Hello Friends,
The story of Noah teaches us faith, obedience, patience, and deliverance. Soon after the fall of Adam and Eve, it didn’t take long for mankind to pursue its evil ways. Genesis 3:22, “Then the Lord God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil.” Once mankind knew the difference between good and evil, their thoughts and deeds were prone to evil over good. Ecclesiastes 7:20, “For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin.” Romans 10-12, “There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.” Although mankind is unrighteous, in those days there was one faithful man who worshipped God. His name was Noah. Noah was not a perfect man, but in his generation he chose to worship God and follow his statues. Therefore, the Lord delighted in him. 2 Chronicles 16:9, “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.“ Noah was the only man God could find in those days whose heart was true and loyal to Him.
The Wickedness and Judgment of Mankind
Genesis 6:1-8, “Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose. And the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” It is amazing that evil was so rampant in Noah’s time, that the Lord gave the people of that generation 120 years to repent and turn their ways back to him. (I will not strive with man forever). In those days, people were actually living to be hundreds of years old. God could have destroyed the people in a blink of an eye, however, He gave them 120 years to repent and turn away from their wickedness. God is patient, all merciful, and all loving. 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” Sometimes we feel as if we have “120 years,” to repent and surrender our lives to the Lord. This is a very dangerous mindset, because we do not know how long we have on this earth. James 4:14, “Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.” The giants in those days were approximately ten feet tall. They could have been related to the descendants of Anak (Numbers 13:33). Furthermore, Goliath, who fought King David, was approximately ten feet tall. (1 Samuel 17). Did God regret creating mankind? Absolutely not. He was expressing sadness at the evil ways of mankind. God was grieved that the people chose sin over His kingdom and a relationship with Him. Just as it was in Noah’s days, God is grieved when we do not love Him and follow His commandments. 1 John 5:3, “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.“ Although Noah was not perfect, he worshipped God and found favor with the Almighty. God spared Noah and his family, eight people, because he was the only man that was faithful and worshipped Him. This story parallels God’s mercy and grace when Abraham interceded for Sodom and Gomorrah. Genesis 18:32, “And God said, ‘I will not destroy it for the sake of ten people.” As we know, there was not one faithful person in Sodom and Gomorrah, much less ten, so God destroyed those two cities with fire and brimstone. However, in Noah’s generation, he was the only faithful person on the face of the earth, and God chose to save him and his family from the flood because of it.
Genesis 6:9-12, “This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God. And Noah begot three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.” Noah is a great example for us to follow. He was not perfect, but he found “grace in the eyes of the Lord.” Genesis 9:20-21, “And Noah began to be a farmer, and he planted a vineyard. Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent.“ When the Bible states Noah was just and perfect, it does not mean he was sinless, but that He loved the Lord and did his best to obey His commandments. Matthew 22:37, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment.”
Genesis 6:13-22, And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch. And this is how you shall make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. You shall make a window for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit from above; and set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third decks. And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die. But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. And of every living thing of all flesh you shall bring two of every sort into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female. Of the birds after their kind, of animals after their kind, and of every creeping thing of the earth after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive. And you shall take for yourself of all food that is eaten, and you shall gather it to yourself; and it shall be food for you and for them.” Thus Noah did; according to all that God commanded him, so he did.” God’s patience had come to an end. The 120 years for the people to repent had expired, and God’s judgment was imminent. Nahum 1:3, “The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked.” God placed Noah in charge of building the ark. We can only imagine what the people of Noah’s day thought when they saw Noah and his helpers building an ark the size of one and one-half football fields and four stories high! Even in today’s measurements, that is gigantic! The people in Noah’s day were evil, so of course they mocked and heckled Noah without realizing the catastrophe that was coming their way. However, Noah was patient and obedient, as he loved and trusted the Lord over mankind’s foolish ways. Deuteronomy 7:9, “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments.” 1 Corinthians 1:9, “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” A covenant is a promise from the Almighty. God never breaks His promises, as He is holy and righteous. Numbers 23:19, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” In God’s covenant, He not only remembered Noah and his family, but He also remembered His beautiful creation of animals. He commanded Noah to bring in a male and a female of every kind to keep His beautiful creation alive after the flood. Bible scholars have estimated that approximately 50,000 animals could have fit in the ark! The Almighty has also made a covenant with the Jews and the Gentiles. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him, should not perish but have everlasting life.” Romans 10:12-13, “For there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Amen
The Great Flood
Genesis 7:1-6, “Then the Lord said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation. You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal, a male and his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male and his female; also seven each of birds of the air, male and female, to keep the species alive on the face of all the earth. For after seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made.” And Noah did according to all that the Lord commanded him. Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters were on the earth.” Noah brought pairs of every animal in the ark as mentioned above. Seven pairs of “clean” animals were taken from those animals for sacrifices. Seven is in reference to “spiritual perfection,” and the 40 days and 40 nights is in reference to a “time of testing.”* How did Noah gather all of these animals? We have to remember that God is in control of everything, including the animals. We can relate to this as to when a bad storm or calamity comes our way, and the animals begin acting in an unusual way. If we are paying attention, they warn us by their unusual behavior. Their innate instincts warn them of pending disasters causing them to move to “higher ground,” or fly in a “different direction,” for example. So, we can be confident that the animals in Noah’s day had the instinct from God to board the ark, which is another amazing gift from God!
