Why does Sarai initially urge Abram to cohabit with Hagar, only to regret it later? Why is Hagar’s Egyptian identity emphasized? Why does Sarai blame Abram for following her own instructions? Why does God send Hagar back to Sarai?And why does the divine messenger tell Hagar to name the child Ishmael, yet Abram is the one who ultimately names him? To begin unraveling this complex narrative, we must look back to Genesis 11. Abram travels to Egypt and, fearing for his life, asks Sarai to pose as his sister. Sarai does not protest and goes along with the plan. As a result, she is taken into Pharaoh’s palace—likely as a concubine. During this time, Abram acquires significant wealth, and Pharaoh allows him to leave Egypt with his newfound bounty. It is likely that Hagar enters the story here, perhaps as a gift to Sarai from Pharaoh.

Meanwhile, God continues to promise Abram that his descendants will inherit the land. But Abram remains childless. Sarai, in a moment of selflessness and desperation, offers Hagar as a surrogate to bear children on her behalf. The plan seems reasonable—later in Genesis, both Leah and Rachel will do the same. Clearly, this was a socially accepted practice. But acceptance does not mean ease. Sarai quickly regrets her decision. Hagar becomes a living reminder of the trauma Sarai endured in Egypt, a trauma rooted in Abram’s earlier choices. Sarai’s anger toward Abram stems from his apparent inability to recognize this emotional burden.

This tension is especially poignant given the previous chapter, where Abram expresses frustration to God over the possibility that his servant Eliezer might inherit the divine promises. Sarai’s pain is compounded by the fear that she is being replaced—not just by Hagar, but in the spiritual legacy she hoped to share with Abram.

God’s command for Hagar to return to Sarai is not merely about obedience. It’s about restoring Sarai’s status as the matriarch of God’s chosen people. Had Hagar remained apart, it might have signaled that Sarai had lost her place in the covenant—not just in Abram’s eyes, but in her own.

As for the naming of Ishmael, the commentaries offer different explanations.

• Rashi suggests that God also appeared to Abram and relayed the events of Hagar’s encounter, including the instruction to name the child Ishmael.

• Sforno sees it as a coincidence—Abram independently chose the name for similar reasons.

• Radak offers a simpler view: Hagar told Abram what happened, and he named the child accordingly.

Interestingly, the text does not explicitly describe this exchange. The absence of detail may support Radak’s interpretation: the silence itself implies a straightforward transmission of the message.

There is one final question- what do all of these questions have to do with each other? To answer that, we can look at the name Yismael itself. The name Yishmael (יִשְׁמָעֵאל) is grammatically in future tense in Hebrew.

It comes from the root שׁ.מ.ע (sh.m.a) meaning "to hear," and the prefix י (yud) typically denotes third-person masculine singular future tense in biblical Hebrew.

This future tense is significant in the context of Genesis 16:11:

וַיֹּאמֶר לָהּ מַלְאַךְ ה: הִנָּךְ הָרָה וְיֹלֶדֶת בֵּן, וְקָרָאת שְׁמוֹ יִשְׁמָעֵאל, כִּי שָׁמַע ה אֶל־עָנְיֵךְ

“And the angel of the Lord said to her, ‘Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son; and you shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your affliction.’” The assumption here is that this message is Hagar being saved by God. Perhaps, though, the naming is not for Hagar but for Sarai. The hint here is the future tense of the name. Yes this child is born through her maidservant, but God remembers Sarai as well. He will hear her pain and suffering and will give her a son in the future as well. That is why Avram names him that it is a message to his wife not to be afraid of this child born to her Egyptian servant. Sarai will have her progeny. God will hear her.

In the previous chapter, Abram saved Lot, but he does not reunite with Lot. After securing his nephew’s freedom, Abram returns without Lot, removing himself from his father's family, achieving that elusive fourth goal discussed earlier. Withthe goals intact, God returns to Abram to make another grand promise in chapter 15. Abram’s offspring will be numerous like the stars in the sky and they willinherit the land of Canaan.

English: “Look toward heaven and count thestars, if you are able to count them… So shall your offspring be.” (Genesis15:5)
Hebrew: הַבֶּט־נָא הַשָּׁמַיְמָה וּסְפֹר הַכּוֹכָבִים אִם־תּוּכַל לִסְפֹּר אֹתָם… כֹּה יִהְיֶה זַרְעֶךָ

Abram, though, challenges God. These grand promises are meaningless without offspring. In response, God instructs Abram to perform a sacrificial ceremony known as thecovenant of the parts. This ceremony is reminiscent of the active prophecies that are the feature of the age of prophets centuries later.

