The LORD Shut Him In with Light and Lions

"And the LORD shut him in" (Genesis 7:16). The Holy One, blessed be He, shut up the sun and the moon, and they did not give light all twelve months, as it is said, "Who commands the sun [cheres] and it does not shine." And how did Noah see to function? The Holy One, blessed be He, prepared for him a precious stone, and he made use of its light. When the wicked saw that they were lost, they sought to overturn the ark; He surrounded the ark with lions, and they devoured them, as it is said, "And the LORD shut him in," just as it says, "My God sent His angel and shut the mouths of the lions, and they did not harm me" (Daniel 6:23). "Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail," and so forth (Genesis 7:19-20). And which measure is greater, the measure of good or the measure of punishment? You must say the measure of good is greater. Regarding the measure of punishment He says, "And the windows of heaven were opened"; regarding the measure of good He says, "And He commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven, and rained down manna upon them to eat, and gave them the grain of heaven" (Psalms 78:23-24). How many windows are in a door? Four and four, hence eight. It is found that the manna that fell for Israel was sixty cubits high. Are they comparable? There it was over forty days, here in a single hour; there for the whole world, here for Israel alone. Rather, Rabbi Elazar of Modi'in derives it by a verbal analogy of "opening" with "opening." Issi ben Yehuda says: The manna that came down for Israel kept rising up higher until all the kings of east and west could see it, as it is said, "You prepare before me a table in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows" (Psalms 23:5). Abaye said: Learn from this that the cup of David in the world to come holds two hundred and twenty-one log, as it is said, "my cup overflows [revayah]"; revayah in gematria equals this.