Musar su Genesi 7:26

The writer says: I have composed this work not to teach people what they do not know but to remind them of what they already know and which is very familiar to them. For you will find in most of my words only things which most people already know and do not have any doubt about.

ויהי ביום השמיני . Our sages (Bereshit Rabbah 42,4) have taught us a rule that whenever the Torah uses the expression ויהי, this is a reference to a painful experience. The sages are sometimes hard-pressed to demonstrate the validity of this dictum. Our question is why the Torah chooses to use an expression which points at something unpleasant when we are taught that elsewhere (Genesis 7,2) the Torah spent additional verbiage such as הבהמה אשר לא טהורה, "a category of animal which is not ritually pure," instead of simply saying בהמה טמאה, "an impure animal," merely to avoid referring expressly to something unpleasant?

ויהי ביום השמיני . Our sages (Bereshit Rabbah 42,4) have taught us a rule that whenever the Torah uses the expression ויהי, this is a reference to a painful experience. The sages are sometimes hard-pressed to demonstrate the validity of this dictum. Our question is why the Torah chooses to use an expression which points at something unpleasant when we are taught that elsewhere (Genesis 7,2) the Torah spent additional verbiage such as הבהמה אשר לא טהורה, "a category of animal which is not ritually pure," instead of simply saying בהמה טמאה, "an impure animal," merely to avoid referring expressly to something unpleasant?

And our Rabbis said (Pesachim 3a), “A person should never put out a disgraceful matter from his mouth; as a verse was distorted by eight letters rather than have it put out a disgraceful matter, as it is stated (Genesis 7:8), ‘From the pure animals and from the animals that are not pure.’” For at that time, the impure animals were permissible to eat but not pure for a sacrifice. Hence it is considered a disgraceful expression if one disgraces things that are for human food. And see that a man must be careful not to put out a disgraceful matter from his mouth - even if by his leaving it, it will bring him to speak at length and add to his statements. And it is like a fence to be careful from vulgar speech - which is one of the weighty sins. And [it is] also a fence from speaking evil speech and the placing of defects upon the creatures - as our Rabbis, may their memory be blessed, have said about the distancing of [disgraceful] speech (Bava Batra 123a), “The verse did not even speak in disgrace of impure animals.” And our Rabbis said (Pesachim 3b) that one of the priests said in front of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai, “I received [for] my portion, the size of a lizard’s tail.” They investigated his background, and they found a trace of disqualification about him.
And our Rabbis also said (Pesachim 3a) that a person must choose an honorable phrase [instead of using] a dishonorable phrase - even if it is not disgraceful - whether it is in words of Torah or in speaking about matters of the world. And this is so long as he does not speak at length for its sake when speaking words of Torah. For a person is obligated to teach his students in a terse fashion. And the matter of honorable phrases is the path of words and speech that was tread upon by those of clean intellect and those that speak with clarity. And they weigh and know which phrase is honorable and which is its opposite, as it is stated (Job 15:5), “And you choose the language of the crafty.” And it is stated (Job 33:3), “and that which my lips know they shall speak sincerely.” And it is stated (Proverbs 1:20), “The tongue of a righteous man is choice silver.”

'ויאמר ה' לנח בא אתה וגו. We learn from here that a guest does not have the right to enter his host's home unless invited to do so. Even Noach did not want to enter the ark until G–d the owner asked him to. Only then does the Torah report that Noach entered the ark.

כי אותך ראיתי צדיק. This teaches that one should not entertain a guest unless one had satisfied oneself that such a guest is a person of good name. We also learn from this short paragraph that a guest is not entitled to bring other guests with him without the host having expressed his consent. Noach needed special permission from G–d to bring along his family into the ark (Genesis 7,1).

And Sefer Charedim 51 states, in the name of the Midrash that the intent of the captain who was punished because he had said (II Kings 7:19): "Even [if] the L-rd made windows in the heavens, could such a thing happen?" — his intent was that the L-rd could certainly make it happen, but this generation was like the generation of the flood, deserving that the windows of heaven be opened [for evil], as there, viz. (Bereshith 7:11): "And the windows of heaven were opened." How is it possible that for such an evil generation as this such a great miracle [for good] could happen? And Elisha the prophet answered him that because he slandered Israel, he would see the miracle, but not eat (viz. II Kings, Ibid.)

This is the real meaning of "Noach found favor in the eyes of G–d, whereas G–d did not find." He stood out in his generation, since his generation did not respond to the exhortations, whereas Noach responded to G–d's "grace," i.e. וחנותי את אשר אחון. He had never become corrupt, nor was he put off by the failure of his fellow-men to heed him. Noach's contemporaries were ערלי לב, had uncircumcised hearts. When they did not respond to calls from above either, they demonstrated that they were also ערלי בשר, remained uncircumcised in their flesh and continued in their perversions. This is why both their bodies and their souls perished. This means that at the time of the resurrection their individual "files" will not be re-opened to determine if some of them qualify for another round of life on earth. Rabbi Aba in the Zohar, (Sullam edition page 75) comments as follows on Genesis 7,23: וימח את כל היקום … וימחו מן הארץ, "The words כל היקום אשר על פני האדמה, include all rulers past and present of the Gentile nations. Before G–d metes out retribution to the ordinary individual, He deals with those whose obligation it is to teach their subjects to be G–d-fearing, and who have failed to discharge their duties.

