Hamaayan / The Torah Spring Edited by Shlomo Katz Noach "Why do you build?" Volume 24, No. 2 6 Marcheshvan 5770 October 24, 2009 Today's Learning: Nach: Shoftim 3-4 Negaim 14:8-9 O.C. 352:2-353:2 Daf Yomi (Bavli): Bava Batra 64 Daf Yomi (Yerushalmi): Sanhedrin 46 The Midrash Bereishit Rabbah (30:2) quotes the verse (Iyov 24:18), "Their portion in the land will be cursed, he will not turn to the way of the vineyards," and applies it to the Generation of the Flood. The midrash states, "Their portion in the land will be cursed" -- He Who exacted retribution from the Generation of the Flood [will exact retribution from one who does not keep his word (see below)]. "He will not turn to the way of the vineyards" -- because their intention was only to plant vineyards. In contrast, Noach's intention was to populate the world and to raise children -- therefore the Torah says, "These are the offspring of Noach." R' Yitzchak Ze'ev Yadler z"l (1843-1917; Yerushalayim) explains: The midrash is explaining why Hashem destroyed every vestige of the society of that generation. After all, did they not contribute to the greater good of mankind by planting vineyards, building homes, etc.? Why was no memory left of their efforts? The answer in the midrash is that everything they did was for their own personal enjoyment. They in fact had no intention to make the world a better place; therefore their efforts did not bear lasting fruit. The halachah is that a person who backs out of a deal after an agreement has been reached but before it is legally binding is cursed with the statement: "He Who exacted retribution from the Generation of the Flood will exact retribution from one who does not keep his word." Why? Because such a person shares the characteristic of the Generation of the Flood just mentioned, i.e., he does not view his business dealings as a way to build the world but rather as a matter of personal expedience. Thus, if he gets a better offer, he quickly reneges on his word and takes the second offer. Noach, in contrast, viewed the act of fathering and raising children as part of his duty to society. This is why he merited to make a lasting impact. (Tiferet Zion) ******** "Noach walked with Elokim." (6:9) Rashi z"l comments: In contrast, we read about Avraham (17:1), "Walk before Me." This teaches that Noach needed G-d's support in order to be righteous, while Avraham did not. R' Shaul Yisraeli z"l (1909-1995; rabbi of Kfar Ha'roeh, Israel and a rosh yeshiva in Yeshivat Merkaz Harav) writes: Our Sages criticize Noach for not attempting to influence his generation. Apparently, Noach felt spiritually weak, so he protected himself by walking "with" G-d, i.e. he chose a relatively lonely lifestyle which would allow him to avoid anything that would challenge his own spiritual standing. In contrast, Avraham walked "before" G-d, i.e., he felt secure enough in his faith that he could circulate in society and speak about G-d. This understanding, adds R' Yisraeli, sheds light on what happened after the Flood, when Noach planted a vineyard and promptly became drunk. In the words of Rashi z"l (to Bereishit 9:20), "Noach profaned himself, for he should have occupied himself first with planting something different." After the Flood, Noach was responsible for rebuilding society. However, because he had led such a sheltered life before the Flood, he was not prepared for the new challenge that faced him. R' Yisraeli concludes: Many religions have people who achieve some degree of holiness, but it is always through monasticism. The uniqueness of Judaism is that it challenges man to live a holy life within the world, not apart from it. (Siach Shaul) ******** "I have set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth." (9:13) Many commentaries ask: How can a natural phenomenon that can be explained by science be a sign between G-d and man? R' Yosef MiTrani z"l (1568-1639; rabbi of Tzefat, Eretz Yisrael) answers this question as follows: We read that Hashem declared after the Flood (8:22), "Continuously, all the days of the earth, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease." From this verse we can infer that, during the Flood, the laws of nature were suspended. During the flood, there was no day or night, no summer or winter, etc. [Ed. note: Incidentally, the fact that the laws of nature as we know them were entirely suspended for a period of time might be a reason why any scientific attempt to date the universe or any object in the universe is inherently flawed.] R' Yosef MiTrani writes: A rainbow can appear only if the sun shines. During the Flood, the sun did not shine. Thus, the rainbow is a sign that G-d remembers His promise not to bring another Flood. Each appearance of the rainbow means that the sun is shining, which would not happen if another Flood were beginning. [Thus, it is not the possibility of a rainbow which is the sign, but rather the fact that the rainbow has appeared on a particular occasion.] (Tzofnat Paneach) ******** "These are