ויבא נח ובניו ואשתו ונשי בניו אתו אל התבה מפני מי המבול ... (ז-ז)
Although Noach had great faith in Hashem and followed His every command under a great deal of pressure and mockery, he nonetheless maintained a flaw in his Emuna and for that reason waited for the waters of the mabul (flood) to almost literally push him and his family into the Teiva (Ark). While Chazal derive this from the posuk, it seems almost incredible. Noach would now at the last minute somehow hesitate? Shouldn’t he have run into the Teiva with glee? R’ Y. Dov Krakowski shlita explains that while Noach listened to Hashem’s instructions and built the ark, collected the animals, and prepared the necessary provisions, he still lived in a world of routine. This world of routine was so powerful that it (almost) overpowered his trust in Hashem. Noach somehow allowed routine rather than his faith in Hashem to take charge. Noach couldn’t imagine the flood actually coming and thus denied it until he no longer could.
In this vein, the Ziditchover Rebbe shlita, tells over the following story about the importance of elevating oneself above the routine: One Friday afternoon, a man entered the study of the renowned Tchortkover Rebbe, R’ Yisroel Friedman zt”l, with a request that was very common in those days.
“My son was drafted into the army. We are devastated,” the man began. “However, we do have a way out. On Sunday, we have an appointment with a doctor who will declare him unfit for service. This way he will be spared certain misery, perhaps even death in that terrible army. Rebbe,” he asked, “I need your blessing that he will evade the draft.”
The Rebbe quietly told the man that Shabbos was nearing and he could not concentrate on blessings. The man should return to him on Friday night after his tisch and he will see him then. The man did so. After most of the chassidim had left, the man repeated his request, almost verbatim. Again the Rebbe was non-committal. “Return to me after the Shacharis.” Unperturbed, the man noted that he would really like to resolve this matter before Sunday morning.
Shabbos morning, after davening, the man approached the Rebbe again. Calmly he repeated the predicament. “Sunday morning, I am going to a doctor who will falsely declare my son unfit for military service. Please pray that we will evade conscription.” The Rebbe was not moved. Again, he deferred until the afternoon. At the third Shabbos meal, the scene repeated itself yet again, precisely the way it had the previous three times. “I understand that you are leaving Sunday morning. Come back to me late Saturday night,” said the Rebbe. “By then I will have an answer for you.”
All this time, the Chassidim were shocked, their curiosity was piqued. They had never seen their Rebbe so reluctant to mete out a blessing, especially when it was one that would save a Jewish soul from the frightful Polish army.
On Motzei Shabbos, a large crowd gathered as the man approached with his request. Frustrated and disgruntled, the man, once again, repeated his story, almost verbatim, for the fifth time. Staring at the Rebbe, he waited for a response.
Immediately, the Rebbe sprung from his chair and began to shout. “What are you asking me? Why should one even try to evade the service of our wonderful country? How dare you ask for a blessing of that sort? Your son would make a fine soldier for our country. I wish him the best of luck in the army!” The man quickly scurried from the room and left town.
The Chassidim stood shocked and bewildered. Never had they heard such an uncharacteristic outcry from the Rebbe.
“I will explain,” said the Tchortkover. “The man was an obvious fraud. He had no son, and if he did, he wanted him in the army. He was sent by the government to test our loyalty. Boruch Hashem, we passed the test.”
“But, Rebbe!” cried the Chassidim, “how did you know? What gave him away?”
“Simple,” explained the Rebbe. “I watched the level of intensity. From the moment he met me until tonight there was no increase in intensity nor any sort of feeling of desperation with each request. The moment I heard his request tonight and it contained no more passion or desperation than his first request on Friday night, I knew he was a fraud.”