창세기 7:17 해설: Rashi, Chizkuni, Kli Yakar & Radak

ותרם מעל הארץ AND IT WAS LIFTED UP ABOVE THE EARTH — It was eleven cubits deep in the water like a laden ship that has part of it sunk in the waters (Genesis Rabbah 32:9); the following verses prove that this is the meaning.

ויהי המבול ארבעים יום, “the deluge lasted for 40 days;” how do we square this with verse 12 according to which the rain had continued for 40 days? We must assume that matters which had not been spelled out in the earlier verse have now been added, i.e. that after a period of 40 days of continuous rain and other manifestations of the deluge, the ark began to rise from its site. We find a similar construction in verse 19 where the waters are described as covering the mountains, after the Torah had first given details about the gradual inundation of high places on earth by the waters of the deluge. Had we only read verse 18 and the first half of verse 19, we would not have been able to imagine the extent of the flooding.

Forty days. [This corresponds to] their worship of idolatry, for one who acknowledges idolatry is considered as if he denies the entire Torah which was given over forty days. And [it also corresponds to] their sexual immorality, for they burdened their Creator to form the shape of illegitimate children over forty days. And [it corresponds to] theft, because the numerical value of the word gezel [theft] is forty.