"Hashem Chose Noach Only Because He Was Persecuted"

Before you is a portion of a lesson delivered by the Gaon and Tzaddik Rav Eliezer Berland shlit"a approximately 20 years ago, which speaks of the virtue of accepting humiliation.

"This is the secret of Parshat Noach; Noach merited to be, 'A righteous man, perfect in his generations' (Genesis 6:9). Hashem chose Noach not because of his good deeds, but only because he was persecuted. Noach was the most persecuted and most lowly person in the generation. Hashem created all the billions who were in that generation only to prepare Noach so that he would reach this level, from which all of humanity could emerge."

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"The 'Yitav Lev' (Rabbi Yekutiel Yehuda Teitelbaum zt"l, the first Admor of Sighet) says that in the merit that at every step of Noach's, and also for every word of his, they mocked him, Noach was prepared to be the successor of all generations. In the merit of the persecutions that they persecuted him for all 120 years (of building the Ark), only in this merit did he remain alive. 'And Hashem seeks the persecuted' (Ecclesiastes 3:15), Hashem demands the blood of the persecuted from the persecutors."

"Know that a person's entire service in this world is only to be persecuted; only in this way is he prepared to draw down the light of the Torah, to draw down the light of Judaism like Noach. All the persecutions that Noach underwent were so that he would be worthy that Avraham Avinu, Shem, and Ever would emerge from him; this is the reason for all the persecutions that they persecuted him day and night, hour by hour, second by second."