English: “He said to him, ‘I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess it.’”(Genesis 15:7)
Hebrew: וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו אֲנִי ה אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִיךָ מֵאוּר כַּשְׂדִּים לָתֶת לְךָ אֶת־הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת לְרִשְׁתָּהּ

One verse in particular is mysterious:

English: “When the sun set and it was very dark, there appeared a smoking oven, and a flaming torch which passed between those pieces.” (Genesis 15:17)
Hebrew: וַיְהִי הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ בּוֹא וַעֲלָה חֲשֵׁכָה גְדֹלָה וְהִנֵּה תַנּוּר עָשָׁן וְלַפִּיד אֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר עָבַר בֵּין הַגְּזָרִים הָאֵלֶּה

The way the verse is written, it sounds like Abram witnesses these events happen, but he did not walk through the pieces. Why does he see these images? If we connect the earlier warning from God, we may be able to deduce its meaning.

English: “Know for certain that your offspring will be strangers in a land not theirs, and they will be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years.” (Genesis 15:13)
Hebrew: יָדֹעַ תֵּדַע כִּי־גֵר יִהְיֶה זַרְעֲךָ בְּאֶרֶץ לֹא לָהֶם וַעֲבָדוּם וְעִנּוּ אֹתָם אַרְבַּע מֵאוֹת שָׁנָה

The implication is that this is referring to the slavery in Egypt and then they will be saved. (Why God doesn’t tell Abram it will be Egypt is a whole different question). But leaving Egypt was not the end of the story. God also had to show Abram that he would protect the Israelites after they are freed.That is done in the wilderness through the protection of the Cloud of Glory and the fire. This is most likely the meaning behind Abram’s vision. In the darkest part of the Exodus, God shows Abram that God will be there with smoke and fireto protect Abram’s descendants.

In בראשית פרק י״ד, after אברם’s victory over the coalition ofkings, we read:

וּמַלְכִּי־צֶדֶק מֶלֶךְ שָׁלֵם הוֹצִיא לֶחֶם וָיָיִןוְהוּא כֹהֵן לְאֵל עֶלְיוֹן׃
And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was a priest ofGod Most High.
וַיְבָרְכֵהוּ וַיֹּאמַר בָּרוּךְ אַבְרָם לְאֵל עֶלְיוֹן קֹנֵה שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ׃
He blessed him, saying, “Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Creator ofheaven and earth.”
וּבָרוּךְ אֵל עֶלְיוֹן אֲשֶׁר־מִגֵּן צָרֶיךָ בְּיָדֶךָ וַיִּתֶּן־לוֹ מַעֲשֵׂר מִכֹּל׃
And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your foes into your hand.”
(בראשית י״ד:י״ח–כ׳)

מלכי־צדק blesses אברם in the name of אל עליון, and אברם responds by giving him a tenth ofeverything — a gesture that echoes the later institution of מעשר.

Who was Malki-Tzedek?Many commentators, like Rashi, explain that he was a priest of Hashem, andquite possibly Shem the son of Noah. However, he was punished because of thisconversation with Avram and the priesthood was taken away and given to Avram’schildren. This reading is supported by the מדרש and תלמוד. In נדרים ל״ב ב׳, the sages ask:

“וכי מקדימין ברכת עבד לברכת קונו?”

Because מלכי־צדק blessed אברם before blessing God, the כהונה was taken from him and given to אברם’s descendants. As the verse in תהילים says:

נִשְׁבַּע ה׳ וְלֹא יִנָּחֵם אַתָּה כֹהֵן לְעוֹלָםעַל־דִּבְרָתִי מַלְכִּי־צֶדֶק׃

ה׳ has sworn and will not relent: “You are apriest forever, because of the words of Melchizedek.”

(תהילים ק״י:ד׳)Some interpret this to mean that מלכי־צדק’s misstep — his failure to properly honor God— led to the transfer of spiritual authority to the children of אברהם.

Others, likeרשב״ם and יוספוס, suggest that מלכי־צדק wasn’t a person at all, but a title— the royal designation for the king of ירושלים, much like “פרעה” in Egypt or “אבימלך” among the פלשתים. In this view, the name “מלכי־צדק” simply means “righteous king,” andthe figure in בראשית represents a political archetype rather than a spiritual one.

