Genesis 11:1-32, Tower of Babel, Dispersion of nations

 

Genesis 11 traced the genealogy from Shem to Abraham. Human beings became proud, arrogant, and self-sufficient. Under the leadership of Nimrod, they started to build a tall skyscraper in Shinar called the Tower of Babe. Nimrod in Hebrews means to rebel. The tower was to be a pagan religious, astrological centre that will reach into heaven. Instead of worshiping the Creator God, they worshiped the sun, the moon, and the stars. God confused their language and dispersed them all over the world. Babel in Hebrews means confusion. Shinar is Mesopotamia or modern-day Babylon. At the end of world history, during the seven-year tribulation, Babylon will be the political and religious headquarter of the one-world government under the antichrist.

 

 

Verses 1-4, 1 The whole earth was of one language and of one speech. 2 As they traveled east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they lived there. 3 They said to one another, “Come, let’s make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar. 4 They said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city and a tower whose top reaches to the sky, and let’s make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad on the surface of the whole earth.”

 

The people of the post-flood world spoke only one language and one dialect. The people traveled east and settled in Shinar. They became arrogant, ambitious, and proceeded to construct a skyscraper in Shinar called the Tower of Babel high up in the sky towards heaven. They wanted to build a name, city, and tower by and for themselves so as to be independent of God.

 

Verses 5-7, 5 Yahweh came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men built. 6 Yahweh said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do. Now nothing will be withheld from them, which they intend to do. 7 Come, let’s go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

 

The Trinitarian LORD came down from heaven to see their construction. Seeing their pride, arrogant, self-dependence, defiance, and rebellious attitudes, God confused their language so that different people speak a different language. The people could not understand each other and discontinued building the skyscraper.

 

Verses 8-9, 8 So Yahweh scattered them abroad from there on the surface of all the earth. They stopped building the city. 9 Therefore its name was called Babel, because there Yahweh confused the language of all the earth. From there, Yahweh scattered them abroad on the surface of all the earth.

 

The LORD dispersed the people to different parts of the earth according to their family clans, language, and people group. The people migrated out from Shinar to settle in other countries. The people of different countries spoke different languages, adopted different cultures, lifestyles, and customs.

 

Verses 10-11, 10 This is the history of the generations of Shem: Shem was one hundred years old when he became the father of Arpachshad two years after the flood. 11 Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arpachshad and became the father of more sons and daughters.

 

This is the sixth time the word generations or genealogy was used, compare Genesis 2:4, 5:1, 6:9, 10:1, and 10:32.  Shem was one hundred and ten years of age when he fathered Arpachshad, two years after the flood. Shem lived another five hundred years and died at the age of six hundred years.

 

Verses 12-15, 12 Arpachshad lived thirty-five years and became the father of Shelah. 13 Arpachshad lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Shelah and became the father of more sons and daughters. 14 Shelah lived thirty years and became the father of Eber. 15 Shelah lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Eber, and became the father of more sons and daughters.

 

Arpachshad was the father of Shelah, and he died at the age of 438 years. Shelah was the father of Eber, and he died at the age of 435 years.

 

Verses 16-19, 16 Eber lived thirty-four years and became the father of Peleg. 17 Eber lived four hundred thirty years after he became the father of Peleg and became the father of more sons and daughters. 18 Peleg lived thirty years and became the father of Reu. 19 Peleg lived two hundred nine years after he became the father of Reu and became the father of more sons and daughters.

 

Eber was the father of Peleg and he died at the age of 239 years.  Peleg was the father of Reu, and he died at the age of 238 years.

 

Verses 20-26, 20 Reu lived thirty-two years and became the father of Serug. 21 Reu lived two hundred seven years after he became the father of Serug and became the father of more sons and daughters. 22 Serug lived thirty years and became the father of Nahor. 23 Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor and became the father of more sons and daughters. 24 Nahor lived twenty-nine years and became the father of Terah. 25 Nahor lived one hundred nineteen years after he became the father of Terah and became the father of more sons and daughters. 26 Terah lived seventy years and became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Reu was the father of Serug and he died at the age of 239 years. Sreug was the father of Nahor and he lived 230 years. Nahor was the father of Terah and he lived 238 years. Terah was the father of Abram, whom God renamed Abraham.

