17 Oct PARSHAS NOACH: DID THE ANIMALS COME OR DID NOACH HAVE TO BRING THEM?

G-d told Noach “And
from every clean
animal take unto you
(tikach lach)…”
[Bereishis 7:2]. Just a
few pasukim later we
read: “Two by two they
came to Noach (ba-u el Noach) into the
Teyva…” [Bereishis 7:9]. There seems to be a
discrepancy here. One pasuk indicates that
Noach is supposed to bring the animals into the
Teyva, the other pasuk indicates they came on
their own. The Ramban, in his commentary on
Chumash, raises this question. The Ramban
asks, “How did it really happen? Did the
animals come or did Noach have to go round
them up?” The Ramban raises this question in
two places and gives two different answers.
However in Chapter 6 Verse 20, the Ramban
says that the non-Kosher animals came on their
own, but Noach had to round up the Kosher
animals.
The Ramban explains that the non-Kosher
animal’s purpose in coming to the Teyva was
entirely a matter of self-preservation. They
came (two of each kind) in order that they
would be able to perpetuate their species in the
post Flood world. However, the Kosher
animals (of which 7 pairs were to be taken
aboard the Teyva) were brought aboard so that

they (at least some of them) could be offered as
sacrifices upon an altar following the exit from
the Teyva. Here, G-d did not give them the
instinctual drive to gravitate toward the Teyva
and hence, toward their ultimate slaughter. In
the case of the Kosher animals, Noach had to
round them up and coax them to come aboard.

G-d places certain instincts for self-
preservation within various species. Why do

salmon, who have been in the Pacific Ocean
for 3 years, suddenly decide to make it all the
way back to some little river in Alaska to
spawn and die there? Why do beavers build
dams? The Almighty put — through nature —
instincts into animals that are necessary for
their survival. They do not go to school. They
know these things instinctively, because that is
the way the Holy One Blessed be He created
the world.
The Ramban explains that for the same reason,
all the non-Kosher animals, one day,
instinctively, showed up at the door of the
Teyva. G-d placed the instinct within them to
make them gravitate to that location. But, says
the Ramban, G-d only places within an animal
an instinct that is good for that animal. G-d
does not put within animals an instinct to show
up at the entrance of the Teyva so that in 13-15
months they should be slaughtered. That would
not be fair. That would not be “yashar”.

G-d is teaching us a lesson. We must be careful
to do things that are right, that are “yashar”.
This is the way G-d made His Creation and this
is the way He wants man to act. This is one of
the recurring themes of the Book of Bereishis.
The Talmud [Avodah Zarah] calls the book of
Bereishis, Sefer HaYashar [The Book of the
Just], based on the fact that its main heroes are
Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov who are called
“yesharim” [righteous individuals].
In his introduction to his commentary on the
book of Bereishis, Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehdah
Berlin (The Netzi”v) writes that G-d is Just and
He does not tolerate “righteous people who are
not themselves just”. This is one of the great
praiseworthy traits of the patriarchs. Besides
the fact that they were righteous and pious and
lovers of G-d, they were also “yashar” [straight;
just] individuals. The Yiddish word which
describes what they were is “mentchen”.
The Netziv elaborates that as a result of their
characteristic trait of being “yashar,” they were
respected and even beloved by the Gentiles
amongst whom they lived and with whom they
interacted. The Gentiles were not impressed by
them eating only “yashan” or wearing
“Rabbeinu Tam’s Tefillin” or by how much
they paid for their esrogim or by any other type
of meticulous piety the Avos may have
practiced. Rather, the Gentiles recognized

honesty and integrity when they saw it. This is
what the Avos practiced. This is what brought
them respect and admiration from the Nations.
This is why they were called Yesharim [straight
individuals]. This is how they influenced the
whole world of their day.
At every opportunity throughout the Book of
Bereishis, the Almighty teaches us importance
of being “Yashar”. Included in this modeling
of “straightness” is G-d’s refusal to put an
instinct into an animal which would cause
them to march towards their own future
slaughter.
Bilaam was jealous of this attribute which the
Patriarchs and their descendants had and he did
not: “Let my soul die the death of the Yesharim”
[Bamidbar 23:10]. The Torah later legislates
“You shall do that which is straight and good
(yashar v’tov) [Devorim 6:18]. This pasuk is
the answer to the ubiquitous question “Where
is it written that I am not allowed to…?” This
command, which later appears in the book of
Devorim, is first modeled for us by the
Patriarchs, and even before that by Hashem
Himself in the Book of Bereishis.