WHEN OBEDIENCE is not ENOUGH (8:15)
How did Noach,
who once walked with G-d,
now roll in the mud?
WHEN OBEDIENCE is not ENOUGH (8:15)
What shall we make of
Noach, one of the Bible’s more elusive characters? His introduction is full of
promise: “Noach was a righteous man, faultless in his generation. Noach
walked with G-d.” No one else in
Torah receives such accolades: not Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, or even Moses.
However, a mere three
chapters later, the narrative records Noach’s final project. “Noach began to
be a man of the soil, and he planted a vineyard...he became drunk and lay
uncovered in his tent. Cham...saw his father’s nakedness and told his two
brothers outside. But Shem and Yafes took a garment...and covered their
father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would
not see.”
Shem and Yafes may
have covered their father’s nakedness, but even they could not hide the
sad fact that their father who once walked with G-d now rolled in the
mud. How did such a man fall so low? This question has yielded a variety of
answers. Try this one on for size.
Once the waters had
abated, Noach should have left the ark. However, Noach thought, I only
entered with G-d’s permission when He said, “Go into the ark.” Shall I
leave on my own? The Holy One said, “You need permission? Very
well…Come out of the ark.” Rabbi Yehuda Bar Ilai said, “If I had been there
I would have broken down the ark to go out.” (Tanchuma)
To understand this
midrash one has to appreciate the anti-climax after the Deluge. G-d announces
the imminent destruction of life on earth. He orders an ark built, specifying
precise measurements and what must be brought on board. Civilization perishes;
those in the ark survive. When the waters recede we naturally expect Noach to
emerge. Instead, Noach seems stuck. First he sends out a raven; then a
dove. He waits seven days only to send
it out again. It returns with an olive leaf. Another week passes and the dove
is sent a third time. Even when it does not return, Noach does not quit the ark
until G-d Himself says, “Come out.”
The Midrash sounds
exasperated. A shattered world needs rebuilding, and you’re waiting for
permission! Can Noach not take the initiative?
But then, what does
Noach say when universal death is decreed; when he is told to make an
ark to save his family; when the rains begin to fall? Nothing. During the whole
sequence of events, Noach is not reported as saying a single word. Instead we
read, four times, of his silent obedience, “Noach did everything just as G-d
had commanded him.” Noach is the paradigm of biblical obedience. He does as
he is commanded. But that is not always enough.
One might reasonably
assume that for a life of faith, obedience is the highest virtue. Yet strangely
enough, despite the fact that the Torah contains 613 commands - there is no
Biblical word for ‘obey.’ Instead the Torah uses the word lishmoa -
to listen, hear, understand, or reflect. Judaism requires
something greater than mindless submission, it demands responsibility.
Thus the hero of our
faith is not Noach, but Abraham. The same Abraham who prayed for the wicked
people of Sodom
The difference between
Noach and Abraham is best reflected by the words, “Noach walked with G-d.”
A parable explains. A king had two sons, one grown up, the other a child. To
the child, he said, “Walk with me.” To the adult son he said, “Walk
before me.” So it was by Noach of whom the Torah says that he, “walked
with G-d.” But to Abraham, G-d said, “Because you are
wholehearted, walk before Me.” (Bereishis
Rabbah)
It takes courage to
rebuild a shattered world. Just ask
the brave women of ancient Egypt who defied Pharaoh’s decree of infanticide and
continued bearing children; or the valiant Jews who witnessed the destruction
of two Temples and their homeland, yet re-established flourishing communities
in exile; or the resolute Holocaust survivors who, against all odds, recreated
Jewish institutions of learning that no one imagined would attract any
‘customers’. Unlike Noach, they did not wait for Heaven to hold their hand or
give them permission.
We are the “Seed of Abraham.”
So claim your rightful place and go the front of the line. Take
responsibility for Judaism. Walk ahead, He won’t mind.
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