 

Verses 27-32, 27 Now this is the history of the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran became the father of Lot. 28 Haran died in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldees, while his father Terah was still alive. 29 Abram and Nahor married wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, who was also the father of Iscah. 30 Sarai was barren. She had no child. 31 Terah took Abram his son, Lot the son of Haran, his son’s son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife. They went from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan. They came to Haran and lived there. 32 The days of Terah were two hundred five years. Terah died in Haran.

 

This is the seventh time the word generations or genealogy was used, compare Genesis 2:4, 5:1, 6:9, 10:1, 10:32, and 11:10. The genealogy of Terah was listed. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Terah died at the age of 205 years. Haran was the father of Lot. Abram married Sarai but Sarai was barren. Later, God will rename Sarai to Sarah. Terah took Abram, Lot, and Sarai and went from Ur of the Chaldees to Canaan but he settled in Haran and did not make it to Canaan. Terah died at the age of two hundred and five years. The life span of the people post-flood became shorter and shorter. Noah lived 950 years, Shem lived 600 years, and Terah lived only 205 yeras. Haran is modern-day Syria. 

 

There were ten generations from Noah to Abraham, viz. Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah, Eber, Peleg, Reu,Serug, Nahor, Terah, and Abram or Abraham.

 

Application:

 

The people wanted to build a name, a city, and a tower for themselves by their own self-effort, independent of God. This is rebellion towards God. They wanted to worship the sun, the moon, and the stars instead of God. There is a saying, “man proposes but God disposes”. God confused their language and dispersed them from Shinar. Are you building a name for yourselves or are you trusting in God to build a name for you? Humble yourself to God and He will raise you up. Do not be self-sufficient but be God-dependent.

 

Prayer:

 

Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us the stamina, strength, persistence, perseverance, insight, and wisdom to study Your word in the book of Genesis. We believe that You created the heavens and earth. We believe that the Bible is Your word written by You to us, for our benefit, to instruct, correct, convict, and to train us in righties living, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Chapter 10, Genesis 10:1-32, formation of nations

Genesis 10 traced the genealogy of the three sons of Noah, Shem, Japheth, and Ham, whose descendants gave rise to the different tribes and people groups of the post-flood world, who spoke different languages, and dialects. These people groups are called the table of nations. Genesis 10 listed seventy names and seventy people groups. The entire world population today are descendants of these seventy people groups from the three sons of Noah.

Verses 1-5, 1 Now this is the history of the generations of the sons of Noah and of Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Sons were born to them after the flood. 2 The sons of Japheth were: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 3 The sons of Gomer were: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. 4 The sons of Javan were: Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5 Of these were the islands of the nations divided in their lands, everyone after his language, after their families, in their nations.

This is the fourth time, the word generations or genealogy was used, compare Genesis 2:4, 5:1, and 6:9. This passage traced the genealogy of Japheth down two generations. Magog is modern-day Russia. Japheth in Hebrew means to expand.

Japheth’s descendants today are the people of Europe and Asia.

Verse 6-20, 6 The sons of Ham were: Cush, Mizraim, Put, and Canaan. 7 The sons of Cush were: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah were: Sheba and Dedan. 8 Cush became the father of Nimrod. He began to be a mighty one in the earth. 9 He was a mighty hunter before Yahweh. Therefore it is said, “like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before Yahweh”. 10 The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. 11 Out of that land he went into Assyria, and built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah, 12 and Resen between Nineveh and the great city Calah. 13 Mizraim became the father of Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, 14 Pathrusim, Casluhim (which the Philistines descended from), and Caphtorim. 15 Canaan became the father of Sidon (his firstborn), Heth, 16 the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, 17 the Hivites, the Markets, the Sinites, 18 the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites. Afterward the families of the Canaanites were spread abroad. 19 The border of the Canaanites was from Sidon—as you go toward Gerar—to Gaza—as you go toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim—to Lasha. 20 These are the sons of Ham, after their families, according to their languages, in their lands and their nations.