Genesis 7:7-16, “So Noah, with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives, went into the ark because of the waters of the flood. Of clean animals, of animals that are unclean, of birds, and of everything that creeps on the earth, two by two they went into the ark to Noah, male and female, as God had commanded Noah. And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were on the earth. In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights. On the very same day Noah and Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark— they and every beast after its kind, all cattle after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. And they went into the ark to Noah, two by two, of all flesh in which is the breath of life. So those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; and the Lord shut him in.“
Genesis 7:17-24 “Now the flood was on the earth forty days. The waters increased and lifted up the ark, and it rose high above the earth. The waters prevailed and greatly increased on the earth, and the ark moved about on the surface of the waters. And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered. The waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward, and the mountains were covered. And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds and cattle and beasts and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man. All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all that was on the dry land, died. So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the ground: both man and cattle, creeping thing and bird of the air. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive. And the waters prevailed on the earth one hundred and fifty days. Did the Flood cover the whole earth? It is certainly possible, as the earth began that way. It is clear in the following Scripture that there was enough water on the earth to cover all dry land. . Genesis 1:9-10, Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear, and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good.“ In Genesis 9:11-17, God made a covenant and promised not to destroy the earth again with a flood. This gives us confidence that the flood covered the entire earth since all of mankind and was destroyed, except Noah and his family. Is God unloving because He destroyed all of the people except Noah and his family of eight people? Absolutely not. He gave the people 120 years to repent and turn to Him, and they refused to repent and turn from their wicked ways. So, after 120 years, God destroyed them. Throughout history, we have examples of how God has warned people before judgment. God always warns before judgment. He always sends prophets like Noah, Jonah, Jeremiah, and Messiah Himself to warn the people of coming judgment unless they repent and turn to Him. Jonah 3:4, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” Jonah 3:5, “So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them.” Jonah 3:10, “Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.” In Nineveh’s case, they repented from their evil ways, and God did not send His judgement upon them. Jeremiah warned the people of Judah several times of God’s judgment, but they did not repent. They were eventually destroyed by Babylon (Nebuchadnezzar 586 BC). Jeremiah 25: 8-11, “Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Because you have not heard My words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,’ says the Lord, ‘and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against these nations all around, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, a hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.” Wow. Also, Messiah prophesied to Israel of coming destruction (Romans), because they were evil and did not recognize the timing of His first coming. Luke 19:41-44, “Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” Matthew 23:37-39, ““O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” Matthew 24:1-2, “Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Incredible. These prophesies by Messiah would be fulfilled in AD70 (Roman Empire-Titus). As we can see, God is patient, forgiving, and all loving, however, He will only allow the rebellion and wickedness of mankind to continue for so long, just as He did in Noah’s days. Nahum 1:3, “The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked.”
