Text of the Haftorah of Noach – Yeshayahu 54:1 – 55:5

Leaving the Ark

The haftorah of Noach describes the rebuilding of Yerushalayim, symbolizing the redemption of the Jewish People as a whole. One of the points that the prophet makes is that once this stage of the redemption will be reached, God will not let Yerushalayim be destroyed again. To strengthen this point, the haftorah refers to God’s promise to Noach:

כִּי מֵי נֹחַ זֹאת לִי אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי מֵעֲבֹר מֵי נֹחַ עוֹד עַל הָאָרֶץ כֵּן נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי מִקְּצֹף עָלַיִךְ וּמִגְּעָר בָּךְ —

For it is like the waters of Noach to Me,as I swore not to let the waters of Noach pass over the land, so too I have sworn not to be angry at you, nor to chastise you. (Yeshayahu 54:9)

God had sworn to Noach that there will never be another flood, and He kept that promise. Now, He swears that He will never again destroy Yerushalayim in anger, and we can expect Him to keep this promise as well.

This appears to be a very clear and obvious connection between the haftorah and Parashas Noach: the promise to Noach parallels the promise to Yerushalayim. However, the Torah records many promises that God made and kept. If we were to ask ourselves which of God’s promises are most relevant to the issue of the Jewish People returning to their Land, we might point to the covenant with Avraham that Eretz Yisrael will be given to his descendants, and similar promises made to Yitzchak and Yaakov. Why does the haftorah go all the way back to Noach? What aspect of Noach’s experience is relevant to this particular stage of redemption, of the Jewish People coming back to their Land and rebuilding Yerushalayim?

The Medrash explains why God found it necessary to make this promise to Noach in the first place:

כי מי נח זאת לי אשר נשבעתי: זה שאמר הכתוב לכל זמן ועת לכל חפץ זמן היה לנח ליכנס לתבה שנאמר בא אתה וכל ביתך אל התבה וזמן היה לו שיצא הימנה שנאמר צא מן התבה משל לפרנס שיצא מן המקום והושיב אחר במקומו כיון שבא אמר צא ממקומך כך נח צא מן התבה ולא קבל לצאת אמר אצא ואהיה פרה ורבה למארה עד שנשבע לו שאינו מביא מבול לעולם שנאמר כי מי נח זאת לי —

“For it is like the Waters of Noach to Me that I swore,” as it says, “For everything there is a time ” (Koheles 3) There was a time to go into the Ark, as it says, “Come, you and your entire family, into the Ark” (Bereishis 7:1), and there was a time to leave it, as it says, “Leave the Ark” (Bereishis 8:16).

This is like an example of an executive who took a leave of absence from his position, and appointed someone else in his stead. When the man returned, he told his replacement, “Now it is time for you to leave.” So, too, with Noach. He was told, “Leave the Ark.”

 He did not accept it at first. He said, “I will go out and build new families, and in the end they will all be destroyed?” Finally, God swore to him that He will never bring another flood, as it says,“It is like the Waters of Noach to Me that I swore.” (Yalkut Shimoni, Yeshayahu 477)

The Medrash questions why Noach had to be told to leave the Ark. One would think that the moment he could get out of there, he would put on his boots and run. Yet, we see that God needed to command him to leave, implying that without Hashem’s explicit commandment, he would have preferred to stay. What possible reason would he have to feel that way? Why would he delay when the time to leave had come?

The Medrash describes two mind-sets that would have caused Noach to prefer to stay inside the Ark, each of which is relevant to the rebuilding of Yerushalayim discussed in the haftorah.

The Medrash’s example is that of a person who is appointed to a position of responsibility that he knows is temporary. He is well aware that his appointment is limited; nevertheless, when the time to move on finally arrives, he is not eager to do so. Noach was appointed to be responsible for the well-being of everyone in the Ark, of every creature left alive in the world. It must have been a very difficult job, physically challenging and emotionally demanding. It must have also been very rewarding and meaningful. Now that he has to leave, who knows what role he will have in the new world? He had grown comfortable in his position, there was value in what he was doing, and he was not eager to leave.

The Jewish People have also grown comfortable in the Ark of their exile, no matter how tight and stifling it might be. Sometimes they even point to the rewarding and meaningful tasks that must be performed there. When the time for Redemption will come, they may find it difficult to leave. They will need God to say, as He does in the haftorah, “It is like the waters of Noach to Me — I had to tell Noach that it is time to go, and now I am telling you: it is time to go.”

Noach’s argument to Hashem gives us a second reason for why he refused to leave the Ark. The Medrash tells us that Noach said, “If I go out, I will have children and rebuild civilization. But what would be the point of it all? There is no guarantee that they will do any better than their ancestors. Their world will be destroyed as well, and my efforts will be for naught!”

God does not dismiss these fears. Instead, He addresses them directly, by swearing to Noach that there will never again be a flood of this magnitude. God assures him that He will find other ways to handle the failures of human beings, without needing to destroy the entire world. This reassurance allows Noach to move on, and proceed with the work of rebuilding humanity.

The Jewish People have seen all they have built get destroyed, over and over again, throughout the centuries. It is frightening to build again, especially on the ever-shifting sands of Eretz Yisrael. Therefore, in the haftorah of Noach, God reassures us by saying,

“Do not be afraid of rebuilding out of the fear that everything will again come crumbling down. Noach’s generation caused Me to destroy the entire world; you have caused Me to destroy Yerushalayim. I swore to Noach that he can rebuild and will not be destroyed, and I swear to you that you can rebuild and will not be destroyed. I will find other ways to handle your failures, should there be any. This time, when you build, it will be forever.

The time has come to leave the Ark of Exile. Your temporary role there is finished; the future awaits.

“Come on out.”