Parshas Lech Lecha
1. It states in the Mishnah[1]: "There were ten generations from Noach to Avraham, to make known how great is His patience, for all those generations kept provoking Him, until Avraham our father came and received the reward of them all."
This needs to be understood: since the ten generations were "provoking Him continually," as is stated in the Mishnah itself, what reward was due to them that Avraham could receive?
Moreover, earlier the Mishnah says: "There were ten generations from Adam to Noach, to make known how great is His patience, for all those generations kept provoking Him, until He brought upon them the waters of the Flood" — without adding that Noach "received the reward of them all"; and in simple terms this is understandable: since "they kept provoking Him," they consequently earned no reward.
According to this it becomes even less understandable why, with regard to the "ten generations from Noach to Avraham," who were likewise "provoking Him continually," the Mishnah concludes that Avraham "received the reward of them all."
There are commentators[2] who answer that every person has a portion in Gan Eden designated for him in advance[3]; only if he is "found guilty" (in which case he takes "his own portion in Gehinnom"), then another comes who is "found meritorious" and "takes his own portion and his fellow's portion in Gan Eden"[3].
According to this, however, the first case becomes difficult — "ten generations from Adam to Noach etc.": since they too were "provoking Him continually," and Noach was "a righteous man… in his generations"[4], Noach should surely have taken "his own portion and his fellow's portion (that of the ten generations) in Gan Eden"?
2. The commentators[5] explain this: since Noach did not "pray for the people of his generation"[6] — he did not devote himself to bringing the people of his generation close to G‑d and to bringing about that they conduct themselves properly[7] — his "merit" was therefore not great enough for him to take "the reward of them all";
Whereas Avraham, who publicized G‑dliness in the world ("and he called there in the name of G‑d, the G‑d of the world"[8]) and brought people close to G‑d, as our Sages[9] say on the verse[10] "and the souls that they had made in Charan" — therefore merited to receive "the reward of them all."
But it still remains not understood: granting that the ten generations from Adam to Noach also had a designated reward prepared for them (because every person has a portion in Gan Eden etc., as mentioned above), and since Noach did not receive their reward because he lacked the merit for it — who, then, took their portion in Gan Eden?
And one cannot say that no one in fact received it, because concerning Gan Eden it is written[11], "And He placed him in Gan Eden to work it and to guard it," and after the sin of the Tree of Knowledge, Gan Eden is the place where reward is received for "to work it — these are the 248 positive commandments, and to guard it — these are the 365 prohibitions"[12] in this world. Gan Eden is designated for man with a purpose and goal; it is therefore inconceivable that a place in Gan Eden should remain "empty" — and especially a place that includes the portions of all the people of ten generations, and very long generations at that[13]. Someone must come there and fulfill the purpose of Gan Eden.
One must therefore say that the ten generations from Adam to Noach had, from the outset, no allotted portion — reward — at all. One must, however, understand: in what way were they, with their "provoking," different from and worse than the second ten generations?
3. It is also not understood: what, in general, is the novelty of the Mishnah that G‑d is "patient"? There is an explicit verse[14], "G‑d, (G‑d) patient," and this means (as Rashi[15] cites) "to the righteous and to the wicked"!
In simple terms it emerges[16] that the novelty of the Mishnah is "how great is His patience": the verse does not mention how far G‑d's patience extends; the Mishnah therefore says "to make known how great etc." — that G‑d is patient even for "ten generations."
One must, however, understand: what indeed is the reason that G‑d is patient even for "ten generations"? And why the emphasis specifically on "ten generations"?
4. All this will be understood by first explaining another matter: the order of the Mishnayos is arranged with precision[17], especially within the same chapter. That being so, what is the connection of the Mishnah of "ten generations from Adam" to the preceding Mishnah, "With ten utterances the world was created etc."? If it is only because of the chronological order of events — that the ten generations from Adam to Noach began immediately after "the world was created" — the Tanna should have placed first the later[18] Mishnah, "Ten things were created on the eve of Shabbos at twilight etc.," which speaks of the conclusion of "the world was created," before the time of "the ten generations etc."[19]
The explanation of this is: in the preceding Mishnah it is said that "with ten utterances the world was created etc.," and that this teaches us a twofold matter: "to exact punishment from the wicked who destroy the world etc., and to give good reward to the righteous who sustain the world etc."