This is the real meaning of "Noach found favor in the eyes of G–d, whereas G–d did not find." He stood out in his generation, since his generation did not respond to the exhortations, whereas Noach responded to G–d's "grace," i.e. וחנותי את אשר אחון. He had never become corrupt, nor was he put off by the failure of his fellow-men to heed him. Noach's contemporaries were ערלי לב, had uncircumcised hearts. When they did not respond to calls from above either, they demonstrated that they were also ערלי בשר, remained uncircumcised in their flesh and continued in their perversions. This is why both their bodies and their souls perished. This means that at the time of the resurrection their individual "files" will not be re-opened to determine if some of them qualify for another round of life on earth. Rabbi Aba in the Zohar, (Sullam edition page 75) comments as follows on Genesis 7,23: וימח את כל היקום … וימחו מן הארץ, "The words כל היקום אשר על פני האדמה, include all rulers past and present of the Gentile nations. Before G–d metes out retribution to the ordinary individual, He deals with those whose obligation it is to teach their subjects to be G–d-fearing, and who have failed to discharge their duties.

Rebeccah concluded that there was no point in living a life that was measured by the yardstick of the undiluted מדת הדין, seeing that hardly anyone could survive if he were to be measured by that attribute alone. This is why she said: קצ-תי בחיי, i.e. what good is my life under such circumstances! (Genesis 27,46) Unless some relief is found for the rest of the world's population this is the end of meaningful life. She referred to the tribe of חת, a Canaanite tribe whose daughters Esau had married. Seeing that the Canaanites were cursed already and that Esau himself was an outgrowth of the סטרא אחרא, she considered the combination as lethal, bound to lead to the oblivion of their offspring. Because of such considerations, the name that should by rights have been קצחי was changed to יצחק, to introduce the element of joy into their lives. The immediate cause for this was Isaac giving tithes which resulted in G–d blessing his efforts, as related in 26,12. It is strange that when Malachi 3,10 describes the blessing that results from tithing, he uses the expression of ארובות השמים, "the windows of heaven." Since the Torah uses the same expression at the onset of the deluge in Genesis 7,11, we wonder why the prophet would use an expression to symbolize blessing when that same expression had symbolized a curse on mankind in its prior usage in the Bible.

We have explained in our commentary on בראשית, that the letter מ is an allusion to the מלאך המות, angel of death. Keeping this in mind, one may view the moral challenge of the ark i.e. מגדל, to Noach: the hope that he should be man enough when descending from the “מ” of that מגדול to become גדול, morally equivalent to what the last letter in that word גדול represents, and to thereby be able to overcome the power of the angel of death. In other words, he should fulfil the promise inherent in נח איש צדיק תמים, to be not only righteous but "perfect." The ark would then have become equivalent to the ultimate Temple, the מגדל עז, whose glory will outshine that of the previous Temples. He, Noach, would have been the צדיק that is described in Proverbs 18,10 as being elevated.

It is written, “And let your camp be holy” (Devarim 23:15). Just as there is a border surrounding the various hosts and camps of the Shechinah, all of whom are called “holy,” so too the body and limbs of a human being comprise a “camp,” which if sanctified is also called the “camp of the Shechinah.” Thus it is written, “And I will be sanctified in the midst of (or “within”) the children of Israel” (Vayikra 22:32), and “I will dwell among (or “within”) them” (Shemos 25:8). But if a person heads in a bad direction he brings into himself the camp of the Sitra Achara. Therefore one should develop the habit of reciting this brief prayer: “Master of the Universe! Cause me to merit becoming a throne for the Shechinah!” For when the body is sanctified it becomes the throne of the Shechinah, which has a tremendous longing to settle upon the bodies of the righteous, whereas if a person perverts his ways the opposite occurs, Heaven forbid. This is concept is mentioned in the Zohar (Parashas Noach 68b) in connection with the verse, “And the [water] bore up the ark and it was raised from upon the earth” (Bereishis 7:17): “That is, when there are sinners in the world the Shechinah abandons the earth.” The Shechinah is called an “ark” — teivah — because if one changes the order of the letters of the word teivah (תיבה) it spells out the words Beis H[ashem] (בית ה') — the “House of Hashem.” The same passage elaborates on some of the ways in one can sanctify the body, the primary one being through studying Torah as much as possible. It is especially important to study at night, just before going to sleep. Thus it is related in Midrash HaNe’elam (Zohar Chadash 30b) in the name of Rabbi Yehudah: “Every night Metat, the Prince of the Countenance, takes the souls of all who study Torah and displays them before the Holy One Blessed is He. The ministering angels delay singing their song of praise until the souls of the righteous join with them and then they all sing together to God On High.”

When Israel sins, the Shechinah abandons them and it is said, “And the Ark went up from upon the earth” (Bereishis 7:17). The Shechinah is referred to in the Zohar (1:68b) as the “Ark” [teivah] because letters of the word teivah [תיבה] also spell out the words Beis H’ [בית ה']. For this reason there are exactly 248 words in the Shema corresponding to the 248 limbs of the body so that when a person recites the Shema with concentration each word imparts sanctity to one of his limbs (Zohar Chadash 59a). This might cause someone to wonder why it is, then, that numerous individuals recite the Shema with great care and intention yet their limbs remain frail nevertheless. You must know, my son, that this matter is discussed in the Zohar in Parashas Shelach (168a). There it is explained that the human soul resembles a lamp. When a lamp does not burn properly the usual remedy is to shake it a bit, which causes the flame to burn more brightly and to shed light as it should. But this is only true if the lamp is of good quality, for if it is of poor quality, then on the contrary, shaking it will extinguish it!

Another problem is the meaning of the word במרמה, if meant in the sense of חכמה, as Rashi says. If Isaac wanted to use the word in that sense, why did he not say: בא אחיך בחכמה, instead of using the word מרמה? Our sages in Pessachim 3 explained that the Torah distorted eight letters in Genesis 7,8 in order not to have to use gross language such as the word בהמה טמאה. Why do we not find the same here? The Torah could have used the word חכמה in order to avoid the negative connotation of מרמה, deceit?