If we goback to the text, there may be a further hint that Malkitzedek was not praisingGod. Right after his pronouncement to Abram, and an interjection from the kingof Sodom, Abram seems to correct what Malkitzedek said.

הֲרִימֹתִי יָדִי אֶל־ה׳ אֵל עֶלְיוֹן קֹנֵה שָׁמַיִםוָאָרֶץ׃

I raise my hand in oath to ה׳, God Most High,Creator of heaven and earth.

(בראשית י״ד:כ״ב) אברם adds the name of ה׳, distinguishing the true God fromthe generic “אל עליון.” This suggests that מלכי־צדק may have been a priest to El,a Canaanite deity, and not to ה׳. אברם’s insertion of God’s name is a theological clarification — adeclaration that his victory was not granted by a local god, but by the Onetrue God.

מלכי־צדק’s legacy extends far beyond Jewish tradition. In Christian theology,he is seen as a prototype of Jesus — a priest not from the line of אהרן, but appointed directly by God andalso a royal figure. This interpretation emphasizes his eternal priesthood anddivine appointment, making מלכי־צדק a bridge between the Hebrew Bible and Christiandoctrine.

Perhaps it is this later Christian rereading of the text that prompted the midrahic counter interpretation that MalkiTzedek was in fact a priest for God who was punished and had the priesthood taken away and given to Avram and his descendants.

After Abram’s departure from Egypt, the Torah tells us:

וַיַּעַל־אַבְרָם מִמִּצְרַיִם הוּא וְאִשְׁתּוֹ וְכָל־אֲשֶׁר־לוֹ וְלוֹט עִמּוֹ הַנֶּגְבָה׃

"And Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot withhim, to the Negev."

(Genesis 13:1) It’s understandable that the Torah would emphasize that Sarai and Abram’s possessions accompanied him out of Egypt—there may have been concern thatPharaoh had confiscated his wealth or held Sarai hostage. But the inclusion of Lot in this verse raises a deeper question: why does the Torah need to tell us that Lot is still with Abram?

This detail highlights an unresolved tension from chapter 12 between Abram’s devotion to family and God’s command to separate from his father’s house. Although Abram has now returned to the land of Canaan—fulfilling God’s fourth directive, “אֶל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַרְאֶךָּ” (“to the land that I will show you”)—Lot remains by his side. Despite Abram’s physical return to the altar he previously built (Genesis 13:4), where God had once appeared to him, this time God does not appear. Instead, the narrative shifts to a conflict between Abram’s and Lot’s shepherds (Genesis 13:7), which ultimately leads to theirseparation.

Immediately after Lot departs for Sodom, God appears to Abram once again. The Torah makes this timing explicit: וַיה אָמַר אֶל־אַבְרָם אַחֲרֵי הִפָּרֶד־לוֹט מֵעִמּוֹ שָׂא נָא עֵינֶיךָ וּרְאֵה מִן־הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּה שָׁם צָפֹנָה וָנֶגְבָּה וָקֵדְמָה וָיָמָּה׃

"And the LORD said to Abram, after Lot had parted from him, 'Raise your eyes and look out from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west...'"

(Genesis 13:14) The phrase “after Lot had parted from him” is seemingly redundant—we already know Lot left. Its repetition serves to emphasize that God’s reappearance is directly tied to Lot’s departure. Only once Abram fully fulfills the third goal—separating from his father’s house—does God resume communication. The chapter then continues to reinforce the themes introduced in chapter 12. First, Godreiterates His grand promises to Abram: כִּי אֶת־כָּל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה רֹאֶה לְךָ אֶתְּנֶנָּה וּלְזַרְעֲךָ עַד־עוֹלָם׃

"For all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever." (Genesis 13:15) and שַׂמְתִּי אֶת־זַרְעֲךָ כַּעֲפַר הָאָרֶץ "I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth..."

(Genesis 13:16) Second, Abram continues his journey, moving to Hebron: וַיֶּאֱהַל בְּאֵלֹנֵי מַמְרֵא אֲשֶׁר בְּחֶבְרוֹן

"And he settled by the terebinths of Mamre, which are in Hebron." (Genesis 13:18) Third, he builds another altar, reaffirming his devotion to God: וַיִּבֶן־שָׁם מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהוָה׃

"And he built there an altar to the LORD."

(Genesis 13:18) In sum, Genesis 13 shows Abram continuing to fulfill the divine directives laid out in Genesis 12. Only when he fully separates from Lot does God reappear and renew His promises. The chapter closes with Abram deepeninghis spiritual connection through travel, worship, and covenantal vision.