This passage traced the genealogy of Ham down three generations. Canaan is modern-day Israel. One of the great-grandsons of Ham was Nimrod, a violent, wicked, ruthless, and cruel religious and political dictator who built Babel, Nineveh, Shinar, and many other cities. Babel is Babylon, modern-day Iraq. Nimrod was a foreshadow of the antichrist. He was the founder of pagan religious practices and astrology in the city of Babel. He was the ring leader who started building the Tower of Babel described in Genesis 11. Just as Babel was prominent in the post-flood world, Babylon will also rise to prominence during the seven-year tribulation of the end time. Babylon will be the headquarter of the antichrist’s one world government.

Ham in Hebrews means hot. Ham’s descendants today are mainly the Africans.

Verses 21-31, 21 Children were also born to Shem (the elder brother of Japheth), the father of all the children of Eber. 22 The sons of Shem were: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. 23 The sons of Aram were: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. 24 Arpachshad became the father of Shelah. Shelah became the father of Eber. 25 To Eber were born two sons. The name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided. His brother’s name was Joktan. 26 Joktan became the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were the sons of Joktan. 30 Their dwelling extended from Mesha, as you go toward Sephar, the mountain of the east. 31 These are the sons of Shem, by their families, according to their languages, lands, and nations.

This passage traced the genealogy of Shem down four generations. The genealogy of Shen is important because he was the ancestor of Abraham and Jesus Christ. Aram is modern-day Syria. Shem in Hebrews means name.

The descendants of Shem today are the Middle Eastern people and the Jews.

Verses 32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, by their generations, according to their nations. The nations divided from these in the earth after the flood.

This is a summary statement of Genesis 10. This is the fifth time, the word generations or genealogy was used, compare Genesis 2:4, 5:1, 6:9, and 10:1.

Application:

This chapter explained to us our ancestry. All of us are descendants of Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Although people lived in different countries, spoke different languages, practiced different customs and lifestyles, people belonged to one race, the human race. People share the same ancestries. People share the same blood and DNA although in different combinations and compositions. There is no place for racism and discrimination.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank You for all that You have done for us in our lives. Thank You for salvation and justification by grace through faith in Christ. Thank You for sanctification through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. Thank You for the gift and promise of eternal life, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Genesis 9:1-29, the rainbow sign

 

God blessed Noah and his family and commanded them to populate the earth again through childbearing. God sends a rainbow as a sign of His covenant not to send the flood to destroy the earth.

 

Verse 1-3, 1  God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth. 2 The fear of you and the dread of you will be on every animal of the earth, and on every bird of the sky. Everything that moves along the ground, and all the fish of the sea, are delivered into your hand. 3 Every moving thing that lives will be food for you. As I gave you the green herb, I have given everything to you.

 

God blessed Noah and his sons and commanded them to have lots of descendants to repopulate the earth. Noah and his family will have dominion over the animals, the birds, and the fish. God allowed Noah and his family to eat the animals, the birds, the fish, and plants, i.e. to be carnivorous and herbivorous. Note that God allowed Adam and Eve to be herbivorous only.

 

Verses 4-7, 4 But flesh with its life, that is, its blood, you shall not eat. 5 I will surely require accounting for your life’s blood. At the hand of every animal, I will require it. At the hand of man, even at the hand of every man’s brother, I will require the life of man. 6 Whoever sheds man’s blood, his blood will be shed by man, for God made man in his own image. 7 Be fruitful and multiply. Increase abundantly in the earth, and multiply in it.”

 

God prohibited Noah and his family from drinking blood because life is in the blood. God imposed capital punishment for murder because a man was made in God’s image. Life is sacred. Human beings were the crowning glory of God’s creation. God reiterated His commandment to Noah and his family to repopulate the earth through childbearing.

 

Verses 9-12, 8 God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, 9 “As for me, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your offspring after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the livestock, and every animal of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ship, even every animal of the earth. 11 I will establish my covenant with you: All flesh will not be cut off any more by the waters of the flood. There will never again be a flood to destroy the earth.” 12 God said, “This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:

 

God covenanted with Noah, his family, and all living creatures, that He will never again send the flood to destroy the earth.  This was the Noahic covenant.

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Verses 13-17, 13 I set my rainbow in the cloud, and it will be a sign of a covenant between me and the earth. 14 When I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow will be seen in the cloud, 15 I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters will no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 The rainbow will be in the cloud. I will look at it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17 God said to Noah, “This is the token of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

 

God placed a rainbow in the sky as a sign of the Noahic covenant. Whenever God looked at the rainbow, He will remember His everlasting covenant between Him, human beings, and all living creatures.

