וַיִּזְכֹּר אֱלֹהִים אֶת נֹחַ. זֶה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: יוֹדֵעַ צַדִּיק נֶפֶשׁ בְּהֶמְתּוֹ (משלי יב, י), יוֹדֵעַ צַדִּיקוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם אֲפִלּוּ נֶפֶשׁ בְּהֵמוֹת אֲפִלּוּ בִּשְׁעַת כַּעֲסוֹ, שֶׁאֵין מִדּוֹתָיו כְּמִדַּת בָּשָׂר וָדָם. And God remembered Noah (Gen. 8:1). Scripture says elsewhere in reference to this verse: A righteous man regardeth the life of his beasts; but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel (Prov. 12:10). The Righteous One of the world, however, regardeth the life even of a beast, even when He is angered, for His ways are not the ways of man.
מִדַּת בָּשָׂר וָדָם, כְּשֶׁמָּרְדָה מְדִינָה לַמֶּלֶךְ, מְשַׁלֵּחַ לִגְיוֹנוֹתָיו עָלֶיהָ וְהוֹרֵג הַטּוֹבִים עִם הָרָעִים, לְפִי שֶׁאֵינוֹ יוֹדֵעַ מִי מָרַד וּמִי הוּא כָּשֵׁר. וְהַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אֵינוֹ כֵן, אֶלָּא אֲפִלּוּ כָל הַדּוֹר מַכְעִיסוֹ וְיֵשׁ בּוֹ צַדִּיק אֶחָד, מַצִּילוֹ, הֱוֵי אוֹמֵר, יוֹדֵעַ צַדִּיק נֶפֶשׁ בְּהֶמְתּוֹ. וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר, טוֹב ה' לְמָעוֹז בְּיוֹם צָרָה וְיֹדֵעַ חֹסֵי בוֹ (נחום א, ז). Normally, if the inhabitants of a province rebel against a king, the king dispatches his legionaries to subdue them, and they destroy the wicked and innocent alike. After all, the king does not know who was rebellious and who was loyal. The Holy One, blessed be He, however, does not behave in that fashion. Though an entire generation should anger Him, He will save a single righteous man among them. Therefore, it is written: A righteous man regardeth the life of his beasts (ibid.). And it says elsewhere: the Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knoweth those that take refuge in Him (Nahum 1:7).
וְרַחֲמֵי רְשָׁעִים אַכְזָרִי, אֵלּוּ דוֹר הַמַּבּוּל שֶׁהָיוּ אַכְזָרִים. אָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה: בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁהֶעֱלָה הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עֲלֵיהֶן אֶת הַתְּהוֹמוֹת וְהָיוּ רוֹאִין אֶת הַמַּעְיָנוֹת עוֹלוֹת עֲלֵיהֶן, מֶה הָיוּ עוֹשִׂין? הָיוּ לָהֶן בָּנִים הַרְבֵּה כְּמוֹ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: זַרְעָם נָכוֹן לִפְנֵיהֶם עִמָּם (איוב כא, ח), שֶׁהָיְתָה הָאִשָּׁה מִתְעַבֶּרֶת וְיוֹלֶדֶת, כְּמָה דְּאַתְּ אֲמַר: וֶהְיֵה נָכוֹן לַבֹּקֶר (שמות לד, ב). וְצֶאֱצָאֵיהֶם לְעֵינֵיהֶם (איוב כא, ח), שֶׁהָיוּ רוֹאִין לְעַצְמָם בָּנִים וּבְנֵי בָנִים. הָיוּ בָהֶם בְּנֵי אָדָם שֶׁהָיוּ נוֹטְלִין אֶת בְּנֵיהֶם וְנוֹתְנִין אוֹתָם עַל הַתְּהוֹם וְכוֹבְשִׁין עֲלֵיהֶם וְאֵינָן מְרַחֲמִין עֲלֵיהֶם. לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר: וְרַחֲמֵי רְשָׁעִים אַכְזָרִי. וּמִנַּיִן שֶׁהָיוּ עוֹשִׂין כֵּן, שֶׁכֵּן אִיּוֹב אוֹמֵר, יִשְׁכָּחֵהוּ רֶחֶם מְתָקוֹ רִמָּה עוֹד לֹא יִזָּכֵר וַתִּשָּׁבֵר כָּעֵץ עַוְלָה (איוב כד, כ). עוֹד לֹא יִזָּכֵר הָרֶחֶם שֶׁלּוֹ שֶׁהָיוּ בָנָיו. מֶה עָשָׂה לָהֶם הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, הוֹרִיד עֲלֵיהֶם מַבּוּל מִלְמַעְלָה וְשִׁבְּרָן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַתִּשָּׁבֵר כָּעֵץ עַוְלָה. But the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel (Prov. 12:10). This verse alludes to the men of the generation of the flood, who were extremely cruel. Our rabbis of blessed memory posed the query: What did they do when the Holy One, blessed be He, brought the waters of the deep upon them and they saw the waters beginning to gush over them? They had given birth to many children, as it is written: Their seed is established (nakhon) in their sight with them, and their offspring before their eyes (Job 21:8). In fact, this verse implies that the women would conceive at night and give birth (nakhon) the next morning, as it is said: And would be ready (nakhon) by morning (Exod. 34:2). And their offspring before their eyes (Job 21:8) indicates that they lived to see their great-grandchildren. Some of them took their children and stuffed them unmercifully into the crevices through which the waters gushed. Hence, it is said: The mercies of the wicked are cruel. How do we know that they actually did that? Job declared: The womb forgetteth him; the worm feedeth sweetly on him; he shall be no more remembered, unrighteousness is broken as a tree (ibid. 24:20). The womb forgetteth him … he shall be no more remembered signifies that they pressed their own offspring into these crevices. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do to them after that? He brought the flood down upon them and destroyed them, as it is said: Unrighteousness is broken as a tree.13Just as a tree is destroyed by a flood, so these unrighteous men were destroyed by the flood from above.
אָמַר רַבִּי בְּרַכְיָה, קָשִׁים הָיוּ מְאֹד וּבַעֲלֵי קוֹמָה, שֶׁכָּךְ כְּתִיב בָּהֶן, הֵמָּה הַגִּבֹּרִים (בראשית ו, ד). וְאִלּוּלֵי שֶׁפָּרַע מֵהֶם בָּאֵשׁ מִלְמַעְלָן, אֵין בְּרִיָּה יְכוֹלָה לָהֶן, שֶׁכָּךְ אִיּוֹב אוֹמֵר, אִם לֹא נִכְחַד קִימָנוּ וְיִתְרָם אָכְלָה אֵשׁ (איוב כב, כ). R. Berechiah said: The men of the generation of the flood were exceedingly strong and tall, as it is written: These same were the mighty men (Gen. 6:4), and if He had not punished them with fire that descended from above, nothing would have been able to destroy them. Hence Job said: Surely their substance is cut off, and their abundance the fire hath consumed (Job 22:20).
כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאָה הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא שֶׁלֹּא נִשְׁטְפוּ קוֹמָתָן בִּתְהוֹמוֹת שֶׁלְּמַטָּן, הוֹרִיד עֲלֵיהֶם אֵשׁ מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וְיִתְרָם אָכְלָה אֵשׁ. וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא שֶׁהָפַךְ עֲלֵיהֶם הָעוֹף וְהַבְּהֵמָה וְהַחַיָּה וְהֵן גִּוְּעוּ אוֹתָם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיִּגְוַע כָּל בָּשָׂר הָרֹמֵשׂ וְגוֹ', בַּמֶּה, בָּעוֹף וּבַבְּהֵמָה וּבַחַיָּה. כֵּיוָן שֶׁהָיוּ רוֹאִין עַצְמָן שֶׁהֵן אוֹבְדִין, הָיוּ מְבַקְשִׁין לַהֲפֹךְ אֶת הַתֵּבָה. מֶה עָשָׂה הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, הִקִּיף אֶת הַתֵּבָה אֲרָיוֹת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיִּסְגֹּר ה' בַּעֲדוֹ. וְאֵין וַיִּסְגֹּר אֶלָּא אֲרָיוֹת, כְּמָה דְּאַתְּ אֲמַר: שְׁלַח מַלְאֲכֵהּ וּסֲגַר פֻּם אַרְיָוָתָא (דניאל ו, כג). After the Holy One, blessed be He, realized that they would not be drowned by the waters that gushed forth from the deep because of their height, He sent the fire upon them from above, as it is said: And their abundance the fire hath consumed. Furthermore, He turned the birds, the wild beasts, and the animals against them to reduce their numbers, as it says: And all flesh perished that moved upon the earth, the birds, the animals, and the beasts, etc. (Gen. 7:21). How did they perish? It was through the birds, the beasts, and the animals. When at long last they realized that they were about to be destroyed, they attempted to overturn the ark. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He surrounded the ark with lions, as it is said: The Lord shut them in (Gen. 7:16). The word shut in Scripture alludes to lions. How do we know this? We know it from the verse My God hath sent His angels and hath shut the lion’s mouth (Dan. 6:23).