There’s much discussion about Noah in the commentaries. The Torah states explicitly that he was a tzaddik, a noble distinction not attributed to many others. And yet, the Talmudic sages debate the extent of his righteousness. Was it objective or subjective? Absolute or relative? Was he only a tzaddik compared to his corrupt generation, or would he have measured up to the Biblical giants like Abraham and Moses?
And then, when the Flood begins and Noah and his family enter the Ark, the Torah says they went in “because of the flood waters.” This can be understood simply, or, as Rashi interprets, that Noah was a man of “small faith.” He struggled with his belief; he wasn’t entirely convinced that there would really be a flood at all. It was only when the water started coming down in torrents that he was forced to concede and enter the Ark.
In the haftarah, the prophet Isaiah describes the Flood as “the waters of Noah.” The Sages explain that although he was the most righteous man of his generation, Noah bore some responsibility for the Flood. Why? Because he could have done more to persuade his contemporaries to repent and to give up their evil ways of immorality, robbery, and corruption. Noah wasn’t into outreach. He just stood there building his Ark and answered questions he was asked directly, but he didn’t really go out of his way to try and change the mindset of the people around him. Had he done so, he might well have changed the situation and saved the world.
So how do we reconcile the Torah itself describing Noah as a tzaddik, a righteous man, and the Biblical commentaries telling us that Noah was, in fact, lacking in faith? Moreover, G‑d spoke to Noah directly, which makes it even harder to understand!
Perhaps rather than lacking faith in G‑d, Noah lacked faith in humanity. Would anybody really listen to him if he did go out and try to persuade them? A leopard never changes his spots. You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. People don’t change. There’s no hope. It’s a waste of time. Why bother?
Like the story of the two old Jews who would meet and sit on the park bench every afternoon. And they would usually argue. About what? About everything. About the state of the world, about Israel, about politics. You know, the usual.
One fellow is the eternal optimist, and the other always the pessimist.
One day the pessimist looks at the optimist and says to him, “If you’re such an optimist, how come you look so anxious today?”
His friend answers, “You think it’s easy to be an optimist these days?!”
Noah was a pessimist. He saw the world was in such a mess, there was just no hope and no point in even trying. He had no faith in humanity.
But there’s also a third interpretation of Noah’s lack of faith.
It wasn’t that he lacked faith in G‑d, or in humanity, but according to Reb Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, Noah lacked faith in himself!
He lacked the confidence in his own capacity to make a difference, to influence, inspire, and be an engine of change.
Noah thought too little of himself. He lacked self-confidence and faith in his own abilities.
If we don’t have self-belief, we will never achieve anything meaningful in life.
Please G‑d, we will all learn from Noah. To believe in G‑d, to believe in humanity, and perhaps most important to our success in life, to believe in ourselves.
-adapted from www.chabad.org