 

Verse 18-23, 18 The sons of Noah who went out from the ship were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham is the father of Canaan. 19 These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the whole earth was populated. 20 Noah began to be a farmer and planted a vineyard. 21 He drank of the wine and got drunk. He was uncovered within his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. 23 Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it on both their shoulders, went in backwards, and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were backwards, and they didn’t see their father’s nakedness. Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

 

Every human being today is a descendant of one of Noah’s three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham was the father of Canaan. Shem was the forefather of Abraham. Noah was a farmer. One day, Noah was drunk after drinking too much wine. Ham saw his father’s nakedness and told his brothers about him. Shem and Japheth took a blanket, walked backward, and covered their father with the blanket. Shem and Japheth respected their father’s nakedness and protected him from shame. Ham did not respect his father, ridiculed, and publicised his father’s nakedness.

 

Verse 24-29, 24 Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his youngest son had done to him. 25 He said, “Canaan is cursed. He will be a servant of servants to his brothers.” 26 He said, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Shem. Let Canaan be his servant. 27 May God enlarge Japheth. Let him dwell in the tents of Shem. Let Canaan be his servant.” 28 Noah lived three hundred fifty years after the flood. 29 All the days of Noah were nine hundred fifty years, and then he died.

 

When Noah awoke and found out what Ham had done to him, he pronounced a curse on one of Ham’s sons Canaan. Noah prophesied that Canaan will be a servant to Shem’s descendants. Noah pronounced a blessing on Shem and Japheth. Noah lived three hundred and fifty years after the flood. Noah was six hundred years old when the flood came. So, Noah died at the age of nine hundred and fifty years.

 

Application:

 

Noah was drunk with wine and this led to serious consequences. Do not be drunk with wine. The consequences of getting drunk can be very serious. Do not be drunk with wine, instead, be drunk and filled with the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 5: 18-19. See Proverbs 23: 20-21 and Romans 13:13.

 

Ephesians 5: 18-19, “Don’t be drunken with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs; singing, and making melody in your heart to the Lord.”

 

Proverbs 23: 20-21, “Don’t be among ones drinking too much wine, or those who gorge themselves on meat, for the drunkard and the glutton shall become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

 

Romans 13:13,  “Let’s walk properly, as in the day; not in reveling and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and lustful acts, and not in strife and jealousy.”

 

Prayer:

 

Heavenly Father, thank You for sending the rainbow as a sign of Your covenant that You will not send the flood to destroy the earth. Thank You for preserving the life of Noah and his family to replenish the world’s population again. Thank You for giving us a second chance to do it right again. Thank You for saving us by grace through faith in Christ, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Chapter 8: Genesis 8:1-22, a new beginning

After forty days and forty nights, God stopped the flood but Noah stayed in the ark very much longer until the waters totally subsided. When Noah came out of the ark, he offered burnt offerings to the Lord. Humanity was given a new start with Noah. The human race started all over again with just twelve people. Humanity was given a new lease of life, a second chance to do it right one more time.

Verses 1-5, 1 God remembered Noah, all the animals, and all the livestock that were with him in the ship; and God made a wind to pass over the earth. The waters subsided. 2 The deep’s fountains and the sky’s windows were also stopped, and the rain from the sky was restrained. 3 The waters continually receded from the earth. After the end of one hundred fifty days the waters receded. 4 The ship rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on Ararat’s mountains. 5 The waters receded continually until the tenth month. In the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were visible.

God remembered Noah and all the living creatures inside it. He sent the wind to blow over the earth and stopped the rain from falling from the sky and waters from gushing out from below the sea. After 150 days, the floodwaters gradually subsided, the ark rested on the mountains of Ararat on the seventeen-day of the seventh month. The tops of the mountains became visible on the first day of the tenth month.

