<b>These are the generations of Noah (Gen. 6:9).</b> R. Tanhuma the son of Abba began the discussion of this subject with the verse: <i>The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that is wise winneth souls</i> (Prov. 11:30). R. Judah the Levite said: Whenever a man dies childless, he grieves and weeps. Thereupon the Holy One, blessed be He, consoles him with the words: “Wherefore do you weep over having left no fruit in this world? You have left fruit that is more desirable than children.” “Sovereign of the universe,” the man asks, “what fruit did I produce?” The Holy One, blessed be He, replies: “The Torah (you observed), concerning which it is written: <i>the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life</i>.” The verse does not say that children are a tree of life but that <i>the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life.</i><sup class="footnote-marker">4</sup><i class="footnote">The Torah is called a tree of life. Hence, the fruit of the righteous is the Torah that man preserves and perpetuates.</i> Accordingly, man’s most desirable offspring are his good works. Hence, it is written: <i>These are the offspring of Noah. Noah was in his generations a man righteous and whole-hearted</i> (Gen. 6:9).
R. Abahu taught: We find that the Holy One, blessed be He, rewards descendants because of the merit acquired by their ancestors. Where do we find that He also rewards ancestors because of the merit of their descendants? Scripture states: <i>Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord</i> (Gen. 6:8). Because of whose merit did Noah find grace? He <i>found grace</i> because of the merit of his descendants, as it is said: <i>These are the generations of Noah, Noah.</i>
<i>And he that is wise winneth souls</i> (Prov. 11:30). This refers to those who feed and entertain the poor. R. Tanhuma continued his exposition, saying: Our masters taught that Noah did not die until he saw the world reinhabited and beheld seventy generations of his descendants. However, none of them are mentioned by name. Only his righteousness is referred to.
<i>And he that is wise winneth souls</i> (ibid.). This applies to Noah, who fed and sustained the animals. What food did he feed them? R. Akiba maintained: All of them ate dried figs, as it is written: <i>And it shall be for food for thee and for them</i> (Gen. 6:21). Our sages, however, said: This was not so. He provided each of them with the kind of food it was accustomed to eat—straw for the camel, barley for the ass, and so forth. Each animal was fed what it was accustomed to eat. Hence, <i>And he that is wise winneth souls.</i>
Certain animals were fed at the first hour of the day, others at the second, and still others at the third; while some animals were fed at the third of night, others at midnight, and still others at the time of the crowing of the cock. Our sages declared that during the twelve months in the ark, Noah slept neither during the day nor at night because he was occupied constantly with feeding the creatures in his care. Hence, <i>he that is wise winneth souls</i> (ibid.).