Wordplay.The words of Tanach are very deliberate and the use of puns, homonyms and variant roots are meant to highlight subtle points of meaning. For example, by noting that Avram and Lot both have accumulated a lot (get it!) of stuff (רב) it doesn’t take more than a verse for that to devolve into an argument (ריב). Gen. 13:6-8. And so what was once friends and family (רעים) becomes a problem among proxies (רעי ; shepherds) and will lead to Lot’s association with sinners who are evildoers (רעים). 13:8,13. This is not just meant to engage the reader, but to highlight how quickly things can shift. How quickly love and family can turn sour when wealth and greed are added into the mix.

Genesis chapter 12 begins with one of the most iconic and transformative verses in the Torah: “לֶךְ־לְךָ מֵאַרְצְךָ וּמִמּוֹלַדְתְּךָ וּמִבֵּית אָבִיךָ אֶל־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַרְאֶךָּ” — “Go forth from your land, your birthplace, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). In this single command, God outlines four distinct goals for Abram: to leave his land, his birthplace, his father’s house, and to journey toward an unknown destination that God will reveal. These directives represent a profound spiritual and emotional journey, requiring Abram to detach from his past and embrace a future defined by divine guidance. As the narrative unfolds, we observe that Abram’s relationship with God intensifies when he aligns with these goals, and becomes more distant when he strays from them.

Throughout the chapter, several key themes emerge that help define Abram’s character and spiritual trajectory. First, family plays a central role. Abram’s relationship with Lot is emphasized repeatedly (verses 4, 5), and Sarai is referred to as his wife eight times (verses 5, 10–20), underscoring her importance in his life. Yet, when Abram enters Egypt, he presents Sarai as his sister (verse 13), introducing tension and moral complexity into their relationship.

Second, travel is a dominant motif. Abram’s journey begins in Haran and continues through Shechem (verse 6), Bet El (verse 8), the Negev (verse 9), and finally Egypt (verse 10). This movement reflects not only physical relocation but also spiritual progression and regression. His travels are punctuated by moments of divine encounter and worship, especially when he builds altars in Shechem (verse 7) and between Bet El and Ai (verse 8), where he calls upon the name of God. Notably, he does not build an altar in Egypt, perhaps signaling a spiritual disconnect during that episode.

Third, Abram’s access to royalty is striking. In Egypt, he is brought before Pharaoh (verse 15), and despite deceiving him about Sarai, Abram is not punished severely. Instead, he is asked to leave Egypt (verse 20), and departs with wealth, suggesting either divine protection or a recognition of his elevated status.

Fourth, Abram’s devotion to God is evident in his acts of worship. The altars he builds serve as spiritual landmarks, and his invocation of God’s name reflects a growing relationship with the divine. These acts are absent in Egypt, reinforcing the idea that Abram’s spiritual vitality is tied to his alignment with God’s original command.

Finally, the chapter is anchored by God’s grand promises to Abram. In verses 2–3, God declares, “I will make of you a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you shall be a blessing.” Later, in verse 7, God promises that Abram’s descendants will inherit the land. These promises frame Abram’s journey with purpose and hope, even as he navigates uncertainty and moral challenges.

Taken together, the chapter presents a dynamic portrait of Abram’s spiritual journey. When he leaves Haran (fulfilling “leave your land”), enters Canaan (“to the land I will show you”), builds altars (rejecting his birthplace’s paganism), and begins to separate from Lot (moving away from his father’s house), God appears and blesses him (verse 7). But when Abram goes to Egypt and endangers Sarai, God does not appear (verses 10–20). This pattern suggests that divine presence is closely tied to Abram’s fidelity to the original call. Genesis 12 thus sets the stage for a lifelong journey of faith, challenge, and covenant.

