Parasha Overview: Noach (Videos)
Noah (or Noe, Noach; Hebrew: נֹחַ, נוֹחַ, Modern Noaẖ Tiberian Nōăḥ; Arabic: نوح Nūḥ; Greek: Νωέ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the tenth and last of the antediluvian Patriarchs. The biblical story of Noah is contained in chapters 6–9 of the book of Genesis, where he saves his family and representatives of all animals from the flood by constructing an ark.
The Torah said at that time that the earth turned out to be filled with wickedness and God wanted to destroy it, but that Noach found favor in God’s eyes. This parsha continues the story of Noach. God tells Noach that He will bring a mabul (flood) to destroy all that lives, but that Noach and his family will survive.
Note: On the Shabbat the Torah Reading is divided into 7 sections. Each section is called an Aliya [literally: Go up] since for each Aliya, one person “goes up” to make a bracha [blessing] on the Torah Reading. Here are this week`s aliyot:
1st Aliya: Noach, a righteous man, is introduced in contrast to a generation that "has perverted its ways". HaShem instructs him to build, and outfit the Ark. Rashi says that it took Noach 120 years to build the tevah so that people would see Noach building it, and ask why. He would tell them that God was going to bring a mabul, and this would give the people the opportunity to repent.
2nd Aliya: Noach is told to enter the Ark along with all the animals. On Cheshvan 17, 1656 – October 27, 2106 b.c.e the flood began.
HaShem told him to build an enormous Ark to preserve Noah, his family, and at least two of every kind of land animal and flying creature. For centuries scoffers have mocked this account, claiming that it was impossible for the Ark to hold two of every kind (not two of every variety). It is better to say that the ark carried two animals we might call ‘dogs,’ from which, after the flood, all the above-mentioned varieties have come.
3rd Aliya: For 40 days and nights the waters increased, destroying all living things. The water raged upon the surface of the earth for 150 days, and then diminished for the next 150. On Nissan 17, May 23, the Ark rested upon Mt.Ararat. Noach sends out the Raven and then the Dove, and on Cheshvan 27,October 27, exactly 1 solar year after it began, the earth was dry.
4th Aliya: Noach and his family exit the Tevah, and offer sacrifices to HaShem. Here God gives mankind permission to eat meat, but not the flesh of a living animal. The prohibition of murder is also given here.
5th Aliya:HaShem promises to never again destroy the world and designatesthe rainbow as the symbol of that covenant.
6th Aliya:The story of Noach, the vineyard, and the subsequent blessings and curses is related. The descendants of Cham, Yefet, and Canaan are listed.
7th Aliya:The story of the Tower of Babel in 1996 and Nimrod’s world dominance is told. The 10 generations of Shem, culminating in the introduction of Avram and Sarai, are listed. The year is 2023. Note that Avram was 48 years old when the Tower of Babel took place and he was 56 years old when Noach died.
At the end of this aliyah, the Torah gives the descendants of Shem. Included in these descendants are Terach, Avraham avinu’s father, and Avram, who will later become Avraham. And here Avram marries Sarai and they are childless.
Categories: Parasha Noach, Torah, Torah Video
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