Noach - 1st Portion

Join me as we learn together for Sunday. The Torah reading of Noah. The Torah reading of Noah is the second Torah reading in the book of Genesis. As the Torah continues the story of last week's Torah reading as it concluded that Noah was the only one that found favor in God's eyes, the Torah now continues to tell us about who this individual Noah is. Chapter 6 verse 9, the following are the descendants of Noah. Noah is sadik Noak was a righteous man. who remained faultless despite what was going on at the time of his generation in his generation and God walked with Noah Noah walked with Hashem. What does this mean? As Rashi is going to explain to us, one of the things we see over here, Noah's name mentioned multiple times here. The Balator tells us Noah's name is mentioned three times because three people were saved because of him. three generations that he lived through and other cryptic things that we're going to find in the story of Noah. While Noah is a very famous Bible story, we'll see the true authentic story as we learn together the for today. Rashi told us after the Torah tells us so the Torah writer should have said who his children are. They follow me are the children of Noah. But then the Torah goes on to tell us about a description and tell us how great he was. Why does the Torah tell us that? So Rashi explains because he already mentioned in talks about his greatness. As it says in the verse in proverbs whenever you mention mention him also you should bless him and say his greatness. Another explanation is telling us here to teach us that the main children the main uh work the fruit and the heart and what they bring to this world of the righteous are the good deeds that they've done. Next in his generation. So over here there's a debate. What does this mean in his generation? There are those rabbis, those commentators that explain that this is a praise that even if he would have been in the greatest generation of righteous people, he would have been a great sadic as well. And there are those that explain this verse and explain that the word in his generation is a fault is a derogatory comment. Meaning that he was only in his generation was he a great person. Was he considered a sadic? If he would have lived in the generation of Noah wouldn't even get any mention. And the only reason why he was considered a sadic here was because the people were so bad. Torah is the Torah tells us that Noah went in the ways of God. Over here he's using the terminology elim says he went before me as well as it uses a terminology later on in the book of Genesis that tells us that I went before him. What does this mean? Why over here by Noah does it says with Noah. So over here there were two explain two parts of this Noah needed help that he should be supported by God and therefore his righteousness was only by the fact that God was helping him along. In contrast to A did not need any support from God. Aram recognized the greatness of God in his own and he was able to be a leader and teach people about godliness. In contrast to Noah who everything that he did needed support by God constantly coaching him and co and giving him the ability to the support that he needed to stand up against the people of his time. What does the word mean? And over here Rashi is telling us a grammatical explanation of what the word means. And this is telling us a terminology of the past meaning it's telling us of something that happened already to meaning to say that he went with God that he followed in God's ways and Rashi tells us a rule a rule here a grammatic rule which is as follows this is the word when you use a hey when it comes with the when it when it uses this terminology like it happened already because at times sometimes you can have the same exact word this exact idea which can be explained for the past and can also be explained for the future. For example, in other cases God tells Abraham come get up and go to the length and the width of the land of Israel. So you see the exact word could be past and could be future as well. But because over here it says the word with a seagel it's telling us in the past not the future. And therefore as we see means with the past is telling us a story of what happened. And also you find it as well. Speak and pray on behalf of your servant which means in the future come and pray into this home. Again it's telling us about the future. And then you have if you talk about if you put a VV in front of it which is called a there's a grammatic term for it in the lower in the laws of which is called that when you have av in front of a word that this changes the word from being future to past tense. And therefore he tells us in this case the at the beginning changes what even though it should be should mean you should come and pray but the very fact that he puts the word means that and he already daved. So the vav before it changes it from future tense to past tense. Then there are many times that we find different rashis that uh tell us about grammatic and dict the words in Hebrew grammar how they fill and many times rashi will quote as teachers of the Hebrew grammar as we'll see when the time comes. Verse 10. And Noah gave birth and was fathered of three sons and their names were as shame as and verse 11 and the world has become corrupt before God and the land was filled with robbery. Over here we find two different terminologies. the thievery and vatish became corrupt. What is this corrupt that's talking about over here? So Rashi tells us in verse 11, this is talking about adultery, promiscuity, deser and idolatry. Like we find in other places where it says in the book of Deuteronomy where Moshe tells the Jewish people so you may become corrupt which is talking about promiscuity as well as because people have corrupted the every flesh was corrupt and that is as well talking about people not behaving accordingly. What does this mean? The world was filled with thievery. So Rashi says the word here means gazel thievery as