Comentário sobre Gênesis 8:5

בעשירי וגו' נראו ראשי ההרים IN THE TENTH MONTH … WERE THE TOPS OF THE MOUNTAINS SEEN —This was Ab which is the tenth from Marcheshvan when the rain began. If, however, you say that it means Elul, the tenth month from Kislev in which the rain stopped, just as you said (see Rashi on verse 4) that “in the seventh month” means Sivan which was the seventh month after the rain stopped, then I reply that it is impossible to argue so. For you must needs admit that the “seventh” month when the Ark rested can only be counted from the time when the rain stopped, since the 40 days during which the rain fell and the 150 days during which the waters prevailed did not terminate until the first day of Sivan, and if you say that it means the seventh after the rain began to fall, this would not be Sivan. The “tenth month”, however, when the tops of the mountains became visible cannot possibly be counted except from the time the rain began to fall, for if you say that it must be calculated from the time when it stopped, which would be Elul, you would not then find that “in the first month, on the first day of the month the waters dried up from off the earth” (Genesis 8:13). For it was only at the end of 40 days after the tops of the mountains were visible that he sent forth the raven (Genesis 8:6), and he waited periods amounting altogether to 21 days during which he was sending forth the dove, making altogether 60 days from when the tops of the mountains became visible until when the face of the earth became dry; if, therefore, you say that it was in Elul that they were seen, it would follow that the earth became dry in Marcheshvan (60 days after Elul). But it (Scripture) calls it (the month when the waters were dried up; Genesis 5:13) the first month, and that can only be Tishri which is the first month reckoning according to the creation of the world — or according to R. Joshua, it would be Nisan (Genesis Rabbah 30:6).

