After Noah leaves the ark, we read about HaShem's promise to not bring another flood upon the world:
 

"And HaShem smelled the sweet aroma, and HaShem said in His heart: I shall not again curse the earth because of man, since the inclination of the heart of man is evil from his youth, and I shall not again smite all which is living as I did. From now, all the days of the earth, seed and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease. (Bereshis 8:21-22) "
 

On the face of it, it appears that HaShem decided not to bring on another flood because "the inclination of the heart of man is evil from his youth." Besides the fact that this explanation is obscure and confusing, we are most puzzled when we compare these words to the reason the Torah gives for bringing the flood upon the world in the first place (Bereshis 6:5-7):
 

"And HaShem saw that the evil of man on the earth was great, and all the inclinations of the thoughts of his heart were only wicked, all the time… And HaShem said, I shall blot out the man whom I created from the face of the earth."
 

So we are faced with a perplexing question: Is the evil inclination which resides in the heart of man a reason to punish him with a flood, or is it a reason to have mercy upon him and not to inflict a flood?

The commentators offered several directions to reconcile this contradiction, however in the following paragraphs, we will focus on the wonderful explanation of HaRav Shimshon Rafael Hirsch, which in addition to explaining these verses precisely, enlightens us to a number of fundamental points. HaRav Hirsch explains (based on many Rishonim) that yetzer hara (the evil inclination), in its simple meaning, is not a supernatural power which forces a man to do evil against his will. This definition is neither compatible with the word yetzer which alludes to yetzirah (the creation) of man, nor is it congruent with a power which creates or coerces. Therefore, yetzer lev ha'adam (the inclination of the heart of man) is defined as yetzirat lev (the creation of the heart). Man's heart desires certain things – good, and G-d forbid not good. In his aspiration toward them, man directs all his actions according to his heart's inclination (yetzer), which he himself created (yatzar).   

If man yatzar (created) evil, his deeds will be accordingly evil. And if the yetzer machashevot (inclinations of the thoughts) of his heart – which are his aspirations – are good and pure, then so will be his actions, which his inclinations will lead him to. Consequently, we see that man follows his yetzer, but he himself yatzar (created) this yetzer.
 

According to this, the explanation of the verse is: HaShem promises not to smite the earth again, and even if days will come in which the inclination of man's heart will be evil from his youth. That is, in contrast to the natural situation, even the youth will succumb, and aspire to evil and corruption, and then there is no hope for the world [since under normal circumstances, the hope of the world is in the youth (no'ar) who shake off (mina'arim) from themselves the accepted conventions and the perverted reality to which the older generation has resigned itself and succumbed to. They are the "idealists" who will rebel and demand a change, and they will topple the regime of evil (as we have seen several times in the history of the world)]. And even then (when this doesn't happen) HaShem says that He will not again smite all which is living. There will be no need for this, since from now, as a result of the moral decline, a new order will be enforced in the world, which will prevent the spread of evil to the entire world. In the following verse, HaShem proclaims this order:  "From now, all the days of the earth, seed and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease."
 

Contrary to popular belief, which interprets this verse as promising that nature will return to what it was before the flood, HaRav Hirsch brings at length sources from Chazal, which indicate that the laws of nature before the flood were completely different from what we are familiar with today. The weather was always pleasant – "they had good air like between Pesach and Atzeret." They had to seed only once every forty years, and all the land was joined together so "they went from one end of the earth to the other in a short time." When Rav Shmuel Bar Nachman's head hurt because of the change of the seasons, the Midrash relates that he would say: "see what the generation of the flood did to us." Until then, the days of the earth came one after the other. The pleasant weather which was everywhere on earth was transformed to fierce rain at the time of punishment. Perpetual growth and flowering was suddenly replaced by wilting and death. "From now – all the days of the earth", will be, always and continually, one beside the other. The division of the land and the change in nature which occurred during the flood changed the order of the world. From now on, at the same time that it is day on one side of the earth, on the other side it will be night. When here it is summer – there it is winter, etc. The rapid change of seasons which commenced also brought on (as the Sforno wrote, and as can be understood from Chazal) the dramatic shortening of human life. From now, even if an evil and corrupt man will seize power – his days will not be as long as in the past. Wicked rulers will not live more than a few decades, and their death will open the way for better people to ascend (as we saw many times regarding the kingdom of Yehuda).

The seasons of the year also forced man to be dependent upon the forces of nature, and he could no longer be so assured of an easy existence. The separation into different continents and climates generated the creation of different and separate nations, which originated from the sons of Noah (something we did not encounter in the 1600 years before the flood). The division into nations, each one distinct from the others, had the result that evil will not spread so easily in the entire world.

These changes, which came about as the result of man's corruption, will return to their original state in the Days to Come, in preparation for the perfection of the world, which will again unite in service of HaShem (under the leadership of Am Israel which is designated to bring this about). And in fact, in these days of atchalta d'geulah (the beginning of the redemption), we see that gradually things are returning to their original state: once again it is possible to travel from one end of the earth to the other in a short time, man's lifespan is increasing, between countries the barriers of nationalism and isolation are weakening through processes of globalization and modernization etc.

G-d willing, we will soon merit to witness the coming of the full redemption, and to see all the world return to its perfection - to recognize HaShem's sovereignty and to do His will. And then the world will return to the better, perfect order as in the former days and as in the years of the past.

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