the descendants of the sons of Noah -- Shem, Cham, and Yefet . . ." (10:1) To what end does the Torah list the families that descended from Noach? Likewise, for what purpose does the Torah list (in last week's parashah) the generations that preceded Noach? R' Moshe ben Nachman z"l (Ramban; 1194-1270) quotes R' Moshe ben Maimon z"l (Rambam; 1135-1204) who explains: The Torah is addressing those who deny the relative youth of the universe and cite as supposed proof the fact that mankind is dispersed over the entire globe, a process which arguably should have taken much longer than the 2,500 years from Creation until the Giving of the Torah. To this the Torah says: I can account for the entire history of mankind. Early generations lived hundreds of years and fathered extraordinary numbers of children. I, the Torah, can even name the fathers of all of the major nations. Furthermore, there was a cataclysmic event -- the dispersion of the generation that tried to build the Tower of Bavel -- which accounts for mankind's filling the earth. (Derashat Torat Hashem Temimah) ******** "When Terach had lived seventy years, he fathered Avram . . ." (11:26) We say in the Pesach Haggadah, "In the beginning our ancestors worshiped idols, but now HaMakom / the Omnipresent has brought us close to His service." R' Joseph B. Soloveitchik z"l (1903-1993) observes: In this context, we refer to G-d as HaMakom, not as HaKadosh Baruch Hu / The Holy One, He is Blessed (as we do in the next paragraph of the Haggadah). In His manifestation as Hakadosh Baruch Hu, He does not relate to the family of an idolator such as Terach. However, as HaMakom, He embraces everyone, regardless of that person's moral standing or attributes, regardless of whether the person is good or wicked. No one is outside of Him, just as no one can be outside of space [which is the literal meaning of "makom"]. (Quoted in Haggadah Shel Pesach: An Exalted Evening p.52) The passage from the Haggadah quoted above is part of our fulfillment of the instruction, "One should begin [the story of the Exodus] with disgrace, and end with praise." Therefore we begin with describing the idolatry of our ancestors and then discuss how we came close to Hashem. R' David Hanaggid z"l (1224-1300; grandson of Rambam) writes: The disgrace referred to here clearly is man's disgrace - they were idolators. However, the praise belongs to both G-d and us. G-d must be praised because, in His kindness, He lifted us out of the environment from which our nation was born. Furthermore, He performed numerous miracles and punished the Egyptians on our behalf. We, too, deserve praise because we maintained our basic beliefs even in Egypt. (Midrash Rabbi David Hanaggid al Haggadah Shel Pesach p.55) ******** Three Aspects of Shabbat R' David Abudraham z"l (Spain; late 13th-early 14th centuries; one of the most influential commentators and halachic authorities in matters relating to the siddur) writes: Some ask: Why did our Sages establish three different texts for the Shabbat prayers--unlike on a weekday and on festivals, when shacharit, mincha and ma'ariv all use the same text? He answers: Shabbat is called a bride, and the prayers parallel different stages of a wedding. On Friday night, we say, "Attah kidashta" / "You have sanctified," which parallels kiddushin / giving of the ring. On Shabbat morning, we say, "Yismach Moshe" / "Moshe will rejoice," which parallels the joyous celebration at the wedding. Next comes mussaf, which means "addition," paralleling the gifts that a groom gives a bride. Also, the mussaf offering, which the mussaf prayer commemorates, parallels the wedding feast. Finally, at mincha, we say, "Attah echad" / "You are one," which parallels the yichud / seclusion of the bride and groom. Alternatively, R' Abudraham writes in the name of Rabbeinu Klonimus z"l, the three unique prayers parallel three aspects of Shabbat. [Mussaf is not discussed here because mussaf is always different from the other prayers.] On Friday night, we honor Shabbat as the culmination of Creation. On Shabbat morning, we honor Shabbat as the day on which the Torah was given. Finally, at mincha, we speak of the future Shabbat, i.e., the World-to-Come, when the entire world will recognize that G-d is One. (Sefer Abudraham: Seder Tefilot Shel Shabbat) R' Moshe Chaim Luzzato z"l (Ramchal; 18th century) writes that Hashem had three primary intentions in creating the world. Each of the three types of Shabbat identified by R' Abudraham can be linked to one of these purposes, suggests R' Ehud Rakovski-Avitzedek shlita (Yeshivat Shvut Ami in Yerushalayim): Hashem created the world so that there would be a place where He could perform kindness. This relates to Creation. Hashem created the world so that there would be a place where He will be revealed and known. This was the purpose of the Giving of the Torah. Finally, Hashem created the world so that His Oneness would be revealed. This will happen in the future, i.e., in the World-to-Come. (Da'at Shabbat)