AND THE WATERS DECREASED CONTINUALLY UNTIL THE TENTH MONTH. This verse is to be interpreted by transposition: the waters decreased continually until the tops of the mountains were seen in the tenth month, which is the month of Tammuz. Scripture thus informs us that during seventy-three days¹⁴⁰From the seventeenth of Nisan, which marked the end of the 150 days during which the waters prevailed, as explained above in Verse 4, to the first day of Tammuz. the waters decreased fifteen cubits.¹⁴¹See above, 7:20. But we do not know the amount of the original decrease which enabled the ark to rest since Scripture did not find it necessary to inform us either of the number of cubits that the ark was submerged in the waters or of the amount of the decrease.
In the matter of the floating of the ark, it appears to me that because the waters flowed from the deeps and were hot, as our Rabbis have said,¹⁰⁰Sanhedrin 108b. the ark therefore floated upon the face of the waters. Were it not for that, it would have sunk on account of its weight for there were many living things in it, as well as a great deal of food and drink. But as soon as the waters subsided from their flowing or from their heat and they decreased on account of the wind, the ark at once entered into the midst of the waters due to the weight of its load, and it rested on the mountain.
In the opinion of the commentators,¹⁴²Ibn Ezra and R’dak. See my Hebrew commentary, p. 59. the Scriptural accounts concerning the total of one hundred and fifty days during which the waters prevailed, the resting of the ark, the visibility of the tops of the mountains and the succeeding forty days — all these events we know by way of prophecy for Scripture so informs us, but Noah knew only that he felt that the ark had rested, and he waited a period of time which, in his opinion, was sufficient for the waters to abate.
Now according to our words, as well as those of our Rabbis and all commentators, the mountains of Ararat, which are among the highest mountains under the heavens, had fifteen cubits of water above their summit.¹⁴³Above, 7:20. Therefore this difficulty is to be posed: it is known that the Greek mountain Olympus is very much higher than they, and the land of Ararat, which is near Babylon,¹⁴⁴See Ramban further 11:2. lies in the lower part of the globe! Perhaps we should then say that the decrease of waters which took place on the seventeenth day of the seventh month¹⁴⁵That is, the seventeenth day of Nisan, on which date the ark rested. was very much more than fifteen cubits, and at first the tops of the high mountains were seen, not the mountains of Ararat, and it just happened that the ark was in the land of Ararat during the seventh month and it rested on the tops of those mountains.
Now Noah, from the time the rains ceased, would open and close the window at his will. Seventy-three days¹⁴⁰From the seventeenth of Nisan, which marked the end of the 150 days during which the waters prevailed, as explained above in Verse 4, to the first day of Tammuz. after the resting of the ark he looked forth from the window and the tops of the mountains of Ararat were visible to him, and he again closed the window. Scripture then relates that forty days later he sent forth the raven. Scripture does not say, “and it was in such-a-month and on such-a-day that Noah opened the window,” but instead it says, And it came to pass at the end of forty days,¹⁴⁶Verse 6. in order to declare that from the time the tops of the mountains were seen by Noah, he waited forty days for he thought that by then the towers would be seen and the trees would become visible and the fowls would thus find in them a place to nest, and so he opened the window in order to send forth the raven. In the first month, which is the month of Tishri, the waters were dried up,¹³⁸Verse 13. and in the second month, which is the month of Marcheshvan, on the twenty-seventh day thereof, was the earth dry,¹⁴⁷Verse 14. and on that day they went out of the ark. Thus all calculations of the section are in accordance with the simple explanation of Scripture and its usual sense.
Know that after the Sages agreed that it was in the month of Tishri that the world was created¹⁴⁸In Tractate Rosh Hashana, 11 a, it is recorded that there was a difference of opinion on this matter. Rabbi Eliezer maintained that the world was created in Tishri while Rabbi Yehoshua taught that the world was created in the month of Nisan. The consensus of the Sages conformed with Rabbi Eliezer’s view (ibid., 27 a). This is the intent of Ramban’s saying here: “Know that after the sages agreed, etc.” See also Ramban further, 17:26. — as [is evidenced by the text of the prayer for the New Year which] they formulated, i.e., “This day, on which was the beginning of Thy work, is a memorial of the first day,” and by the fact that the Scriptural order of the seasons is seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat¹⁴⁹Further, Verse 22. Thus the winter precedes the summer. — that the beginning of the year is reckoned from Tishri. And so also were the months reckoned from Tishri until we reached the exodus from Egypt. Then the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded us to reckon the months according to another count, [namely, from the going forth from Egypt, which occurred in the month of Nisan], as it is said, This month shall be unto you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.¹⁵⁰Exodus 12:2. Thenceforth in all of Scripture, Tishri is reckoned as the seventh month. But as far as the years are concerned, the reckoning from Tishri was still retained, as it is written, And the feast of ingathering at the turn of the year.¹⁵¹Ibid., 34:22. And so did Jonathan the son of Uziel¹⁵²A disciple of Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai and one of the early Tannaitic sages. He wrote a Targum or Aramaic version of the books of the Prophets. It is similar in scope to that of Onkelos on the Five Books of Moses. translate the verse, In the month of Eithanim which is the seventh month,¹⁵³I Kings 8:2. saying, “in the month which the ancients called the first month and which is now the seventh month.” And in the Mechilta we also find:¹⁵⁴Mechilta, Exodus 12:2. “This month [Nisan] shall be unto you. But the first man did not reckon by it; [he reckoned Tishri as the first month].”

והמים הלוך וחסור. The waters kept ebbing away. Part of the water retreated whereas part still flooded the earth until the tenth month.

והמים היו הלוך וחסור, the waters kept receding. This construction is not unique, as we encounter it in Ezekiel 1,34 והחיות רצוא ושוב.

