פרשת נח תשי"ד - הסיבה למבול

And God saw the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. .

כי השחית כל בשר FOR ALL FLESH HAD CORRUPTED — even cattle, beasts and fowl did not consort with their own species (Genesis Rabbah 28:8).

FOR ALL FLESH HAD CORRUPTED ITS WAY. If we explain "all flesh" in the literal sense and say tat even animals, wild beasts and birds corrupted its ways by mating with animals of other species, like Rashi explains, we will then have to say that "for the earth filled with injustice [through them] (pas. 13)" cannot mean "through "all" of them," rather it means "through "some" of them" (humans) [the Torah] would be telling us only [the reason] for the punishment of the humans. Also, we can say that in this [subject matter of sinfulness] too, [the beasts] didn't follow their matures, for all the beasts acted like a predator and all birds acted as birds of prey, so that they also committed "injustice." In the plain meaning "all flesh" simply means "all mankind," [being that] further on, scripture it explains: "all flesh in which there's a breath of life (7:15)" or "of all that lives, of all flesh (6:19)" which means "any life contained in a body" (also beasts). But here, "all flesh" [without elaboration] means "all mankind." And also "all flesh will come to prostrate before me." (Isaiah 66:23) and "if a person (lit., "flesh")will have [a burn] on his skin (Levit. 13:24)."("flesh" obviously means "man")

FOR ALL FLESH HAD CORRUPTED ITS WAY. If we explain "all flesh" in the literal sense and say tat even animals, wild beasts and birds corrupted its ways by mating with animals of other species, like Rashi explains, we will then have to say that "for the earth filled with injustice [through them] (pas. 13)" cannot mean "through "all" of them," rather it means "through "some" of them" (humans) [the Torah] would be telling us only [the reason] for the punishment of the humans. Also, we can say that in this [subject matter of sinfulness] too, [the beasts] didn't follow their matures, for all the beasts acted like a predator and all birds acted as birds of prey, so that they also committed "injustice." In the plain meaning "all flesh" simply means "all mankind," [being that] further on, scripture it explains: "all flesh in which there's a breath of life (7:15)" or "of all that lives, of all flesh (6:19)" which means "any life contained in a body" (also beasts). But here, "all flesh" [without elaboration] means "all mankind." And also "all flesh will come to prostrate before me." (Isaiah 66:23) and "if a person (lit., "flesh")will have [a burn] on his skin (Levit. 13:24)."("flesh" obviously means "man")

Make thee an ark of gopher wood; with rooms shalt thou make the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.

עשה לך תבת MAKE THEE AN ARK — There are numerous ways by which God could have saved Noah; why, then, did he burden him with this construction of the Ark? So that the men of the generation of the Flood might see him employed on it for 120 years and might ask him, “What do you need this for”? and so that he might answer them, “The Holy One, blessed be He, is about to bring a flood upon the world” — perhaps they might repent (Sanhedrin 108b).