Parshas Noach- NOACH WAS A BIG TZADDIK

אלה תולדות נח נח איש צדיק תמים היה בדרתיו את האלקים התהלך נח “These are the generations of Noach — Noach was a righteous man, perfect in his generations; Noach walked with Hashem.”

בדרתיו — Rashi, quoting Chazal, notes two very different ways to understand the word בדרתיו. Some of Rabboseinu interpret it to Noach’s credit — kal vachomer, if he was a tzaddik even in such a corrupt generation, how much greater would he have been in a generation of tzaddikim! Others, however, interpret it to his discredit — that only relative to his generation was he considered righteous; had he lived in the time of Avraham Avinu, he would not have been regarded as anything exceptional (Sanhedrin 108a).

At first glance, this seems surprising. We are taught to always seek the good in others. The Mishnah in Avos (1:6) instructs, “והוי דן את כל האדם לכף זכות” — judge every person favorably. If the Torah itself calls Noach a tzaddik tamim, why would Chazal choose to characterize him as לא היה נחשב לכלום — of no importance?

Even more puzzling: Chazal in Pesachim and Bava Basra note that the Torah is exceedingly careful with its language. Rather than call a non-kosher animal tamei, the Torah uses the softer expression אינו טהור — “not pure.” And that principle, they note, is learned from our very parshah! If the Torah is so sensitive even with animals, how could we so quickly find fault in a person — especially in one the Torah itself describes as a tzaddik tamim?

And yet, the truth is that Noach is the only individual in all of Tanach explicitly called tzaddik. That’s no small title. So why do some voices among Chazal still read the pasuk critically?

A simple observation can already shed some light. Rashi writes that Rabboseinu interpret it to his credit — but when mentioning those who interpret it negatively, he omits that word. Perhaps, as some point out, only the Rabboseinu — the true chachamim — spoke positively; the negative view came from others.

The Apter Rav zt”l, as related to me by R’ Zale Newman, offers another beautiful thought: the one who judged Noach unfavorably was Noach himself. He looked back and said, “If I am such a tzaddik, why did I not manage to bring even one person to teshuvah?”

Perhaps, though, there’s another way to understand it.

If we look at the Torah itself, what do we actually know about the man Noach? Not much. He “walked with Hashem.” He was a farmer, a man of the earth — איש האדמה — human and imperfect, as seen later in the episode of the vineyard. He was also a man who “found chein b’einei Hashem.” That’s about it. There’s no mention of greatness in Torah knowledge, no leadership, no open miracles. And yet — through Noach, the entire world was saved.

Unlike the stories we heard as children about tzaddikim who learned Bavli and Yerushalmi backwards and forwards by the age of six, Noach was simple, ordinary. Perhaps davka for that reason, he’s the tzaddik that regular people can relate to — the one who shows that even a simple person can accomplish extraordinary things. He reminds us that greatness can come from anyone who stays true to Hashem, regardless of his past or his stature .

It’s also striking that in the Gemara, the two views about Noach come from Rav Yochanan and Reish Lakish. Rav Yochanan reads it as a discredit; Reish Lakish as a compliment. We know their story: Reish Lakish had once been the leader of the bandits, until Rav Yochanan drew him close and brought him to Torah. Perhaps that background explains their perspectives. Reish Lakish, as a baal teshuvah, could only see the greatness of a man who rises above his surroundings; to him, Noach could only be seen as a tzaddik, and chas veshalom to even mention anything of his past. Rav Yochanan, involved in kiruv his whole life, viewed it differently: he saw in Noach the simple man who, though limited, still rose to the level of Tzaddik in Hashem’s eyes.

Accordingly, Rav Yochanan made sure to mention that he was nothing special and yet, look what became of him. He focuses on mentioning the fact that Noach was just a regular person, because as he demonstrated with Reish Lakish, from even a regular person, we can end up singing “Noach was a big Tzaddik”.

Good Shabbos, מרדכי אפפעל