והמים היו הלוך וחסור עד החודש העשירי בעשירי וגו', “and the waters had been in a steady retreat until the tenth month; on the tenth day of that month, etc.” This verse sounds like the kind of verse our sages describe as מסורס, “truncated,” and its meaning is that the waters had kept receding until the time when the tops of the mountains had become visible in the tenth month; the Torah informs us that during these 73 days the level of the water fell by 15 cubits. This contrasts with the first period during which the water level fell, as a result of which there occurred the landing of the ark on top of Mount Arrarat. We do not know how many cubits the water level had fallen then, nor do we know how deeply the ark had sat beneath the surface of the waters. It was of no concern to us. Personally, I believe that the fact that the ark was floating was due to the current created by the subterranean wells which had opened up. Had it not been for this, the extreme weight of the ark, caused by both the great number of passengers and the tremendous amount of food stored within it, would have resulted in the ark sitting pretty much in the same spot during all this time. As soon as the current of the subterranean wells subsided, and these waters had returned to their former habitat, and the wind which G’d had sent ceased, the ark, in accordance with the laws of physics, settled more deeply in the water and struck solid rock (foundered) on Mount Arrarat. Note that both according to our understanding and according to the understanding of our sages in the Midrash, as well as in accordance with the various commentators who have laboured over our chapter, Arrarat is one of the tallest mountains in the region, and the waters of the deluge covered its peak to a depth of at least 15 cubits. This “axiom” is difficult to comprehend, as according to general agreement Mount Olympus is considerably higher than Mount Arrarat. The Arrarat mountain range is located close to the valley within which Bagdad is situated. [modern cartographers give the height of Mount Olympus as 2917 meters, and that of Arrarat as 5122 meters. Ed.] Perhaps the Torah meant to tell us that prior to the 17th of the seventh month the ark was far more than 15 cubits above the tallest mountain, and that other higher mountain tops had been visible already before then but that by that time the waters had receded so much that even Mount Arrarat, though far lower, was already capable of arresting the movement of the ark. Noach had opened the window of the ark ever since the rains had stopped (after the first 40 days) closing it at will from time to time. After the 73 days when the ark had become stationary, Noach used the window to look out and observe what was happening around him. When he perceived the tops of high mountains all around him, he closed the window and waited for another 40 days before checking on his surroundings again. 40 days later he dispatched the raven. You will note that the Torah did not write “Noach opened the window, etc.,” but merely that this event occurred at the end of a period of 40 days. This is to tell us that the raven was dispatched 40 days after the tops of other mountains had become visible. Noach had hoped that enough time had elapsed to reveal the tops of the trees, (on mountains below the tree line) If correct, he thought to release the birds, as there would be a habitat available for them once more. The raven was released on the first of Tishrey when for the first time חרבה הארץ, the surface of the earth was earth instead of water, although the earth dried out sufficiently only in the second month. At that time (17th of Marcheshvan) Noach and his passengers left the ark at G’d’s command. There is a minor difficulty with Nachmanides’ description, in that he perceives the tops of the mountains having become visible before the first of the tenth month, seeing that the Torah writes specifically that these mountain tops became visible on the first of the month. Nachmanides’ saying that these words refer once more to Mount Arrarat is difficult to accept.

If you might say... Elul. Furthermore, we could not learn that the ark was immersed eleven amohs if “In the tenth, on the first of the month” means Elul. For from Sivan 1 until Elul 1 there are ninety days, thus the water receded one amoh every five or six days. Accordingly, the ark would have been immersed twelve and a third amohs.

עד החודש העשירי, this does not mean that during this month the waters had already receded completely; what happened was that the waters receded progressively until relatively low mountain tops became visible. The process continued further. The “tenth” month described was the month of Av, seeing it was the tenth, counting from the month of Marcheshvan when the rains had started falling.

“The tenth” can only be counted... For the ark did not come to rest until after the 40 days of rain and the 150 days of powerful waters were finished. And this was in Sivan, not in Iyar.

A total of sixty days from when the mountain peaks appeared... [You might ask: Why does it not total sixty-one? The answer is] that the forty days after [the mountains appeared] is counted from the very beginning of the forty days, producing thirty-nine full days [since one night is missing. See entries on v. 3]. With the twenty-one days of sending the dove, it makes sixty. Since Av and Elul together are only fifty-nine days, Rosh Chodesh Tishrei must be counted in the twenty-one days [of sending the dove.]