it indicates that he fed and sustained others. Sefer Divrei Yisroel explains this statement by quoting the Medrash (Bereishis Rabbah 42:3) that says that the word “haya” always connotes simcha, joy. Thus, the Medrash is saying that if one is “haya”, meaning he is happy with what he has and does not desire more, he will be satisfied and will be sustained, as he will be blessed with wealth, which he will then use to feed and help others.
Their Punishment Was Depression:
In this vein, the verse states (6:6): “And Hashem regretted that He had made man upon the earth, and He became grieved in His heart.” Rashi explains: “It came into Hashem’s mind to cause man grief.” The Chidushei Harim zy”a explains this to mean that Hashem put grief and sadness into their hearts. The pasuk continues to say: “And Hashem said, ‘I will blot out man, whom I created, from upon the face of the earth.” What is the connection between this verse and the last? The Chidushei Harim explains by quoting the Arizal as saying that through joy, one can reach all lofty levels. When one is happy, harsh decrees cannot affect him, and damaging forces have no power over him. The generation of the flood had all the goodness of this world. The Gemara (Sanhedrin 108A) says that they became haughty because of the abundance of goodness that Hashem gave them. They lived in peace, with no worries. Therefore, they were always happy and it was difficult to punish them. In order to punish them, Hashem had to make them sad so that the damaging forces could harm them. He then said that He will blot them out, as it was now possible to bring the mabul. From this, we learn that simcha is such a powerful force that anyone who is happy cannot be harmed, even if he deserves it.
Recognizing What is Secondary and What is Most Important:
The Slonimer Rebbe zy”a explains the pasuk that says that Hashem walked with Noach by relating a parable of a man who traveled for business to the big city of Bialystok. It was a long arduous trip from his home to this city, and he had to pass through many towns and villages before reaching his destination. Once he was there, he earned a nice profit from his business enterprises. When he arrived home and was asked by his family members how his trip went, he described how he first reached one city and then went on to the next village, and so on. He was only telling them about these places to describe how he ultimately reached his true destination of Bialystok. So too, the pasuk says that Noach was “tamim” in his generation, meaning that he looked at every aspect of his life as secondary, and not as the ultimate goal. Everything he did was only to reach his true purpose of “walking with Hashem”, as all of his travels were meant to attain the goal of improving the way he served Hashem.
Defeating the Yeitzer Hara in Two Ways:
Rashi says that some Rabbanim preached the greatness of Noach by saying that he was a tzadik in his depraved generation, and if he had lived in a generation of righteous men, he would have been an even greater tzadik. Others took the opposite approach and said that he was a tzadik in comparison to the wicked men of his generation, but if he had lived in the times of Avrohom, he wouldn’t have been considered significant at all. Rav Uri of Sambor zy”a (cited in Sefer B’Ohr Kodesh) asks why anyone would learn the pasuk in a negative way if it is possible to learn it in a positive way. He answers that this is actually referring to Noach himself. He explains that a tzadik must sometimes view himself in a negative way and sometimes view himself in a positive way. When the yeitzer hara attempts to make a tzadik feel haughty, he must see himself as lowly and unworthy and think about how far he is from serving Hashem as well as he could. On the other hand, when the yeitzer hara tries to make him feel sad and depressed by telling him that he is worthless, he should think about how good he is and how much he has already achieved, so that he can vanquish this claim. Accordingly, Chazal are teaching us that a person must sometimes think of himself negatively and sometimes think of himself positively, depending on how the yeitzer hara is trying to undermine him. Rav Uri goes on to say that the Ohev Yisroel of Apta zy”a would always hide letters he received that addressed him with honorifics and superlatives. But when the yeitzer hara would try to convince him to sin, he would take out these letters and read the titles people applied to him. He would say, “They say that I am a tzadik and a kadosh. How I could not be ashamed to do such a thing?” We can learn from the Ohev Yisroel that this is a good strategy to fight off the attacks of the yeitzer hara.
“Raboseinu” Explained it as a Praise:
The actual verbiage of Chazal is that some of “Raboseinu” explained it in a positive way, while “some” explained it in a negative way. Rav Yaakov Dovid of Amshinov zy”a (oldest son of Rav Itzikel of Vorka zy”a) notes that only those who explain it as a praise are called “Raboseinu”. He explains that this is because only those who see the good in others are worthy of being called “our teachers”. Only such people can be our leaders. Those who see the negative, however, cannot be our teachers.
Even Those Who Explained it Negatively Agree That He Was a Tzadik:
Rav Osher Yeshaya of Ropshitz zy”a (quoted in Sefer Ohr Yesha) also asks why anyone would learn the pasuk in a negative way if it is possible to learn it in a positive way. He answers that this is meant as a lesson to us that if we see a tzadik who appears to have a slight deficiency in his middos, we should not think that this means that he is not really a tzadik. We can learn this from Noach. The pasuk testifies about him that he was “a tzadik in his generation.” While it is possible to understand this in a negative way, as far as we are concerned he is still considered a complete tzadik.
וַיֹּאמֶר ה' לְנֹחַ בֹּא אַתָ ּה וְכָל בֵּיתְ ךָ אֶל הַתֵ ּבָה וגו' (ז, א)
And He said to Noach, “Come, you and your entire household, to the ark...” (7:1)
Bringing Oneself Into the Teiva:
Rav Moshe of Kobrin Rebbe zy”a (quoted in Imros Moshe) explains that “the teiva” can be understood as reference to “a word” of Torah and tefillah. The pasuk is teaching us that one must bring his entire body into this teiva, and use every limb and organ to serve Hashem by putting it into “the word”. One of those who heard the Rebbe say this asked, “How is this possible? How can a full-sized person fit into one small word?” The Rebbe replied, “If a person makes himself big, he can’t fit into a small space. I’m not speaking about people like that.”
Saved in the Merit of Tzedaka:
The Bais Avrohom of Slonim zy”a quotes his father, the Divrei Shmuel of Slonim zy”a, as saying that Noach was saved from the flood as a result of the mitzvos of tzedaka that he did in the teiva for all of the animals for a full year. He adds, “It is certain that if one does acts of tzedaka for the people of Eretz Yisroel, where Chazal say there was no mabul at all, he will be saved from the flood of our sins.”
