Harrell Davidson
This period of time suggests the time after the flood until the call of Abraham and the promises to him and his seed that would ultimately find fulfillment in Christ It was a universal flood. There have been hundreds of floods since but none like this. The stage of corruption had reached such a state that there is no turning back. The question arises, what about the little children? Such would be saved even though the flood came. They were not accountable and it was a blessing for them to be taken in their innocence than when they were mature and turned to sin (cf. Matt. 18). In view of the language there could be nothing other than a universal flood. The presence of the ark demands this. The stratum of the earth was even changed. It had its impact on all the earth. I think that this was by design. When men try prying backward and backward they cannot get back to the time of Adam, but the effects of the flood stops their digging. The evolutionists cannot get over this. The formations and so forth made a difference and our learned men and women who are archaeologists have found this out. The flood was universal and is proved by the coming of Christ. As the flood was used as a type if it had been local then the coming of Christ would not be universal. So, the modernists cannot get around this.
The purpose of it was to destroy evil in the land and for man to start over again. Noah becomes the one through which the promised seed will come as we get down to Abraham. God arranged the place of safety. Noah built that ark to float and we need to build our lives to faith. The first time the word “come” is mentioned in the Bibles is verse 1 of Gen. 7. t is mentioned 600 or more times after this.
Chapter eight begins the account following the flood. The things that we will discuss become the background for the rest of the Bible in many respects. The earth is to start over again, but not from something that was without form or void. The flood was a judgment against sin. It is a lesson for history. The flood is a reminder that God governs the world. This chapter shows God to be the sovereign ruler and governs the world. So, He can bring the world to judgment. Here is a judgment that has affected the whole world. When Noah comes out of the Ark, he offers a sacrifice. His sacrifice shows that while the earth has been cleansed of sinners it has not been cleansed of sin. Until Christ comes and undoes what Adam did the problem of sin will not be taken care off. We will see the problem in every Old Testament character until Matthew 1 when Christ was born. This is a solemn reminder that the seed of woman will bruise the serpent’s head. Although the flood has destroyed man, the world has not been and is to be the habitant for man to live. “And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged” (Gen. 8:1). The term “God remembered” denotes an activity on the part of God. For instance, in 1 Sam. 1:11: And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.” Had God forgotten her? Of course not, but this is pointing to an act of God. We mean by this that Hannah wanted to have a child and it depended upon an activity of God. Also (Judges 16:28) “And Samson called unto the Lord, and said, O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.” Samson asking God to remember him is calling for an activity of God. This is the same language in Genesis 8:1. God remembered—this shows His thoughtfulness regarding Noah and his family. In verse 15 we have God’s command to Noah. In verse 21 and 22 you have God’s promise. Now, look at this again and you have God’s thoughts, God’s commands and God’s promise and this is always the order that you will find about God’s activity.
“And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat” (Gen. 8:4). The ark rested. There must have been some satisfaction to Noah, to feel the house he was in upon firm ground, and no longer movable. It rested upon a mountain whither it was directed, not by Noah’s prudence (he did not steer it), but by the wise and gracious providence of God, that it might rest the sooner. God has sustained us over the years and has moored us safely when we have been tossed and tumbled about. God has times and places of rest for His people after our tossing, and many a time He provides for their seasonable and comfortable settlement. Again this is an activity on the part of God. We mention these matters due to the almost constant misunderstanding about the grace of God.
“And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar” (Gen. 8:20). This is the first time that the word altar is used in the Bible although it does not necessarily prove that this was the first altar. Genesis is a book of the beginning of various things and contains many firsts. However, notice the words burnt offerings. This is the first time this is used in the Bible. Now let’s go to (Hebrews 10:8) “Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;” This demonstrates where we are and where we are going. The book of Hebrews this is the last mention of sacrifice. Notice, (Hebrews 10:9-10) “Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” He did not come to do this the way men do it, but once and for all time Christ offered Himself. What we are trying to do is to get us to notice the unity of the Bible i.e the harmony of the divine record.
It is well to remember that it was by direct command that Noah built the Ark. It was by direct command that he entered the Ark. It was direct command that he went out of the Ark. “Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons’ wives with thee” (Gen. 8:16). Think now about being shut up in the Ark for about a year. Furthermore we read about the 150 days or 5 months. This indicates the agitation of the flood all this period of time until the water started to recede. Think of the impact that this had on the earth.
