And Noach gave birth to three sons, Shem, Cham, and Yaffess.
The questions on this possuk.
The Ohr Hachaim asks five questions on this possuk.
1. Why does the Torah have to tell us about the birth of these three children? The possuk in last week’s Parsha (5:32) says "וַיְהִי נֹחַ בֶּן חֲמֵשׁ מֵאוֹת שָׁׁנָׁה וַיּוֹלֶּד נֹחַ אֶּת שֵׁם, אֶּת חָׁם וְאֶּת יָׁפֶּת" - "And Noach was five hundred years old and he gave birth to Shem, Cham, and Yaffess." What was added in this week’s Parsha?
2. Why does the Torah repeat the word Noach? The previous possuk was talking about Noach already, and nobody would think that this possuk changed subjects. The Torah could have written וַיּוֹלֶּד שְׁלשָׁׁה בָׁנִים – and he gave birth to three sons.
3. Why does the Torah need to add them up to a sum total of three children? Is the math not simple, do we not see ourselves that these were three children?
4. The possuk could have said וַיּוֹלֶּד נֹחַ שְׁלשָׁׁה וגו', why was the word בָׁנִים necessary? If he gave birth to them, they were his sons.
5. What is the point of repeating the word אֶת three times? Why could we not read the possuk without it as וַיּוֹלֶּד נֹחַ שְׁלשָׁׁה בָׁנִים שֵׁם חָׁם וְיָׁפֶּת?
