"This is How You Should Make It"

 Text: Rabbi David Hanania Pinto 

"This is how you should make it" [Noach 6:15]

Chazal expound [Mechilta Shemot 12:2] on the verse, "This month shall be for you", that the wording 'this' teaches that Moshe Rabbeinu found it hard to grasp how the moon should appear at the beginning of the month until Hashem showed him an image of what it should look like. We also find this expression concerning making the Menorah, as it says, "This is the workmanship of the Menorah", and similarly concerning the mitzvah of giving half a shekel it says, "This shall they give. All these expressions share the same sentence structure, with the word "this" implying that Hashem showed them with His finger, meaning Hashem had to show Moshe the form because it was a complicated matter.

According to this, it is hard to understand what difficulty Noach had with building the Teivah. Did it require a special expertise that Noach could not fathom how to build it, to the extent that Hashem had to show him? From the wording of the verse "This is how you should make it", it is clear that Hashem showed him an image of how it should look. However, what was the difficulty in building a simple Teivah? If one wishes to say that maybe Noach was not proficient in the art of creating, it cannot be, for his father Lemech named him so saying, "This one will bring us rest (ינחמנו ) from…the toil of our hands" [Bereishit 5:29]. Rashi explains that this was said in reference to the invention of farming tools (which brought them relief), which was attributed to Noach. This shows us that Noach was skilled in construction, if so it seems surprising that Hashem had to show him an image of how the Teivah should look. The main goal of the Teivah was that it should be a place of refuge for men and animals, it contained no inherent intentions or difficult-to-understand allusions, so what was Noach's difficulty? 

With siyata dishmaya I would like to suggest that Noach's difficulty was in grasping how the Teivah could contain and accommodate all the animals, seven of each pure species and two of each impure species, while the size of the Teivah was, in all, only three hundred amot in length and fifty amot in width (approx. 150 x 25 meters). Besides, how would there be room in the Teivah for enough provisions for each animal for an entire year? Noach also grappled with the difficulty of being able to nourish, on his own, all the numerous animals in the Teivah. Some animals eat in the morning, some in the afternoon, and others at night. If so, this would hardly leave time for him to rest! 

Furthermore, how would the Teivah itself survive the boiling waters of the Flood and not fall apart from the extreme heat which rose to several thousand degrees? How would the pitch with which the Teivah was covered, not melt? Noach was also commanded to make a window for the Teivah, as it says [Noach 6:16], "A window shall you make for the Ark". Why was the door of the Teivah not enough? And concerning the re'eim (a giant beast) and Og king of the Bashan (a giant), Noach wondered how they would manage to enter the Teivah due to their size. Chazal tell us [Zevachim 113b] that a miracle was performed for the re'eim and Og, and the waters at the side of the Teivah cooled down and that is where they stood. Pirkei D'Rabbi Eliezer [Chapter 23] brings that Og king of the Bashan sat on one of the steps of the ladders of the Teivah and swore to Noach and his sons that he will be an eternal slave to them. What did Noach do? He punctured a hole at the side of the Teivah through which he sent food to Og every day, and that is how he survived, as it says, "For only Og king of the Bashan was left of the remaining Rephaim" [Devarim 3:11]. All these quandaries made it hard for Noach to understand how to proceed with making the Teivah. 

So Hashem showed and taught him how to build the Teivah, together with strengthening his great faith in Hashem Yitbarach. With each board of wood, Noach pledged his faith and trust in Hashem that He will sustain the Teivah, and annulled his own intellect and understanding of how his construction of the Teivah will help save him and the world. Only through the power of the great faith that he had in the Creator, were those miracles performed for him and he both survived and endured life in the Teivah. For had he built the Teivah while his heart was full of doubts in Hashem, then G-d forbid the Teivah would not have survived and this could have endangered the entire world. Therefore, Hashem had to guide him in constructing the Teivah so that it should be built without reservations and with complete faith in Hashem, and indeed Noach believed wholly in the Creator of the World. Even though Chazal tell us that Noach's faith was less than perfect as he believed and did not believe that the Flood would come to the world. No doubt only because of his elevated level, Heaven was more meticulous with him but certainly, he possessed great faith and the proof is that the Teivah did not sink and he and all those with him in the Teivah were saved. 

This teaches us that Hashem performs miracles for a person in accordance with the degree of his faith. This is the implication of "Hashem is your protective Shade at your right hand" [Tehillim 121:5]. Trust and faith in Hashem are comparable to a person's shadow. Just as if a person straightens up one finger opposite his shadow he will see only one finger, and if he lifts up his entire hand, he will see the reflection of his entire hand, so it is the same with trust in Hashem. If one has a small amount of faith in Hashem, He shows him a small amount of His Divine Providence, and if he has great faith, he experiences a great measure of Divine Providence. 

In conclusion, the foundation upon which the world is based, is faith and trust in Hashem. This is the meaning of "But the righteous person shall live through his faith" [Chabakuk 2:4]. May it be His will that we strengthen ourselves greatly in this holy approach of faith and trust in Hashem Yitbarach, Amen v'Amen.