Parshas Noach: Fourth Aliyah
“bring out(hotzei)”: if they do not with to come out of the ark, you take them out.
“and they shall swarm upon the earth.”: But not in the ark. This teaches us that even the animals and fowl were prohibited from mating in the ark.
“from his youth”: from the time the embrio shakes himself (nin’er) to emerge from his mother’s womb, the evil inclination is placed in him.
“I will no longer..and I will no longer”: Hashem repeated the words to denote an oath. Isaiah 54:9 “That I swore that the waters of Noah shall never a gain pass over the earth.”
“seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease”: each of these 6 seasons has two months.
- seedtime: half of Tishri, Marcheshvan, half of Kislev
- cold: half of Kislev, Teves, and half of Shevas (more severe than winter)
- winter: the time for sowing barley and beans, which are early and ripen quickly. Half of Shevas, Adar and half of Nissan.
- harvest: half of Nissan, Iyar and half of Sivan.
- summer: half of sivan, Tamuz, and half of av. Time of the gathering of the figs and to dry them i nthe fields.
- heat: end of the sunny season. half of Av, elul and half of Tishri, when the world is the hottest. The end of the summer is more severe than the summer.
“and the day and night shall not cease”: this teaches us that they ceased during the Flood. The planets did not functioin and the day was indistinguishable from the night.
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“shall not cease”: all these shall not cease to perform according to their natural course.
When will your fear be upon the creatures? As long as you are alive. So animals do not fear a dead body.
For Noah and his descendants, Hashem permitted him to eat every moving thing that lives, including the vegetations. For the first man Adam, only vegetations and not meat was permitted.
“flesh with its soul.”: Hashem prohibited Noah and his descendants from eating a limb cut off from a living creature; as long as its soul is in it, one must not eat the flesh. If the limb was cut freom the animal while it was alive, it is forbidden to be eaten even after the animal dies.
“with its soul, its blood”: As long as it soul is within it.
“flesh with its soul…you shall not eat”: this refers to a limb of a living creature. “And also its blood” one must not eat. This refers to blood of a living creature.
Various prohibition on murder/bloodshed:
“But your blood”: Even though Hashem permitted humanity to take the life of animals, He will demand blood of the one who sheds his own blood, in other words if he commits suicide.
“of your souls”: Also one who strangles himeself, even though no blood was shed.
“from the hand of every beast”: Since the Generation of the Flood had sinned, and they were abandoned as prey or the wild beasts, which would have power over them. Therefore, it was necessary to warn the beasts about them [not to kill the humans].
“and from the hand of man”: From the hand of one who kills intentionally without witnesses, I will demand [his life].
“from the hand of each man, his brother”: From the hand of the one who loves him like a brother and killed him unintentionally. I will demand [punishment], if he does not go into exile nor beg that his iniquity be forgiven. For even the inadvertent sinner requires atonement. If there are no witnesses to sentence him to exile, and he does not humble himself, the Holy One blessed by He, will demand it of him.
“Whoever sheds the blood of man through man shall his blood be shed, for in teh image of G-d He made man.”
“And you, be fruitful and multiply”: the first mention in verse 1 was a blessing. This mention is a commandment. It is to compare one who does not engage in propagation to one who sheds blood.
