Noach
=
N=
oah is one
of the most famous figures in biblical history. Almost everyone knows about
“Noah’s Ark”.
(However, I did learn recently that in a survey of young people, it was
believed that the wife of Noah was “Joan of Arc.”). Conventional wisdom tells us that =
Noah
was a man of faith and that he was spared death because he was a righteous =
man.
However, in the Jewish world there is a difference of opinion about Noah. To
some he was a “mensch”, a good man =
of
integrity; and to others he was righteous – but righteous compared to=
the
wickedness of his day. Hence the verse, Noah was a
righteous man, blameless in his time (Gen. 6:9). While there are many things about =
the
life of Noah that we could focus on, there are two observations that help u=
s to
appreciate this man who “walked with God” (6:9). First notice in verse 9-10 we read=
, These
are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blame=
less
in his time; Noah walked with God. <=
/span>10
Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The
Sages ask the question: Why does the text say that Noah was righteous direc=
tly
after introducing the section “these are the generations”? In other words, why not just go ri=
ght to
the names of the sons of Noah? Why say that Noah was a righteous man when
introducing the generations of Noah?
They answer by saying that the “children” or
“generations” or the “legacy” of Noah is righteousn=
ess.
The Rabbis make the application that the “children” of the
righteous are their good deeds. Our
children are what we le=
ave
behind when we are gone. They are our legacy. When I conduct funerals, I wi=
ll
often point to the surviving children as the legacy left behind. This aspec=
t of
our Torah portion should cause us to think about our own “legacy of g=
ood
deeds”. What will people remember about us? Will they remember our
righteous deeds? Will they remember our godly behavior? Noah lived in day o=
f great
violence. The Rabbis point out that this sin of “violence” is
greater than idolatry because it is man coming against man and making the w=
orld
a horrible place. It is in this context, that Noah is called righteous. His
legacy of righteous deeds is even more spectacular because the world was a =
very
violent place! Therefore, contrary to the statements about the relative
righteousness of Noah mentioned above, Noah’s righteousness in his ti=
me
makes him “very” righteous – not less. =
<=
o:p>
<=
span
style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> There is another=
aspect
of Noah’s life that is depicts a man who “walks with God”=
. In
Gen. 6:22 we read, Thus
Noah did; according to all that God had commanded him, so he did. The
Rabbis ask, “Why does the verse end with the words ‘so he
did’?” The only o=
ther
person who is described in this exact way is Moses. (See Ex. 40:16 and Num.
17:11). The Rabbis teach that these extra words indicate that the command w=
as
done completely (Ramban) and that the command w=
as
done selflessly – not for his own gain. It is interesting to note that whe=
n the
words are used of the faithfulness of Moses, it has to do with the
establishment of the Tabernacle and priesthood (Ex.40:16) and t=
he
preservation of the priesthood (Numbers 17:11). When used of Noah, it is in=
the
context of building the ark and preserving man and animals. In each case, the
command had to do with providing shelter from sin and judgment. Both Moses =
and
Noah were obedient in providing spiritual (and in Noah’s case physica=
l)
shelter and refuge at the command of God. The lesson for us is that we are
called to bring the message of salvation (shelter and refuge) to the violent
world around us. We could also apply this to providing physical safety for
people. This kind of obedient work is selfless. It is done only for the glo=
ry
and purpose of God. It is the way we “build” the kingdom of God.
<=
o:p>
<=
span
style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> A third way we o=
bserve
Noah as a man who “walked with God” was the fact that he was
obedient to the word of God without understanding what he was doing. Rememb=
er
that it had never rained yet. There was no such thing as an
“ark.” It reminds=
us of
Abraham who followed God from his family without knowing exactly where he w=
as
going. Can we be described as
people who “walk with God?” Do we leave a legacy of righteous
deeds? Are we serving God selflessly building and preserving the Kingdom of God in this world? Are we faithfully
being obedient to God regardless of our complete understanding of the will =
of
God? As we begin a new year of
Torah study, may our goal be to “walk with God” like Noah. By faith Noah, being warned by God =
about
things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his
household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the
righteousness which is according to faith.(Heb. 11:7)=
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o:p>
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o:p>
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