It is very interesting to note that Noah did nothing outside of a command from God. He was patient enough to wait on God to direct his steps. It is almost a constant prayer of ours that men today would have the faith and patience of Noah and that we would respect the authority of the Scriptures. Noah operated on the same principle as stated in Col. 3:17 by the apostle Paul, “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” Would to God that we would wait on God to command us. We get so tied up with subjective things that we run ahead of the Almighty. Truth is always objective and objective truth as it pertains to the Scriptures is absolute meaning that it cannot be changed. The Fount from which it comes is pure and that Fount (God) does not change (cf. Mal. 3:6). We should learn some distinct lessons from Noah.
A Wonderful Promise
“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease” (Gen. 8:22). Evidently for a whole year the seasons have been set aside. This announcement that is made here is still there for us today. This is a new beginning. He is not back in Eden. In Genesis 9 a commission is given to Noah, and while it is similar to that given to Adam, Noah is not back in Eden. It is different. The flood has cleansed the earth, but sin will still persist. Civil government has its origin after the flood. For the period of about a year the earth has not yielded any fruit or nut crops whatsoever. From the time following the flood there has been and continues to be time to plant and a time to reap. God did not tell mankind what to sow, but He assured us that is sowing there would be a crop to reap. God’s law in Genesis one assured mankind that every thing would produce after its kind. For about one year that law has been set aside as far as the earth goes in that it did not produce those things that depended upon the earth. Creatures of the sea could produce after their kind, however. Verse 22 is somewhat of a restatement to assure Noah and his family that the earth would produce as it should in the seasons as they come and go, and that God would never destroy the things in the earth like that again.
We believe that this destroys the global climate or global warming change agenda that we hear of almost every day on the news or in the national media. If the hypothesis was true then God’s stated law here in Genesis 8 could not be literally carried out and this would make God a liar. Noah had God’s word and so de we. In all such matters the Word has the final say. Peter, the inspired apostle, wrote about such matters with these words, “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men” (2 Pet. 3:7). What is it that preserves the heavens and the earth? It is God’s immutable Word. If that is the case, and it is, then the earth is being sustained every day. Some years ago we begin to hear about the ozone being destroyed due to our carelessness. Ozone is created by God. Who really wants to take the position that we are destroying more ozone than God can make available by His sun in the heavens? Such folks have an agenda an that agenda is not following the Word of God.
While it is the case that Noah is not back in Eden it is nonetheless a similar situation. For instance, if it had not been for righteous Noah, who was a preacher of righteousness (cf. 2 Pet. 2:5), we would not exist today. Man has the opportunity to start over again similar to that of Adam and Eve. Adam and Eve started with no children and had to populate the earth. Noah and his wife start out again with three sons and their wives and they must repopulate the earth. This is a serious thing that is before them. What they do will depend on how the new population will react to the example of this family. As it was in the beginning with Adam and Eve so it was with Noah and his family. This new creation depended upon them continuing to live right before God.
We begin chapter 9 with verse 6. “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man”. This becomes the framework through which man will operate. One of the phases of men is the fact of government. We are under civil government today and will continue to be so until time is no more. This decree was announced by God in Genesis 9:6. The origin of nations will soon come into the picture. It is important to see this develop in order to understand the Bible.
Does the sixth verse teach capital punishment or the death penalty? We have always believed that it does. Through the length and breadth of the Old Testament as well as the New Testament, when confronted with these things, the Bible certainly teaches that those who shed the blood of other human beings willfully is to have their own blood shed by their peers. In the book of Romans chapter 13 Paul wrote,
Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil (Rom. 13:1-4).
Please note it now: We are to be subject to the higher powers such as governments as long as they do not interfere with God’s Law. Further, we learn that governments could not have power if God did not give power to them. On their own they would have no power and this goes back to the section of Scripture that we are now looking at for in the final chapters of the postdiluvian period government was established by the power and will of God. Therefore, one cannot take the position that God never intended for there to be capital punishment because God set this law in motion back here in Genesis.