we see later on in the book of Jonah and from the thievery that they had with their hands. Verse 12 was corrupt. All flesh have perverted the ways their appropriate ways of behaving on the earth. What does it mean? All fleshi tells us even the animals, the wild animals and the beasts and the tamed animals changed from their ways and they were uh adapting to kinds that were not theirs and mating with kinds of not of their own. The Torah then continues to tell us in verse 13, I have decided to put an end of all flesh before me because the world is filled with thievery from them and I will and and I will obliterate them from the earth. Katesar. What does this mean? The land was filled with violence. And over here the Torah continues explains verse 13. Any time that you find promiscuity and idolatry, indiscriminatory kind of death, a wild kind of death comes to the world and good and bad people without differentiation unfortunately are killed because their sins are so bad. Therefore, there's no differentiation made. The world was filled with thievery. Like we mentioned before, the three major sins were permiscuity, idolatry, and thievery. But over here if you see that the Torah uses and the Torah repeats the fact of thievery because Rashi tells us the deal was signed meaning that their fate was signed and sealed because of thievery was so to speak the straw that broke the camel's back that caused that God should destroy the world because God's going to destroy the world. Hashem tells God tells Noah what to do. Make for yourself an ark out of cypress wood. You must make the ark of different compartments and you will coat it from the inside on the outside with pitch. So Rashi tells us here first of all make for yourself an arc. What's going to happen here? I'm sorry we just missed one rashi before the rashi before in the previous verse which was in verse in verse 13 rashi tells us what does it mean the land means I'm going to destroy them from the land we find another place where it says later on the book of exodus when I leave the city which means when I leave from the city his feet became sick mean from a weakness of his feet. Another way of explaining what it means the land with the people of the land that even the three hand breaths deep into the earth was also destroyed because of the flood. Meaning with the earth the earth as well had to take some blame and guilt for the destruction what was happening at the world at the time. In verse 14 where God tells now no to make an ark. What was this ark? Now over here Rashi asks the obvious question. God has many different ways that he could have saved Noah. Why did he tell Noah to make an ark? He could have made him float. He could have made other things that happened because why do you make him work so hard building this ark that the people of the generation of the flood should see that he's working with us for 120 years they ask him what are you doing here and he tells them oh god is going to bring a flood to the world maybe they will return maybe they will repent from their evil ways and the flood will not have to be brought the special wood that he was going to use. Cypress wood that's the name of the wood he's telling you gopher wood that was the name of the wood means why did you have to specifically use this kind of wood I'll shame guff because the water of the flood was going to be very hot like from coal and therefore he's go he says because they're going to use guff gopher comes from the same type of word a sulfur and the gopher and guff is cypress wood. So therefore he mentions that this is be as the decree was made that they should be destroyed. What does the word kinim mean? It's a new type of word. We haven't had it before. So Rashi explains different types of cabins that they would have a section and a room for every one of the different animals that will be brought into the ark. Verse 15. This is how you should make it. the length of the 50 wide and 30 cubits 30 amma high. The next verse 16, you're going to make a skylight for the ark. And then the roof is going to come to the tip on an angle to one. And a door you will put on the side of it. You're going to have different floors. There's going to be a bottom floor, a lower deck, a middle deck, and a third deck. this is the way you're going to make the ark. So Rashi explains what does this mean and how this was built. First of all in the previous verse he told us how he's going to coat all of the wood is going to be coated with pitch. What is kofer? Sarashi explained that is zephes in the Aramaic language in the Talmud we find is called kufra which is this kind of pitch. The same idea was also used in the ark that was made for Moses. And over here Rashi contrasts how the ark for Moses was made the little basket and how the ark was made here. And he says as follows by the ark of Moses he also put him in the water and therefore they had to coat it with pitch. But over there was enough. They put a cement, a tar on the inside and the pitch on the outside. Why did they put the pitch on the outside and use a different type of way of doing it? Because Moshe was the one lying into the in the little t in the little basket in the little arc that they made for him and it has a terrible smell that the should not smell that bad smell. Shall Zephus of the pitch. But over here where is a very strong water and the water was going to be hot and it was going to be pouring rain because of the strength of the water they had to put the pitch on it from the inside and the outside. In contrast to Moshe where the pitch was only put on the outside as there were still waters and it wasn't that dangerous and heavy waters. In this verse, the Torah tells us verse 16, Rashi tells us that he makes a soar for the ark. What is a soar? So the word soarashi tells us comes from the word which means afternoon light. And therefore it means it's going to bring light into the ark. How is it going to bring light? So there's two opinions. Some people say what was the was it was a window