Noach/נֹחַ/Noah in Hebrew means “comfort.” His father Lamech beheld his son and said, “This same shall comfort us in our work and in the toil of our hands, which cometh from the ground which the Lord hath cursed” (Gen. 5:29).

How?

Noah found grace in the eyes of God (Gen. 6:8). This grace wasn’t deserved, otherwise it wouldn’t be grace. Noah believed God, in a generation bereft of faith; God showed grace to Noah, and as the Torah says, “Noah was in his generations a man righteous and whole-hearted; Noah walked with God” (Gen. 6:9).

Righteousness, according to the Torah, is the result of faith (Gen. 15:6). How did Noah show that wholehearted, righteous faith? He responded by building the Ark.

How did Noah know how to build it? Did he have the skills necessary to take on such a project? Well, God called him, and he did it.

Noah brought forth the internal witness of his faith, by the external building of the Ark, work prepared beforehand for him to do (Eph. 2:8-10).

Faith did not remain alone. It was coupled with action, and that action became a comfort to those who listened to his work; yet it also became a judgment.

Noah lived his name by comforting those around him by an action of faith. He trusted the Lord, and that trust brought humanity to a new beginning.

The message of his labor was simple: come into the Ark. Another way, come into the תֵּבָה/box/word. We find in this a picture of entering Messiah, the Word made flesh, for safety for the judgment, deliverance, comfort: because He, Yeshua/Jesus, gives us rest.

Noah continues to comfort us by his faithfulness to fulfill what the Father called him to, and equipped him for. May we do the same, to the glory of the Messiah. When we think, or believe we can’t, the calling of God says yes (II Cor. 1:20).

Shabbat shalom.

I vividly remember standing on Mt. Haystack in the Adirondack high peaks region facing 50 mph wind gusts. It was the first time I actually felt that I might get blown off a mountain.

The power of that wind was amazing. With nothing to stop it, it hit with full force. Interestingly enough, it was as beautiful a day as a hiker could ask for: sunshine, blue skies, fall colors; but the wind, fierce.

The wind made its presence known, even though it could not be seen. You could see its presence. You could feel it; and it moved me, not emotionally, but physically.

There is considerable debate as to the nature of the human soul, it’s purpose, and even its reality.

In Genesis 8:1b we read:

וַיַּעֲבֵר אֱלֹהִים רוּחַ עַל-הָאָרֶץ, וַיָּשֹׁכּוּ הַמָּיִם

“And God caused wind/spirit/breath to cross over the earth; and the waters receded.”

To subdue the waters of the flood, the Lord caused רוּחַ/ruach/wind/spirit/breath, to move over the earth. This power, even though it could not be seen with the eye, had impact on the earth, and the lives of those in the Ark.

There are differing opinions among Jewish commentators regarding how to translate, or understand רוּחַ/ruach/wind/spirit/breath in Genesis 8:1b. Should it be wind? Should it be spirit? Or perhaps, it was the breath of heaven renewing the earth.

All three are invisible, but all three can be felt. The wind, by the gentle movement of the leaves on a fall day, or the fierceness of a storm. The breath, the inhale and exhale of the human body. But what of the spirit?

The ancient Hebrews understood abstract concepts by concrete visuals. Why the same word for what we might consider three separate concepts?

As noted above, each are invisible, but each play an important part in life. The wind moves as a breath in creation. Human breath moves in us, renewing life. The spirit moves us, every part of our being in the natural and spiritual worlds.

The human spirit cannot be measured, yet it can be observed as it moves us in life. An invisible force animating us, moving every part of our body. The divine breath, enlivening, moving, and renewing man, created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27; 2:7; Jn. 20:22).

Where is your spirit? Look at your life, listen to your breath, see how He is moving in your life.

Be well. Shalom.

Happy is the Man

There is a rabbinic teaching that says, “Happy is the man who hears something against him, and ignores it.”

There is wisdom here. How many evils would be spoken to him, or against him, and by him closing his ears, they pass him by?

How much angst, worry, stress, anger, frustration, and conflict would fail to take root and bear its fruit contrary to godliness? If only we ignored the voice of the enemy.

The apostle Paul taught, “Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men” (Ro. 12:17).

The apostle Peter taught, “Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing” (I Pet. 3:8-9).

Both of these men spoke and/or acted in ungodly ways in their lives; and both of them know what it is to be treated terribly by men. Still, they point us to the higher way.

How difficult is this lesson? We want vengeance. We want vindication. Our flesh wants to act. Yet, we must trust in the Lord, His grace, His mercy, and ultimately His justice.

In Messiah, we find our example, our inspiration, and direction when evil reaches our ears. His example is the hardest to follow; but in Him, He delivers us from such things.

We are all works in progress, and in that progress we rely on His grace. The word I’ve rendered as “happy” above is the same found in the psalms usually translated as “blessed.”

How blessed would we be if we closed our ears to the voice of the enemy, and tuned in the voice of heaven? Happy is that man, or woman.

Be well. Shalom.