And in continuation of, and in correspondence with, these two lessons relating to the two kinds of people [a) to exact punishment from the wicked who destroy etc.; b) and to give good reward to the righteous who sustain etc.], the second Mishnah teaches about the same two matters[20]:
a) "Ten generations from Adam to Noach etc." — these ten generations were wicked people who destroyed the world; therefore G‑d punished them ("to exact punishment") — "He brought upon them the waters of the Flood."
b) "Ten generations from Noach to Avraham etc., until Avraham came and received the reward of them all" — for although these ten generations too "kept provoking Him," Avraham our father nevertheless "sustained" the world: he brought about a sustaining also in all those ten generations of his[21], and therefore there was "the reward of them all," and he took "the reward of them all."
5. It is, however, still not understood: what, after all, is the difference between the two sets of ten generations, that specifically in the second it was possible to bring about a "sustaining" (and thereby to receive "the reward of them all")?
The explanation of this is:
Just as in the wars of the Jewish people, in the literal sense, there were things that were destroyed as cherem and things that were taken as spoil,
so too in the war against the evil in the world there are two kinds of evil[22] (and consequently two ways of "dealing"[23] with them[24]):
a) Things that are entirely evil, containing no good within them; such things must be destroyed — in the manner of "their breaking is their purification"[25].
And as is explained in Likkutei Torah[26] regarding the burning of the Red Heifer, that the "heifer" alludes to the evil deeds that are "truly utter evil in themselves," which is why the heifer is burned — because "it has no remedy except its nullification and its removal from the world"; and all that remains is the ash, which points to the essence of the "power of desire," which is not "evil by its very essence."
b) Things which, although (and even when) no good is visibly seen in them, nevertheless contain a spark of good; such things must therefore not be destroyed, but rather dealt with until, on the contrary, one sustains them, by transforming them from evil to good [to the point that, as in the words of our Sages[27], "the bedding she had spread for him in a forbidden manner, she spread for him in a permitted manner"].
And this is the difference between the two sets of "ten generations": the evil of the ten generations from Adam to Noach was utter evil, and such evil destroys the world; therefore G‑d wiped them out of the world completely — "He brought upon them the waters of the Flood."
Whereas the ten generations from Noach to Avraham, although they too "kept provoking Him," their evil was nevertheless of a kind that could be transformed to good. Therefore, when Avraham our father came and through his service "sustained" the world — he rectified and completed all those ten generations — he received "the reward of them all."
6. The reason G‑d is patient for as long as ten generations:
It has already been discussed many times[28] that "ten" is a whole and complete number, which includes within itself all perfections[29]; and just as this is so on the side of holiness, so it is also on the opposite side: the whole and full extent of evil is arranged in the number ten, in ten levels[30].
And therefore G‑d is patient (waiting for them to repent) for as long as ten generations — that is, until the full measure of "provoking Him continually" in all ten levels (generations) of evil[31].
7. Every person is called "a small world"[32]. Just as there are two periods of ten generations in the "great world," so are both these "periods" present in the "small world" — in the individual, in his service of G‑d:
When a person has been immersed for a whole "ten days" in undesirable matters, and nevertheless "it is good for him," he may think that his situation will continue in the future as it has been until now — "and he will bless himself in his heart, saying: I shall have peace, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart"[33]. On this the Mishnah says that the good he has received until now (although he is not as he should be) is because G‑d is "patient"[34]; but this will be cut off after the designated time[35].
And therefore he must do his service in the manner of "He brought upon them the waters of the Flood" — completely nullifying the undesirable matters.
But this service is not sufficient, for since a whole "ten days" have already passed in undesirable matters, there is a lack of the good things which he could (and consequently should) have accomplished in that past time — and indeed "the days were fashioned…"[36]: every person has a certain number of days that are designated for him to engage in the service of G‑d;
Therefore he must also take up the second service (that of the second "ten generations"): to bring about a "sustaining" also in the previous days — through the service of transforming darkness into light he rectifies and completes also what he missed in the previous days, to the point of "and he received the reward of them all."
(From a talk of Shabbos Parshas Re'eh, 5735)
Key Lesson
The generations before the Flood were utterly evil and could only be wiped away, while the generations before Avraham still held a spark of good, so Avraham, by bringing people close to G‑d, could elevate them and collect "the reward of them all." The same two stages apply to every person who has wasted "ten days" on undesirable things: first he must sweep them away entirely, like the Flood. But that alone does not restore the good he should have done in those days, so he must go on to the deeper service of turning the darkness itself into light, which redeems the past and earns its full reward.