The last of the pre-Abraham stories in Genesis concerns the famous tower of Babel. Reading the text, however, we are faced with many questions:________________________________________1) When did this story happen? In the last verse of chapter 10 we are told: “These are the groupings of Noah’s descendants . . . [they] branched out over the earth after the Flood.” Hebrew (Genesis 10:32):אֵלֶּה מִשְׁפְּחוֹת בְּנֵי־נֹחַ לְתוֹלְדֹתָם בְּגוֹיֵהֶם וּמֵאֵלֶּה נִפְרְדוּ הַגּוֹיִם בָּאָרֶץ אַחַר הַמַּבּוּל׃But then, in the first two verses of chapter 11 we are told: “Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words. And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there.” Hebrew (Genesis 11:1–2):וַיְהִי כָל־הָאָרֶץ שָׂפָה אֶחָת וּדְבָרִים אֲחָדִים׃וַיְהִי בְּנָסְעָם מִקֶּדֶם וַיִּמְצְאוּ בִקְעָה בְּאֶרֶץ שִׁנְעָר וַיֵּשְׁבוּ שָׁם׃Based on the text, it seems like this story may have happened prior to chapter 10. But, the reference to the founding of Shinar by Nimrod in chapter 10 and the people settling there in chapter 11 probably means this story happened during chapter 10.________________________________________2) Who are these people? If we place the story after the flood then we are left with the problem of the last verse in chapter 10. If the text explains that descendants of Noah spread across the world, then the story in chapter 11 must be related to a specific group of these children. This is most likely the Shem family or the Cham family that migrated over. However, the fact that the people are called sons of Adam and not the sons of Noah or Shem or Cham may imply they are direct descendants of Adam and that this story took place prior to the flood. (Also answering question 1).________________________________________3) What did they want to do?The traditional explanation is that the people wanted to build a tower to fight God, yet this motivation is absent from the text. All the text says is:“And they said, ‘Come, let us build us a city, and a tower with its top in the sky, to make a name for ourselves; else we shall be scattered all over the world.’” (verse 4)Hebrew (Genesis 11:4):וַיֹּאמְרוּ הָבָה נִבְנֶה־לָּנוּ עִיר וּמִגְדָּל וְרֹאשׁוֹ בַשָּׁמַיִם וְנַעֲשֶׂה לָּנוּ שֵׁם פֶּן־נָפוּץ עַל־פְּנֵי כָל־הָאָרֶץ׃It sounds like the motivation for the people is twofold — the ambiguous “make a name for ourselves” and the practical “else we shall be scattered.” (Ironically what ends up happening to them). If we connect these two reasons, it sounds like the people wanted to establish a set named location, as opposed to a nomadic lifestyle.________________________________________4) Why did God punish them?So far this seems like a legitimate decision for the people. They no longer want to be nomads and they want a centralized location. Yet, God is upset about this:“And the LORD said, ‘If, as one people with one language for all, this is how they have begun to act, then nothing that they may propose to do will be out of their reach.’” (verse 6)Hebrew (Genesis 11:6):וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה הֵן עַם אֶחָד וְשָׂפָה אַחַת לְכֻלָּם וְזֶה הַחִלָּם לַעֲשׂוֹת וְעַתָּה לֹא־יִבָּצֵר מֵהֶם כֹּל אֲשֶׁר יְזַמּוּ לַעֲשׂוֹת׃Why is human ingenuity so bad? The text does not provide an answer. This lingering question could be why commentators interpreted this story to mean that the people wanted to attack God, and God needed to scatter them to avoid this result.

After the flood, the children of Noah begin to spread out and inhabit the known world. Chapter 10 lists the names of the descendants of each son. These lists read like a who’s who from the ancient world. Based on the children’s names, we can deduce that Yafet’s descendants inhabited Europe, Cham’s descendants inhabited Africa and the Levant and Shem’s children inhabited the Middle East. What’s fascinating about this chapter is not the names that we recognize, but those we do not. The Torah includes well-known names like Egypt, Kush, and Ashkenaz, even Phut appears later in Jeremiah (46:9) and Ezekiel (47:10), but what about Sabteca, Anamim, and Arki? Were these names included because they meant something to contemporary readers? Were these city-states that have since been lost to history? Were these descendants that simply did not make an impact like their famous cousins? Or did the Torah include these names to flesh out the idea that major powers of the ancient world were all related? It is unclear what the answer is, and it provides some mystery to this rather dry chapter. Yisroel Friedman once pointed out to me that the world in chapter 10 is divided by region amongst the descendants of Noach’s sons. Africa and Canaan goes to Cham’s descendants and the Fertile Crescent/Middle East goes to Shem’s. But there’s an oddity. We meet Nimrod, the great warrior. A descendant of Cham who rules, and begets, the great empires that spring from the territory we think of as Shem’s. Babylon, Nineveh, Assyria, Shinar, Akkadia, etc. Gen. 10:8-12. Nimrod was offsides, an over-reacher who defied boundaries. An empire builder, a colonizer, a hegemon. He introduced the idea of great powers that supplanted the more local affiliations and tribal alliances. The thirst for power and expansion that gave us the most violent and disruptive wars of our history and that play out as we speak. Can’t everyone just play nice in their own sandbox?

