Parshas Noach - Parsha Stumpers

פרשת נח

Parsha Stumpers and Something to Think About

A Riddle:

סוף סוף ראשי 1.

תחילת סוף סופי

ויבא נח...אל התבה

מי אני?ג

2. 2.  Where do we see from this week's parsha that the day starts at night? Why is it that there is a concept of miktzas hayom k'kulo only if the night is part of the “miktzas”, yet if have even the full day without the preceding night, this concept is not applicable?
   
   3. Rashi (6:13) says that despite all the things that the dor ha'mabbul were doing, the gezairah was sealed because of robbery. Why robbery more than avodah zarrah or giluy arayos?
   
   4. Where is there a remez in the beginning of the parsha that Noach was not involved in any of these three things?
   
   5. Rashi both in 6:18 and 7:7 writes that it was forbidden to have marital relations in the teivah. However, Rashi in 7:7 adds that the reason for this was because the world was in a state of distress...

(a) Why does Rashi repeat himself?

(b) Why does Rashi in 7:7 add the reason?

(c ) Why is this a valid reason? Clearly the people dying in the mabbul deserved it. Shouldn't it have been considered a “joyous” time for the world?

6. The Torah uses the phrase “בעצם היום הזה” in this week's parsha as well as three other times in chumash in the same way. Where are these four times and what is the connection between them?

7. Why did Hashem punish the world through means of a mabbul of water?

8. There is a machlokes when the mabbul started. The same machlokes exists regarding the creation of the world. What is this machlokes and what is the connection?

9. The passukim (Noach 8:10-11) describe that the second time Noach sent out the dove, it came back with an olive branch in its mouth. Rashi comments that the dove was trying to tell Noach the following: “Better let my food be bitter as an olive and provided by the hand of Hashem, and not sweet as honey but provided by the hand of man.”...

(a) The dove should have had hakaras hatov to Noach and his family. Why at the first opportunity does the dove say such a remark?

(b ) The dove's statement makes absolutely no sense! The entire time Noach and the animals were in the teivah they experienced open miracles. The whole teivah was something which opposed teva. Wasn't it pretty apparent that Hashem was present every step of the way?

10. Why did Hashem (9:1) need to give Noach a beracha that the animals would fear him? Wasn't this already built into the world from the sheishes y'mei beraishis?

11. What are some of the similarities between Noach and Moshe found in this week's parsha?

11. How did Noach know it was Cham who dishonored him?

12. One of the reasons Rashi (11:1) gives as the reason behind why the dor haflaga began to build the tower is because they thought that the world was on a cycle that every 1656 years Hashem wold bring another flood. They therefore wanted to be prepared with supports for the skies. According to this why was Hashem so upset? Why not just let the people think this incorrectly and waste their own time as long as they are not bothering anyone?

13. If the dor haflaga wanted to 'wage war' with Hashem, why did they buildמגדל בבל in a valley? They should have built it on top of a mountain!?

14. Rashi (11:28) brings down the story from the famous medrash how Haran (Avraham's brother) stood and observed the episode of Avraham being thrown into the fiery furnace. Haran decided that Avraham's fate would determine his own faith in Hashem. The medrash continues that indeed when Avraham emerged unscathed, Haran joined his side and was consequentially thrown into the fire – and burned to death. What did Haran do wrong?