Noach - 4th Portion

Join me as we learn together for the fourth day of the Torah reading of Noah chapter 8 verse 15. And God spoke to Noah saying verse 16, leave the ark with you and your wife and your sons and their son and your son's wives which should leave the fact that the Torah juxtaposes the husband and wife together is telling us that Now, now they were permitted to re return to intimacy and have marital relations once again. Verse 17, all the animals that are with you from any flesh of the birds and the animals and all crawling creatures on the earth. Take them out with you and let them multiply. Let them continue to crawl, swarm the earth, and they will multiply on the earth. And the word over here, you'll notice it is written as but is read. The word is written, but it's read. Tell them they should leave. What does it mean tell them they should leave? Because what happens if they don't want to leave? If they don't want to leave, then you have to take them out by force. Where should they multiply on the earth in the ark? From here we learn that even the animals and the birds were prohibited from mating while they were in the ark. Verse 18 and his sons and his wives and the wives of his sons all went out of the ark together. Verse 19, all the animals and all the crawling creatures and all the birds all the crawling things on the earth according to their families went out of the ark. What does it mean according to their families? Rashi tells us they accepted upon themselves that they took upon themselves that they will only keep to their own species and not integrate with other ones. Verse 20, an arc for Almighty God. And he took from all the animals the clean ones, meaning the pure ones, and from all the pured birds. And he brought them as sacrifices on the altar. What does it mean? And of here he's telling us as follows tells us verse 20. Why did God tell me to bring in seven of each kind? It was only because only that I should bring a sacrifice from them. Why would have God told me some of them only two and some of them one of each kind male and female and the other ones he told me seven was because the male and female they have to cohabitate and afterwards continue to bring population into the world. However, those that he brought more of was because I shall bring sacrifices for them. The Torah now continues verse 21. And God figuratively smelled the appeasing fragrance. And God said to him in his heart, I will no longer I will never again curse the earth the soil because of humanity because the human the person's heart is challenged by the evil inclination from his youth. and I will never again strike or down all life like I've done today. Rashi explains what does it mean? What does it mean from his use? The word from the time that he stirred to leave from his mother's womb, it's instilled with him already the evil inclination. That means the moment the child, the fetus comes out of the mother's womb, already the evil inclination enters into him. What does the Torah use the terminology twice? I will never and I will never again. Why does the Torah double this terminology? God doubled it. Rashi tells us for a promise. This is what God says in Isaiah. that I promised. I made a covenant that I would never be in the waters of Noah again. We don't find anywhere by the waters of Noah that God should use a terminology of of promise. Ella only in this case we are God use this terminology twice. I will never and I will never. This is this is a promise a covenant. So too the sages learn when it comes to the laws of making oaths and promises that when a person makes a double terminology that is the language of an oath verse 22 all the days of the land as long as the earth lasts there will be sea time there will be harvest cold and heat summer and winter day and night will never cease. over here tells us what do we see over here that the Torah mentions if you notice six different uh seasons these times that the Torah mentions here is mentioned two months for each one like we learned half of and the entire month of the and half of zer it's time for seeding half of the which those are the months of the cold, the winter and so on. Each two months is considered a season on its own. Why does it say all the days? Always the word means always constantly that will never happen again. That will always be these seasons. is a season on its own which is called cold which is at the end of the winter. It's even colder than the winter. What is the word mean winter? This is the time when they would plant the barley and the uh legumes and which are sharp. So therefore it comes from the word because these they become ripe quicker cold that's the last part of and it's the month of and the half of Nissan which we would call early spring end of winter the time of harvest that the half of the month of Nissan which we call today spring what's the summer half of the month And of which we call summer today which this we call why is it called? Because this is the time that they would collect the figs. They would put them out for drying the figs and a dried fruit is called. You have this is mentioned in the book of Samuel the bread and the dried fruit was for the young lads to eat. That real hot heat that's the end of the summer the end of the summer time of the last of the half of month of and the month of in the first half of the month of which then the world is super hot from the even hotter than the rest of the year like we learned in the track date of Yuma The end of the summer is worse than the middle of the summer. Day and night will not rest. From here we learn. Why does the Torah have to tell me that they will not rest? That means that there was no day and night during the times of the flood. The galaxies did not those that set the times of the day of night did not circle did not evolve during the time of the flood. During the flood one was not able to identify recognize the difference between day and night. Will not rest. What does this mean? Comes from the word of resting stopping in time. They will not stop to work accordingly and they will continuously work properly. The Torah now continues to chapter nine. Chapter nine. God blesses Noah and his children and he tells them be be fruitful and multiply and fill the land. Verse two, and your fear and dread will be on all the animals of the little earth and all the birds of the heaven and anything that crawls under the earth and all fish of the sea that will be given in your hand will be placed in your hand. What does the word mean? So Rashi explains the word means your fear like we see this in other places. The medus explains meaning life that even any time that a child is alive even if the child is small and weak you will not have to worry and say the weasels or the mouse might affect it is because the animals will be afraid of the human beings no matter how small they may be. However, after the person dies, then they're no longer afraid of them. For example, we find this even the greatest uh giant even the great giant og who died, you have to watch it from the weasels and the mice that they don't eat it. It says that their fear and dread will be upon you. When will you be feared by the animals? When you're still alive, but the moment you die, they will can attack you and eat from you. Verse