"And Chanoch Walked With the Lord"
PARASHAT HASHAVUA
"And Chanokh Walked with the Lord"
By Rav Amnon Bazak
I.
Introduction
Among the various personalities appearing in parashat Bereishit, Chanokh the son
of Yered merits only a very brief description, providing few details and leaving
much unsaid. All the information we
have about Chanokh is compressed into the following four verses:
"Chanokh lived sixty-five years, and he begot Metushelach. AND CHANOKH WALKED WITH THE LORD
after begetting Metushelach for three hundred years, and he begot sons and
daughters. All the days of Chanokh
were three hundred and sixty five years.
AND CHANOKH WALKED WITH THE LORD, AND WAS NO MORE, FOR THE LORD TOOK
HIM." (Bereishit 5:21-24)
Two elements stand out here as exceptions to the fixed formula listing the ten
generations from Adam until Noach. Firstly, instead of the usual "And X lived Y
years after begetting Z, and he begot sons and daughters," we are told here:
"AND CHANOKH WALKED WITH THE LORD after begetting Metushelach." Secondly,
instead of the usual conclusion "And all the years of X were Y years, AND HE
DIED," there is no mention of death when it comes to Chanokh. Rather, the Torah
repeats, "And Chanokh walked with the Lord," with an addition: "And he was no
more, for the Lord took him."
Clearly, then, Chanokh is someone special.
However, the text is opaque: what is the meaning of the expression, "And
he was no more, for the Lord took him"? Why did God take him? Why was Chanokh's
life so short, relative to the other generations of that time? In general, what
is the significance of this brief parasha?
b. Evaluation of Chanokh's Character
Chanokh was unquestionably a positive character, for we are told explicitly
"And Chanokh walked with the Lord." Another expression of the positive attitude
of the text towards him may perhaps be found in the fact that Chanokh is the
SEVENTH generation from Adam, as noted by the midrash:
"Everything that is the 'seventh' is beloved
In the listing of the generations,
the seventh is beloved: Adam, Shet, Enosh, Keinan, Mehalalel, Yered, CHANOKH
'And Chanokh walked with the Lord' (Bereishit 5:24); concerning the forefathers,
the seventh was beloved: Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Levi, Kehat, Amram, MOSHE
'And Moshe ascended to the Lord' (Shemot 19:3)." (Pesikta de-Rav Kahana, parasha
23)
There may also be positive symbolism in the number of years of his life. Three
hundred and sixty five is the number of days of the year; hence, it is a number
that signifies completion.
However, it is difficult to ignore the fact that Chanokh's lifespan is much
shorter less than half as long, in fact than the lives of the generations
that preceded and that followed him, especially his father and his son. In Tanakh we generally find that the
number of years of a person's life is directly linked to his behavior. The reward for fulfillment of mitzvot
is long life ("I shall fill the number of your days" Shemot 23:26, and
elsewhere), while a shorter lifespan is evidence of Divine punishment ("Nor
shall there ever be an elderly man of your household" Shemuel I 2:32, and
elsewhere). What, then, is the
meaning of this apparent contradiction in the description of Chanokh's
character?
In the teachings of Chazal and in biblical commentaries, we find different
evaluations of Chanokh. Some see the
positive aspects as the central expression of his personality, and interpret the
fact of his being taken at a young age in a positive light. I mentioned above the midrash
concerning the special Divine love for the "seventh," and this idea is echoed
elsewhere:
"'And he was no more, for the Lord took him' because he was a righteous man,
the Holy One took him from among mortals and made him an angel; he became
Metatron." (Midrash Aggada [Buber], Bereishit 5:24)
Ralbag follows the same line:
"Behold, for this same reason he is not mentioned as having died, while the
other people mentioned with him are noted as having died: to indicate the
difference between him and them. FOR
HE PERFECTED HIS SOUL AND ACHIEVED ITS PERFECTION, while all the others died
without achieving this."
