system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
[the Silmarillion] Why did the Valar ask Eru to intervene against Ar-Pharazon's fleet instead of dealing with it themselves?
gpt
Because Men are children of Eru. Despite the fact that they were afraid that Numenor could ruin Valinor, they asked Eru because they did not want to directly kill humans or indeed any child of Ilúvatar by their own hands. It was basically a problem with too much ramifications.

Also, remember that Eru didn't just kill Ar-Pharazon and his fleet, he sunk the island and then turned the world round. Perhaps not actually beyond the Valar's combined power, but something they did not want responsibility for - something they did not want to get 'wrong'.

So in the end they asked Eru because he was the creator of everything, they knew that what Eru did would be the correct punishment or judgement depending on how you want to look at it. Rather than them doing it and somehow they screw it up and cause even more damage down the line.