three, any creature, any crawling creature that is alive is for you to eat. Like the vegetation of the plants, I give them to you as you have it all to eat. Everything is yours. What does it mean that now they can eat it? And this is an interesting that until then, this was the first time that humans were allowed to consume animal meat. Until then, all humans were considered vegetarians. As Rashi explains as follows, I did not permit for Adam to eat meat. He was only allowed to eat vegetation. Then however you after Noah comes out of the ark just like the green the grass that I have given and I've allowed to eat I'm giving you as well. You can eat meat. However, though you're allowed to eat the meat of the animals, but nevertheless you may not you may not eat the flesh of a still living creature. of tells us verse four, he forbid them from eating even from animals while the animal is still alive. Saying as follows as long that the soul of the thing is in it, that means it's still alive. You're not allowed to eat that meat even though I permitted you to eat meat from an animal. But that's only once the animal is completely dead. He tells them as follows. That means he's prohibiting. This is the first of as we see the seven laws that he tells them while it soul in it is still in it. This is a prohibition on meaning you cannot even drink blood from a living animal. And therefore he prohibits to eat it while it's still alive. as well as not drinking its blood while it's still alive. The Torah now continues in verse four verse five. And also nevertheless I will settle the account of the blood that you shed that you take. I will settle the account of blood that you take your own lives and from another person and from every person from from his brother I will demand I will settle for the soul of the human life. So we're over here as we're soon going to see what this means. Rashid is going to explain to us the detail of this verse and the mitzvah that the verse tells us. What does it mean? And your blood I will settle. I will settle the account of your blood of the blood that you will take from your own lives. And he explains even though I permitted that you're allowed to eat from the animals still in all that you're allowed to kill an animal. However, if you kill another person, not only are you not allowed to kill another person also, you're not allowed to kill yourselves to your souls. Meaning, even somebody who strangulates himself where no blood came out of even though no blood came out of it. That means not only are you not allowed to kill another person, you're not allowed to kill yourself and you're not even allowed to kill yourself in a way where no blood comes out of it as well. What does this mean? From the hand of all living flesh from all animal being that he already said that the animals are under the dominionship of the human beings over here. He now warns about the animals killing human beings. because the generation of the flood was uh sinned and they allowed the blood and they just gave it to whoever was stronger was able to just take the food and gave the humans to eat for animals to control them. It says therefore he says therefore he has to warn the animals that they should not kill the humans. So he's warning the animals should they call the humans that he will also take that into consideration and demand from them that they should not allow to do it. So too if a person kills another individual, if a person kills somebody uh on purpose, but there is no witnesses. So therefore, nobody can actually give him the capital punishment. God says, "I will demand and he will take revenge of that person from a man from his brother." Over here the Torah uses a terminology of relationship and closeness to one another because this can also be telling us about a person who killed somebody inadvertently from the hand of somebody that he loves like a brother and he killed him by mistake inadvertently. I will demand his blood only if he does not go to exile to the city of refuge and he'll beg for forgiveness on his sin to be forgiven. Even a person who killed somebody inadvertently needs forgiveness. But if there are no witnesses that attest to the fact which thereby nobody knows that he killed him and therefore he's not obligated to be exiled to the city of refuge. And he is not inclined to do it on his own to ask for forgiveness. God will then take from him his blood. Like our teacher said, what does it mean that God in the verse in the book of Exodus that God chances upon him as it says that God makes God makes that this person who deserves to be killed ends up being in the same place where another person kills him inadvertently. So each person meets out their punishment that's needed to be done. Verse number six, the blood of whoever intentionally sheds human blood. He has poured blood and therefore his blood should be shed and there why because I have because every single human being is made in the image of God. Over here he's telling us about the laws until now he was telling about when God will take revenge on a person who kills another person. Over here God is telling us the laws pertaining capital punishment and he says as follows verse number six this before was said about death that was only in the hands of heaven but if there are witnesses that see this individual kill another person and he's able to be brought to the best into rabbitical court and they can then make him be guilty you have to kill him. Why do you have to kill him? Why is there an obligation to kill a murderer? Why? As he continues in the verse, because God made every person in the image of God. As he continues, God made the human being. This is missing a few words in this verse because he's explaining the previous statement. And it should have been if you want to fill in the words is as follows. Meaning who made this human being? God made every single human being in the image of God. We find a lot of times we see that the verse is missing up uh part so to speak. It's written shortand and we have to fill in the blanks. So over here he doesn't though he doesn't explain clearly who's the one that does the action. This is the blank that we have to fill in that if a person kills somebody then the best has to take the responsibility and kill the murderer. There should not be any murderers around as every single person was created in the image of God. And now God tells Noah and his family, continue to be fruitful and multiply continue to bring life into the world and make it populous. What is this now? Why does the Torah repeat it again? So verse 7 Rashi tells us doesn't it say before ready they shall multiply and be fruitful according to the simple interpretation it means the first time the first one was giving them a blessing that they should have children and over here is a commandment that they should actually get busy with bringing and having children according to the medish this is to compare and to show the importance and the severity of the being that we were just told about the severity and and the uh warnings and the punishment of murdering somebody. Therefore, he says this compares us that somebody that does not involve himself with procreating and bringing people into the world that'sin to murder. This concludes the fourth Torah reading of Noah.