In contrast, others appear to regard his relatively short life as clear
expression of a negative judgment of him:
"R. Chama bar Hoshaya said: He is not recorded in the register of the righteous,
but rather in the register of the wicked." (Bereishit Rabba 25:1)
A balanced approach, apparently based upon the different aspects highlighted in
the verses, depicts Chanokh as a complex character, with both positive and
negative traits:
"Rabbi Aibu taught: Chanokh was fickle; sometimes righteous and at other times
wicked. The Holy One said: While he
is righteous I shall take him." (ibid.)
This approach is adopted by Rashi:
"'And Chanokh walked' He was righteous, but it would be easy for him to revert
to his [previous] evil ways; therefore the Holy One brought forward the time of
his death. This is the reason for
the repetitious description of his death: 'He was no more' in the world for
the [natural] length of his life, 'for the Lord took him' before his time."
As mentioned, this approach is clearly substantiated by the facts of the verses,
but it still presents a difficulty: nowhere in the verses is there any mention
of Chanokh's wickedness. For this
reason, it seems, there is indeed room to regard Chanokh as a complex character,
but not necessarily as one including sin and evil.
c. Adam, Chanokh, Noach and Avraham
Chanokh seems to stand, alongside Adam, Noach and Avraham, as one of the four
central characters of the beginning of Sefer Bereishit. What is common to all four is the
issue of man's place as part of humanity, in his posture before God. There is a development among the four
personalities, which I shall describe here very briefly.
Adam is born outside the Garden, but is later placed there: "The Lord God took
Adam and placed him in the Garden of Eden, to work it and to preserve it"
(Bereishit 2:15). At first Adam is
created alone, but thereafter he is provided with a "helper facing him." After
his sin, he loses the right and the ability to live in God's garden. He is no longer able to walk about in
the Garden of Eden, because of his fear of God: "They heard the voice of the
Lord God WALKING ABOUT in the garden in the breeze of the day, and Adam and his
wife hid from God the Lord" (3:8).
For this reason, he is returned to his original place: "The Lord God sent him
out of the Garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence HE WAS TAKEN" (3:23). In his new-old location, Adam is once
again required to "work" but his work will no longer be in God's garden.
Concerning Chanokh, the seventh generation from Adam, we find no mention of sin,
but there is likewise no mention of work.
The expression that appears twice "And Chanokh walked with the Lord"
arouses a dual connotation. On the
one hand, while Adam feared God Who "walked about" in the garden, Chanokh walks
"with" God. On the other hand, this
special expression "walked with God" connotes an upright posture before God,
with no regard for one's surroundings.
Adam, prior to the sin, is taken to a tangible reality, where he is
commanded to live a tangible life: "to work it and to preserve it." Chanokh, in
contrast, is taken from a tangible reality to a metaphysical one, whose precise
nature is unclear. This fact
indicates that the "taking" is not entirely positive:
"Chanokh sought to refine himself to walk with the Lord; for this reason he
distanced himself from the masses either out of fear, or out of disdain. But seclusion and isolation are not
the Jewish way. Our pious and
righteous people lived among the masses, with the masses and for the benefit of
the masses; they regarded it as their mission to elevate the masses towards
themselves." (Commentary of Rav Shimshon Refael Hirsch, Bereishit 5)
An interesting expression with regard to this issue is to be found in the
midrash:
"R. Aibu said: [He was taken] on Rosh Ha-Shanah; he was judged at the same time
as all the world was judged." (Bereishit Rabba 25:1)
The attempt to isolate oneself from society and to stand alone before God cannot
succeed. No matter how much a person
may "walk with God," ultimately he stands in judgment together with the rest of
humanity.
Only one other person is recorded as having "walked with God" Noach. Concerning Noach, the text says even
more:
"Noach was a righteous man; he was just in his generation. Noach walked with the Lord."
(Bereishit 6:9)
The fact that Noach was a "righteous man
just in his generation" tells us that
he was socially involved. At the
same time, Noach walks "with the Lord;" where his Divine service is concerned,
he does not invite the general public to join him. Noach also fails to beg for Divine
mercy for his generation. It is from
here, apparently, that Chazal's criticism of Noach arises, as expressed in
Rashi's famous quote of the dispute among the Amoraim (Sanhedrin 108b):
"'Just in his generation' - Some of our Sages interpreted the text in his favor:
how much greater a righteous person he would have been had he lived in a
generation of righteous people! Others interpret the text as criticizing him: in
his [wicked] generation, he was considered righteous; had he lived in the
generation of Avraham, he would not have been considered special in any way."
