Noach's Altar, by Rav Yitzchak Etshalom
Why was Hashem's reaction to Noach's offerings so...tepid?
In the immediate aftermath of the flood, three consecutive events are recorded. Noah builds an altar and offers mammals and birds to God at which God seems to be pleased and internally commits to never again destroying the earth. God then presents an essential legal/moral code to Noah and then God confirms his commitment to never again destroy the world, by indicating the sign of that pact -the rainbow. This sequence is unsettling, as we would expect the "sign of the covenant" to be presented immediately after God's "internal" conversation. Yet the legal code interrupts these two. Furthermore, God's response to the offerings is less than enthusiastic - His observation is that "Man's nature is wicked from his youth" - hardly a ringing endorsement of mankind. What are we to make of this Divine reaction and how are we to understand the sequence of God's presentations to Noah and his sons? We suggest an uncommon understanding of the phrase ריח ניחוח as they key to unlocking this three-stage interaction. This shiur was given in honor of our brave חיילים וחיילות who guard our borders and our cities - ה' ישמרם מכל נגע וינחיל לעמו נצחון ויכלו אנשי זדון מן הארץ