The story of Noach begins with this famous line: “Noach was a righteous man, perfect in his generations.” G-d sees that the earth has become corrupt and filled with violence. He instructs Noach to build an ark to save himself, his family, and pairs of animal species. After the flood, Noach sends a raven and then a dove to see if the land has dried. The dove comes back with an olive branch, and they emerge from the ark. Noach offers sacrifices, and G-d makes a covenant with Noach and all life: never again will a flood destroy the earth, and a rainbow is given as the sign of this eternal covenant. The parsha ends with the Tower of Babel, where humanity, speaking one language, seeks to build a tower to the heavens. G-d scatters them across the earth
Noach is the same root as “Menuchah” in the Friday song “…Shabbat Menucha”: meaning: Restful, Peaceful
The Torah details build; in meters was 135L x 23W x 14H, 3 decks, usable space ~21 tennis courts. Amazingly, (naval engineering), the ratios match modern cargo ships which endure very rough seas. Oil Tankers built by South Korea have almost identical dimensional ratios. But the Torah has missed an essential element: The rudder!
The UN’s symbol of peace popularised by Picasso in 1949, was directly inspired from our Parsha’s story.
The Olive tree is one of the most resilient species.
The rainbow appears only once in the Torah. The first universal symbol of covenant with humanity.
The Tower of Babel:There arearchaeological artefacts that link tower of Babel to the Mesopotamian ziggurats. Stepped towers built to reach the heavens.
Tzadik:There is a classic Jewish debate about “Tzadik” status of Noach. He’s the only person explicitly named Tzadik by Torah. Was Noach a Tzadik because everyone else was a corrupt people of his time? Or was he Tzadik regardless? Is Tzadik an absolute or a relative quality? Would Noach be Tazdik if he lived in Avraham’s time? R Sacks compares Noach & Avraham differently: He says, “Noach obeys G-d, but Avraham challenges him. Noach was righteous, but not a leader of moral protest.”
The Ark:TheTorah calls the ark: Teva. There’s one more Teva in Torah: the basket Moshe was left in! A Teva is a floating vessel that has zero navigation systems! Sages like Zohar & Sforno point out that this is a symbolism for giving up control, surrender and trust that you are in good hands.
Tower of Babel:I initially was confused. On the surface, the tower builder’s unity seems admirable: “one language, one purpose.” I reviewed 5 sources: The sin was not their ambition and technological advances, but their arrogance! They tried to establish an ideological, totalitarian tyranny with “ego” at the foundation and G-d dispersed and spread them.
Noach’s Integrity: He lived 950 years and spent 120 on the ark. Basically, he spent 13% of his life building a boat that he couldn’t even navigate, one step at a time, unsure about the outcome, and meanwhile being ridiculed. According to life expectancy figures in the UK, it means around 10 years of an average man today. Building with purpose takes time, integrity, endurance! Even when we stand alone! That’s the way of a Tzadik!
The Trauma Response: After the storm, Noach plants a vineyard, gets drunk from the wine, and collapses. An incredibly human behaviour. Two sons cover him with dignity, and one mocks him. The Sforno identifies this as post-traumatic event. Trauma Survivors often suffer similarly, in silence. The Torah teaches us: surviving is not the end of the story and healing needs dignified support. It’s a powerful reminder that we are collectively responsible to continue supporting freed hostages, bereaved families, and communities in the aftermath of the crisis.
The Tower: Ambition must be aligned with humility. Today we build towers of status and wealth. In doing so, do we just push everyone to speak the language of our arrogance and ego, or do we share dignified values?
This week, let us remember we may not have control over the floodwaters around us, but we can rise above the negativity by trusting the goodness within us. Let’s remind ourselves that healing takes time. Rebuilding takes courage. We don’t need to be perfect; only to take each step with integrity and humility. When we do, G-d will guide us toward peace and stability.
Survive, rebuild, sanctify. Shabbat Shalom.