that he put a skylight on top. Other opinion is this Torah refers to a a luminous stone a beautiful stone which gave light into the ark which because it was so bright it was able to give light into the ark. What does it mean that it was one on the top of the ark? So he explains as follows. The roof of the arkup was on a was on a slant came to a pitch came to a like a tentike for would go to the top until it became narrow on the top from on top and the top narrow part was only an a cubit wide. What was the purpose of this? When you have the pitch like making a roof a pitched roof. So the water should be able to flow. So this way when you have a pitch that the roof comes only to an amma on top like this. So therefore the water is able to go on both sides and travel down and not stay on top of the ark. The door will be placed on the side. It should not be placed on the top like on other openings of boats. Because if you have the opening on the top then water can fall into it. What does it mean? Bottom and middle and bottom second and third. So explains there were three floors one on top of the other. The top floor which means all the way to the top which were where his family stayed. The middle floor which was for the animals. The bottom floor was for the garbage. Where do we have to collect by living there for living there for such a long time? Everything that the animals and the people used the garbage stayed there. That's where they collected the garbage. Verse 17 and I God says I'm going to bring a flood water on the earth to destroy all flesh that have a breath of life from beneath the heaven. Everything on earth will expire. Verse 17 Rashid tells us as follows. Rashid's telling us over here the Torah is telling us I am ready to agree with those angels that told me to look at the to look at the low type of behavior of the human being and they said they told me even before I created the humans as it said until you creating humans who are what's the purpose of their creation Mabel it's flood. Why is it called a mabble? So for three things that caused the word bull means to be mixed up. Number one is it ruined everything. It corrupted all. It made it rot. Bilbel it mixed and confused everything. And it brought everything down. So the word bull has it in three different types of ways. Number one that it caused things to rot and be destroyed. Number two bilb to be mixed up and number three to bring things down from top to bottom. This is the way that the las the Aramaic translation does it means that it was floating that he made everything float from place to place and moved it from one place to another and he brought them until that is the lowest place from all the areas around them. That's why later on we're going to see when they build the tower in the place of bevel was called the place called shar. The word shin comes from the place because they moved and they kept on being shaked around and they were brought me all the dead people of the flood were brought to that place meaning that they were shaken around from place to place and finally brought to there. Verse 18 I will keep my covenant. I will establish my covenant with you and you will come into the ark your sons and your wife and the wives of your sons together with you is saying I will keep my covenant I will set up a covenant tells us what covenant is he talking about why does he have to make a covenant a covenant Noah had to bring in all these things into the ark who says they're not going to spoil he made a covenant that they're going to stay well and they're going to be able to eat them while they're in the flood. While they're in the ark during the flood and that the people, the evil people of this time will not kill Noah when they see that there's a big ark and Noah is going into the ark and he's being saved. They're going to be jealous. They're going to want to kill him. So therefore, God is going to protect him. Why does he mention you, your wives, and the children and their wives separately? telling us of men on their own and women on their own. From here we know that they were forbidden from having intimate relations during the time of the flood. Verse 19 and from all of the living beings from all flesh. Two of each species you will bring into the ark because you need a minimum for it to preserve that kind of species. So they should be able to live with you. Therefore you have to bring a male and a female. Rashi says over here something fascinating and he says any living thing even the demons even the demons came into the because of the flood two of each but we see later on he also brought seven of them. So therefore he says the minimum amount of the ones that weren't kosher animals he didn't take he took at least two one male and one female so that they should be able to stay alive and procreate after the flood. Verse 20 from its birds according to its species and from the animals according to its species from all crawling creatures according to its kind of will come to you to live from the birds according to its kinds. What does it mean to its kinds? Meaning that the only ones that came to the ark, only those birds that stayed with its kind and did not corrupt their ways. Mayo, they came on their own. He didn't have to go catch them. Any animal, any living thing that the TVA accepted, meaning that they were able to get into the he brought them in and he put them into the stations, into the rooms that he built for them. verse 21. So what's your job Noah? You're going to have to collect from all different foods that all the edible things that you need for yourself to eat and also for the animals to eat and you will gather it to yourself and it will be for you for you and the animals to eat during the time of the flood. Verse 22. Everything that God commanded him to do, he did exactly. He did exact. Whatever God commanded him to do, that's exactly what he did. Tells us verse 22, the building of the ark, he did exactly what God told him to do. This concludes the first Torah reading of Noah.