The final words of the Torah (34:12) are ישראל כל לעיני, "before the eyes of all Yisrael," and connects with the first word of the Torah, בראשית, because the foundation and the beginning of the Torah is to be cautious with one's eyes.
The Torah tells that the dove returned to Noach with an olive branch in its mouth, וידע הארץ מעל המים קלו כי נח, "Thereby Noach knew that the waters upon the earth had receded." The Midrash (Bereishis Rabba 33:6) asks: How did the bird get an olive branch? Weren't all the trees destroyed in the flood? One answer is משם והביאה עדן גן שערי לה נפתחה, "The gates of Gan Eden opened, and she brought the olive branch from there." The Ramban (8:11) quotes this Midrash, and he asks that if the olive branch came from Gan Eden, where the flood didn’t fall, how did Noach know from the olive branch that the waters of the flood were subsiding?
The Ramban answers that during the mabul, the gates of Gan Eden were sealed so the flood waters wouldn’t enter there. When Noach saw that the dove was able to enter Gan Eden, Noach understood that the gates of Gan Eden were open once again. That was his sign that the waters had receded. But why were the gates of Gan Eden sealed during the flood? It must be that even Gan Eden was at risk of being affected by the flood. Let this be a lesson for our times when there is a flood of apikorsus and immorality in the world and things that we shouldn't see. Our homes are our Gan Eden, but the doors must remain locked, not to permit these foreign influences to enter, because when there's a flood, everyone's in danger.
Overcoming the Yetzer Hara
The Midrash (Tanchumah, Behaloscha 10) states, "The Jewish nation says to Hakadosh Baruch Hu, 'Ribono Shel Olam, you know the great strength of the yetzer hara. [How can we possibly overcome him?]' Hakadosh Baruch Hu replies, 'Remove him little by little in this world, and I will remove him entirely from you in Olam HaBa.'" It is true that it is tough to overcome the yetzer hara and to guard the eyes. Therefore, we are advised to take on small kabbalos to help us improve, and then Hashem will help us succeed.