Verses 6-12, 6 At the end of forty days, Noah opened the window of the ship which he had made, 7 and he sent out a raven. It went back and forth until the waters were dried up from the earth. 8 He himself sent out a dove to see if the waters were abated from the surface of the ground, 9 but the dove found no place to rest her foot, and she returned into the ship to him, for the waters were on the surface of the whole earth. He put out his hand, and took her, and brought her to him into the ship. 10 He waited yet another seven days; and again he sent the dove out of the ship.11 The dove came back to him at evening and, behold, in her mouth was a freshly plucked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the waters were abated from the earth. 12 He waited yet another seven days, and sent out the dove; and she didn’t return to him any more.

At the end of forty days, Noah opened the window of the ark and sent out a raven. It went back and forth and returned to the ark. After this, Noah sent out a dove but it returned back to the ark. Seven days later, Noah sent out the dove again. The dove returned with a fresh olive leaf in its mouth. Seven days later, Noah sent out the dove again, and this time, the dove did not return to the ark. So, Noah knew that the water had finally subsided and the ground was dry.

Verses 13-17, 13 In the six hundred first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from the earth. Noah removed the covering of the ship and looked. He saw that the surface of the ground was dry. 14 In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry. 15 God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 “Go out of the ship, you, your wife, your sons, and your sons’ wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh, including birds, livestock, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply on the earth.”

On the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and one years, the waters totally subsided. On the twenty-seven days of the second month, the surface of the earth was dry. God commanded Noah to bring his wife, his sons, his daughters-in-law, animals, creeping things, and birds out of the ark. God commanded Noah to be fruitful and multiply to replenish the earth’s population.

Verses 18-22, 18 Noah went out, with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives with him. 19 Every animal, every creeping thing, and every bird, whatever moves on the earth, after their families, went out of the ship. 20 Noah built an altar to Yahweh, and took of every clean animal, and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 Yahweh smelled the pleasant aroma. Yahweh said in his heart, “I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake because the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth. I will never again strike every living thing, as I have done. 22 While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night will not cease.”

Finally, Noah, his family, animals, livestock, creeping things, and birds came out from the ark. Noah built an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings of clean animals and birds to the LORD. The LORD accepted Noah’s offering and promised that He would never curse the ground to strike every living thing in the same way. God promised Noah, times, seasons, days, nights, weeks, months, and years. This was the first time that burnt offering was mentioned in the Bible. Another first for Genesis. Noah and his team were in the ark for more than 1 year.

Application:

God remembered Noah. God remembered you. God never forgets. Even though a mother may forget her breastfeeding baby, God will never forget you, Isaiah 49:15.

Isaiah 49:15, “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, these may forget, yet I will not

forget you!

Noah offered burnt offerings to the Lord. Today, we do not burn an animal sacrifice to God because Christ had offered Himself as the perfect sin offering to pay the penalty of our sins for us. We offer our praise, worship, and body as living sacrifices to serve Him.

Only God can stop the flood at His own timing. Similarly, only God can stop the covid 19 pandemic at His own timing.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us a new beginning, a new start, a new life, a new spiritual rebirth. Thank you that when we are in Christ, we are born again, born from above, regenerated, and became a new creation. Thank You that the old self of the flesh has gone and the new life in the Spirit has come. Thank You for giving us a second chance, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Chapter 6, Genesis 6: 1-22, Noah’s Ark

As the people on earth became more and more wicked. God decided to wipe out the world’s population. God preserved the life of Noah because he was righteous and he walked with God. God drowned every human being on earth except Noah and his wife, three sons, and three daughters-in-law.

Verses 1-4, 1 When men began to multiply on the surface of the ground, and daughters were born to them, 2 God’s sons saw that men’s daughters were beautiful, and they took any that they wanted for themselves as wives. 3 Yahweh said, “My Spirit will not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; so his days will be one hundred twenty years.” 4 The Nephilim were in the earth in those days, and also after that when God’s sons came in to men’s daughters and had children with them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.

This is a difficult passage. As human beings continued to multiply on the earth, they became more and more wicked. Who were the sons of God and the daughters of men? There are two schools of thought. Some scholars believed the sons of God were Cain’s descendants and the daughters of men were Seth’s descendants. Others believed the sons of God were fallen angels (demonic spirits) and daughters of men were women. According to the second school of thought, the sexual union between demonic spirits and women gave rise to a hybrid race of giants or Nephilim. Nephilim in Hebrews means, the fallen ones.