Noah’s Deliverance
Genesis 8:1-19,”Then God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the animals that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters subsided. The fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were also stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained. And the waters receded continually from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters decreased. Then the ark rested in the seventh month, the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat. And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month. In the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen. So it came to pass, at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made. Then he sent out a raven, which kept going to and fro until the waters had dried up from the earth. He also sent out from himself a dove, to see if the waters had receded from the face of the ground. But the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot, and she returned into the ark to him, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her, and drew her into the ark to himself. And he waited yet another seven days, and again he sent the dove out from the ark. Then the dove came to him in the evening, and behold, a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth; and Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth. So he waited yet another seven days and sent out the dove, which did not return again to him anymore.” And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry. And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried. Then God spoke to Noah, saying, “Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you: birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, according to their families, went out of the ark.” Noah teaches us patience and obedience to God when he waited on the Lord’s command before he exited the ark. He could have chosen to leave on his own accord, but his trust rested in God’s hands. Throughout this journey, Noah trusted and obeyed God without question. Why did Noah send out a raven and a dove? Ravens are scavengers that would go out and feed off of the dead carcasses that were killed in the flood. Noah knew the raven would go “to and fro,” until the water had dried up from the earth. On the other hand, a dove is not a scavenger, and Noah knew it would return to its point of origin if no land was found. So Noah sent out a dove, and it came back with an olive leaf, however, the dove found no place to perch. Once the vegetation began to grown again, Noah knew the earth was becoming habitable again. However, the earth was probably not dry enough for Noah, his family, and the animals to go out, so he waited seven more days. After seven days, the dove was sent out, and it never returned. The dove had no need to return to the ark, since it had found a home on land. So Noah knew they could exit the ark. The raven served as a first attempt to discover dry land, and the dove became Noah’s way of determining when to leave the ark. The patience of Noah is incredible, as I don’t think we can even begin to imagine how hard it must have been to be in the ark for an entire year with 50,000 animals! Like Noah, we must be patient and trust in the Lord for His guidance through difficult times, even if it takes longer for our prayers to be answered than we would like it too. Isaiah 26:4, “Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength.” Romans 2:6-7, “He will render to each one according to his deeds, eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality.“
God’s Covenant with Creation
Genesis 8:20-22, “Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done. “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease.” When leaving the ark for the first time, Noah’s first priority was to praise and thank God Almighty. Like Noah, when God delivers us from calamity, we should always give thanks and praise to Him for his sovereignty and holiness. The Lord states that although mankind is evil, He will never again destroy the earth again by water. Genesis 9:11-17, ” Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.” This shows God’s ultimate love for mankind and all of His beautiful creation. As we know, when the Almighty says everlasting, it is everlasting. Numbers 23:19, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?“
The Story of Noah and the flood teaches us faith, obedience, patience, and deliverance. Noah was faithful to God, and in return, God saved Noah and his family from the destruction of the flood. Noah was obedient to the Lord and followed His instructions to build the ark. Even though he was heckled and mocked, he obeyed God and was rewarded. Noah was patient in building the ark during the 120 years, and also patient during the year long experience on the ark. His patience continued even when it was time to exit the ark. Noah’s faith, obedience, and patience toward the Lord delivered him and his family from the flood. Are we faithful, obedient, and patient toward God, even when we are mocked and heckled for following God’s laws and commandments? If we are, God will deliver us just as He did with Noah and his family. Galatians 6:7-8, ” Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” Ecclesiastes 12:13, “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.” Noah’s faith in God was so strong, he is mentioned in the “Faith Hall of Fame.” Hebrews 11:7, ” By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.” Noah’s story is so relevant, even Messiah referenced it. Matthew 24:37-39, “But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Jesus makes it very clear how the people in the world will be before His second coming, as He referenced the days of Noah. In Noah’s days, as we discussed, people lived according to their own lusts and desires, and they did not follow God’s commandments and laws. It was an apostate world. So, when Messiah stated it would be like the “days of Noah” at His second coming, it is clear that the world will not be following God’s commandments and laws, and they would once again, as in the days of Noah, be living to satisfy their own lusts and desires. We are warned about the world’s lust and desires. 1 John 2:15-17, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.” Are you living like the people of Noah’s day or Noah? Are you ready for His second coming? Is your salvation secured through Jesus Christ? Like Noah, if we are faithful, obedient, and patient, Messiah will deliver us at His second coming! Amen, Amen, and Amen