After the flood, God promises that he will not destroy the world by showing Noah a rainbow. Why a rainbow? A rainbow appears when the light of the sun refracts through droplets of rain at different angles. The ever present white light is broken up and we get to see all the colors of the spectrum. God uses the tool of destruction- the rain- to send a message that he knows the world is more complex than just black and white (light). A singular light strand is made up of an infinite number of different colors. Just like the light, humans are also complex. But the rainbow is also meant to teach us a lesson. Think about the effect a rainbow has on everyone. People stop and take pictures and gawk at the beauty of the world, yet all we are looking at is the same light we see everyday. The rainbow, therefore, is God’s challenge to humans. God will not destroy the world because God understands it is complex, but we must also recognize this complexity and not destroy it.

A staple of the Shabbat zemirot liturgy is a poem written by Rabbi Yehudah HaLevi: “Yonah Matzah Bo Manoach,” “The Dove found in it [Shabbat] rest.” This Shabbat lunchtime song has a recurring chorus about the dove finding a resting spot on Shabbat. The rest of the song, though, deals with the giving of the Torah. How does the author know the dove found the resting spot on Shabbat and what is the connection between the dove and giving of the Torah and Shabbat? To answer the first question, we can look at today’s chapter- “He waited another seven days, and again sent out the dove from the ark/The dove came back to him toward evening, and there in its bill was a plucked-off olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the waters had decreased on the earth/ He waited still another seven days and sent the dove forth; and it did not return to him any more”(Verses 10-12). Noah waits seven days twice to send the dove, and after the first time, the dove waits to return until the evening after the seventh day. The only previous “seventh day” that is mentioned in the Torah is the Sabbath. This is, ostensibly, where Rabbi Judah HaLevi determines that the dove rested on Shabbat. The answer to the second question is a little more complicated. The Israelites are compared to doves a few times in Tanach e.g., in Genesis 15:11 “And He said unto him: ‘Take Me a heifer of three years old, and a she-goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtle-dove, and a young pigeon,” in Psalms 68:14 “even for those of you who lie among the sheepfolds there are wings of a dove sheathed in silver, its pinions in fine gold.” The dove is also sent out when the Ark rests on a mountain. The third stanza of the poem reads: “Once on Moriah's mountain He bade His folk heed; 'Keep ye my Sabbaths, hallowed in word and deed.” After a tumultuous year of the flood, the dove finally finds a resting spot at the top of a mountain signaling the end of the flood. For the Israelites, their tumultuous beginning as a nation starting with slavery in Egypt followed by passing through water on dry land. Only after this chaos, were they able to find a resting spot at the base of a mountain and with the giving of the Ten Commandments. They, like the dove, finally found rest.

"This is the line of Noah.—Noah was righteous and blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God" (6:9). There is a debate among the commentators whether Noah was independently righteous or just in his generation. The verse itself is ambiguous. Some hold “in his generation” must be there to limit the description of Noah as righteous and blameless. The text explains that Noah was righteous ONLY in his generation, but would be a regular guy in other generations. Others say that “in his generation” is added to heap praise on Noah. Even though his entire generation was wicked, Noah still managed to be a righteous person. Chapter 7 opens with a similar verse “Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, with all your household, for you alone have I found righteous before Me in this generation” (verse 1). Does this verse provide more insight into the rabbinical debate? If God is speaking directly to Noah, it would be odd that he would use the opportunity for a backhanded compliment. ‘Noah, I will save you because you are only good in this generation, but if you were in any other generation…good luck!’ This may provide proof for the opinion that the earlier qualifier provided additional praise to Noah that he was righteous despite the evils of his generation.
Sforno, though, finds a way for this to be limiting without it being a backhanded compliment. He explains that this verse teaches us that Noah’s family was not worthy of being saved. God specially says “you alone”. The fact that his family is also mentioned here comes to exclude them from this calculation. Interestingly, God never explains why Noah is righteous. Unfortunately, due to Noah’s brisk introduction in the last chapter, we do not see the type of person he was before the flood. God simply selects him by declaring him righteous. Perhaps some of the commentators are upset that Noah does not try to save the inhabitants of the world like Abraham will do later on with the inhabitants of Sodom. All we know about Noah is that he enters the Ark and does everything God wants him to do. That may be enough to earn the praise of being a righteous man in an evil world.