More specifically, the Zohar (Bereishit 67b) teaches:
"What is the difference between Moshe and other mortals? At the time when the
Holy One said to Moshe, 'Now leave Me
and I shall make you into a great
nation
' (Shemot 32:10), Moshe immediately said: 'Shall I then abandon Israel's
sentence for my own benefit?' ...
Noach, when the Holy One told him
that he and his sons would be saved, did not
ask for mercy for the world, and it was destroyed. Therefore the Flood is named
after him, as it is written (Yishayahu 54:9), 'For this is like the waters of
Noach to Me; just as I have sworn that the waters of Noach will no longer cover
the earth
.'"
For this reason Noach, too, was taken but because he was more connected to the
world, he was not taken to a reality that was removed from the world, but rather
into the ark. While he was in the
ark, the world was destroyed a fact for which the Zohar, to some extent, holds
Noach responsible. But Noach was
destined to return to reality, after the Flood, and to begin a new dynasty of
generations up until Avraham Avinu.
Indeed, with Avraham the cycle is completed.
Like Adam, Avraham is also born outside of God's inheritance, and he is
brought to it by God's command:
"I took your forefather Avraham from the other side of the river, and I led him
through all the land of Canaan." (Yehoshua 24:3)
But, unlike Adam, Avraham did not violate the conditions of his dwelling in
God's inheritance, and unlike Chanokh and Noach, he did not suffice with walking
WITH God, disconnected from the society around him.
Avraham calls out in God's Name, he acts
in the name of righteousness ("tzedek") and receives the blessing of
Malkitzedek, he rebukes Avimelekh on the basis of righteousness and justice,
etc. The most blatant difference
between him and Noach finds expression, obviously, in his argument with God,
when he attempts to save Sedom, in contrast to Noach's disregard for the fate of
his world.
For our purposes, it is especially important to note the expression used in
connection with Avraham:
"[God] said to him: I am E-l Sha-dai, WALK BEFORE ME and be perfect." (Bereishit
17:1)
Later on, Avraham's servant testifies, quite innocently, that his master Avraham
has fulfilled this Divine command:
"[Avraham] said to me: God, BEFORE WHOM I HAVE WALKED, will send His angel with
you
" (Bereishit 24:40)
Likewise, Yaakov tells Yosef:
"The Lord BEOFRE WHOM my fathers Avraham and Yitzchak walked; the Lord Who
has been my shepherd from the beginning until this day
" (Bereishit 48:15)
Chazal noted this difference in the language that the text uses concerning
Chanokh and Noach, as opposed to the language used with regard to Avraham:
"'Noach walked with the Lord' R. Yuda said: [This may be compared to] a king
who had two sons, an elder one and a younger one.
To the younger one, he said, 'Walk with me,' while to the elder one he
said, 'Walk before me.' Likewise, Avraham, who was greater, was told, 'Walk
before Me' (Bereishit 17:1); concerning Noach, who was not as great, we read:
'Noach walked with the Lord.'" (Bereishit Rabba 30)
It seems, then, that the difference between them arises not only from their
respective levels of spiritual power.
The significance of the expression, "to walk before God," is walking in
the world, among people, and specifically from amidst this social involvement
to walk BEFORE GOD.
I noted the development in the four central characters of the beginning of Sefer
Bereishit. Adam was taken to the
Garden of Eden, but he did not fulfill God's command there. Therefore, he was forced to hide from
God Who "was walking about in the garden" and was ultimately expelled. Chanokh did walk with God, but was
not involved with his surroundings; therefore, he was taken from the world
before his time. Noach, too, walked
with God without being involved with the world around him, but he acted with
righteousness and justice, and therefore was taken only temporarily to a
tangible reality so that he could ultimately emerge from it and establish the
foundations of a new society.
Avraham was the first who showed the way for the forefathers and their
descendants: he walked before God, to show those around him the way of God, and
to establish a nation that calls out in God's Name.
(Translated by Kaeren Fish)