The sinking of Numenor - a lesson to whom?

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Originally Posted by Legate

Eru, as far as I know, is addressed as "he" in the book

Actually, I wasn't trying to be clever. I just couldn't remember how Eru was adressed in the Silmarillion nor be bothered to look it up. You could however make the argument that Eru, in contrast to the Valar, in actuality was beyond any gender-description, being the One, although the Elves who wrote down the myth/history assumed he was a he, as they lived in a patriarchical society. But this is not a point I'd like to take any further.

Originally Posted by Legate

And also, in particular, if he, as you say, wanted the creation to be perfect and complete, why not make it himself and instead call some Ainur, who only made a mess.

I don't presume to know what Eru wanted, I just got this impression. Eru wanted to create a work of art, a beautiful creation, a perfect drama. He could have made everything perfect to begin with, but where's the fun in that? Like I said earlier, perfection loses much of it's gloss without the possibility of chaos, beauty is diminished without ugliness, the merit of being good is lost without the possibility of a fall, without a lower path. He wanted his children to discover prefection and goodness by themselves, not just lay it out for them ordered and ready.

This is also why I said that Eru cares little about the suffering of individual people. Eru always had full knowledge that millions or rather billions of good people would suffer horribly before his great drama would play out and end happily.

Originally Posted by Macalaure

While it certainly was a punishment to the Númenóreans, how can you tell that it was Eru's intention to punish them? This is more than just splitting hairs: Only if it was Eru's intention to punish them, it makes sense to ask who the lesson was directed at.In the Silmarillion there are many deeds worthy of punishment by Eru, especially by Morgoth, yet he never comes to punish them. Why would Eru make such an exception? Why does he count the trespasses of those who are supposed to rule Arda in his stead less than the trespasses of his Children that live in it? Would it not make more sense the other way around?

Why can I say it was Eru's intention to punish the Numenorians? Because the Numenorians were punished, that's why. Well, maybe I shouldn't be so cocksure, but I've hard time interpreting it any other way. Ar-Pharazon acted, Eru reacted, and like I thought we agreed on, Eru doesn't make mistakes. He wanted to destroy Numenor.

As to why he chose to punish the Numenorians but not any other people or individuals at any other time it's hard to say though. As I see it there's one unique thing about this episode. Men, as I remember having read somewhere, are supposed to be free to make their own fate beyond the Music, something which the elder children and even the Valar were not. Therefore, when Morgoth slew the trees, or when Feanor attacked and killed the Teleri, the events must (according to this interpretation) have been foretold in the Music and been a part of Eru's grand plan. Ar-Pharazon's attack on Aman need not have been so, and Eru could have felt the nessesity to act when he saw that his second children used this special freedom to make war upon Aman and his special friends the Ainur. Or perhaps he just did a favour for an old friend? But I agree with you that petty retaliation seems below Eru. There must be a message, a lesson to be learned. But here I'm stuck. I agree with Morth that this story is a wedding of the Biblical flood and the Atlantis-myth. But to be quite honest, I've a hard time figuring out what is to be learned from the biblical flood too, apart from the importance of sacrificing ritually clean beasts and follow best as you can God's every whim. Anyone?