Verses 5-8, 5 Yahweh saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of man’s heart was continually only evil. 6 Yahweh was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him in his heart. 7 Yahweh said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the surface of the ground—man, along with animals, creeping things, and birds of the sky—for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in Yahweh’s eyes.

As time went by, the LORD saw that human beings became too wicked. The LORD decided to wipe out all human beings, all the animals, all the creeping things, and all the birds. But Noah found grace in the LORD’s eyes. God preserved the lives of Noah, his wife, three sons, and three daughters-in-law. Out of all the millions of earth dwellers, only Noah was righteous in the LORD’s eyes.

Verses 9-12, 9 This is the history of the generations of Noah: Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time. Noah walked with God. 10 Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 11 The earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 God saw the earth and saw that it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.

This is the third time, the word generations or genealogy was used, compare Genesis 2:4, and 5:1. Here is the genealogy from Noah who was blameless, righteous, and walked with God. Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. God saw that the earth was so corrupted, so evil and so full of violence.

Verses 13-15, 13 God said to Noah, “I will bring an end to all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them and the earth. 14 Make a ship of gopher wood. You shall make rooms in the ship, and shall seal it inside and outside with pitch. 15 This is how you shall make it. The length of the ship shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.

God disclosed to Noah His plan to destroy all the people of the earth. He commanded Noah to build an ark from gopher wood. He commanded Noah to waterproof it by applying pitch on the inside and outside. One cubit is 18 inches or 1.5 feet. The ark was massive! Its length was 450 feet, its width was 75 feet, and its height was 45 feet.

The word gopher appears only once in the bible. Until today, the identity of gopher wood remained unknown.

Verses 16-17, 16 You shall make a roof in the ship, and you shall finish it to a cubit upward. You shall set the door of the ship in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third levels. 17 I, even I, will bring the flood of waters on this earth, to destroy all flesh having the breath of life from under the sky. Everything that is in the earth will die.

The top of the ark was covered with a roof and had one door, and three levels. The LORD will bring in the flood to drown the world’s population except for Noah, his wife, three sons, and three daughters-in-law.

Verse 18-22, 18 But I will establish my covenant with you. You shall come into the ship, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. 19 Of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ship, to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female.20 Of the birds after their kind, of the livestock after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every sort will come to you, to keep them alive. 21 Take with you some of all food that is eaten, and gather it to yourself; and it will be for food for you, and for them.” 22 Thus Noah did. He did all that God commanded him.

The LORD confirmed the Naohic covenant with Noah. He shall spare the lives of Noah, his wife, sons, and his daughters-in-law. God commanded Noah to bring into the ark, one pair of male and female of all the living creatures on earth, and all the birds of the sky to preserve their lives. The LORD commanded Noah to bring sufficient food into the ark. Noah did everything according to the LORD’s commandment.

The Noahic covenant also stipulates that God will not send another flood to destroy the world. God sent a rainbow in the sky as a sign of the covenant, Genesis 9: 11-13.

Genesis 9: 11-13, “I will establish my covenant with you: All flesh will not be cut off anymore by the waters of the flood. There will never again be a flood to destroy the earth.” God said, “This is the token 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 will be a sign of a covenant between me and the earth.”

Application:

Noah built an ark and preached to the people about the coming flood even though no one had ever seen rain or flood! Noah was a man of great faith. He faithfully built the ark and preached God’s message even though everyone was mocking him. He was the only righteous man in the community of violent, wicked, evil, godless, and perverted people.

God gave grace to Noah because he was Godly, righteous, faithful, and walked with God. Are you walking with God?

The ark is a type of Christ. Those who entered the ark were saved from death. Today if anyone is in Christ, he will be saved. To be in Christ is to believe that Christ died for him to pay the penalty of sin. There is no other way to salvation except through Christ. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, John 714:6. Jesus is the door, John 10:9.

John 14:6, Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.

John 10:9,” I am the door. If anyone enters in by me, he will be saved, and will go in and go out, and will find pasture.”

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your One and Only Son, Jesus Christ, to earth to be the substitutionary atonement for our sins. Thank You that Jesus Christ is the door, the way, the truth, and the life. Thank You for salvation and justification by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, in Jesus’ name, Amen.