Men act as if rulers were a terror to good works and among those good works is the minister that bears the sword. Change for the moment the “sword” to the gas chamber of electric chair and one can see the facts as they are further revealed here by Paul. Men in trial for capital murder should be expecting death and they would if they had been instructed in the Word of God in this matter. It is abundantly clear that the statement of God back here in Genesis 9 is still to be carried out today since in particular it is stated under the tenants of the New Covenant of Jesus Christ that was purchased with His own blood.
Thus, in chapter 9 we have the new beginning in the first 7 verses. In verses 8-17 we have the covenant that God made.
And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And 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 do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow 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; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth (Gen. 9:8-17).
Think about this for a moment. God is the source of this covenant verse 9, 12, 15, and 17. The scope of the covenant was to include animals as well as man verses 9 and 10. Its purpose was to ensure their safety (verse 11). The pledge of this covenant is the rainbow in verses 12 and 13. The meaning of this covenant is that God is faithful (vv. 14-15). The duration of it is as long as the earth shall be (v. 16). The guarantee of it is God’s Word (v. 17).
We want you to think about the rainbow. When we look at the rainbow we ought to remember something. Verse 16 “And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.” The rainbow is made while rain is coming down and the sun is shining. A solemn reminder that God is in control of this universe! Notice, however, that when we look at the rainbow, God is also looking at it. He said He would do so as a reminder to Him. The rainbow is universal. Where sunshine and rain exists all over the world there is the rainbow. Not long ago my dear wife and I were driving home from worship when we saw a double rainbow. One appeared to come out of the other, but the “pot of gold” at the end of the rainbow went in two different directions. One of us remarked that God was looking at both as we also were.
With the rainbow there was a promise. purpose, and a pledge. The promise is stated in that God promised no more destruction by a flood. The purpose was God’s intention toward mankind. The pledge was the rainbow. As sure as there is the bow the promise, purpose and pledge are repeated all over again. This is a very solemn matter for us to try to contemplate. The rainbow is seen every time when all the elements are together—rain and sunshine. Please do not in the future look at the rainbow in some trivial way. It is not to be taken lightly.
“And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done” (Gen. 8:21). We think that the background of this passage is back in Gen. 3:17-19 where God must have put some kind of curse on the earth. For He said,
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return (Gen. 3:17-19).
We do not pretend to know all that these verses state. With that said we do take some pride in knowing a little about the soil. We live in the largest agriculture county in the state of Tennessee. We were born and reared on the farm and was a farm manager for many years overseeing more than 3,000 acres some of which needed reclaiming. Ground that freely grows broom sage is known to be sour ground and needs “sweetening” up so to speak. On this kind of ground, we put a very generous amount of lime. When lime is applied and incorporated into the soil it will grow almost any seasonal crop.
The Lord approved the sacrifice of Noah and after approving it He promised that He would no longer “curse” the earth. Our concept of this is that whatever was put on the earth in Genesis three is now removed seeing also that man’s heart is corrupt. The heart can only be changed through the Word. It is for sure that God knows the heart and we should know our own heart and order our lives to changes that may need to be made in order for us to be approved before the Judge of all the earth.
Chapters 9-11 reveals God’s purpose in the flood and helps us understand. It was God’s purpose to save man. He purposed this in Gen. 3:15. In Genesis 6 we have sin that brought about the flood. In Genesis 7 we have the flood. In Genesis 8 we have the end of the flood. In Genesis 9 we have the developments that took place after the flood. This chapter becomes the background of civil government in 9:6.
(Genesis 9:21) “And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.” The first time that wine and drunkenness is mentioned in the Bible. Think about the effects of wine. Wine leads to immodesty. Noah had lived above this and had seen the whole world go down in sin and now he sees himself as a sinner. He was righteous throughout the flood, but now he is a sinner. The flood did not destroy sin. This shows that God’s purpose to save man has not reached its conclusion as yet. Sin reigns in mankind.
Ham, who was the father of Canaan, looks upon Noah’s nakedness. In verse 25: “And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.” Who were the descendants of Canaan? The Canaanites! They will one day be driven out of their land because they refused to obey the Lord. Thus we see again, following the sin of Adam and Eve, we have what two seeds? Cain and Abel! Then Abel is taken out of the picture and we have Cain and Seth. These lines intermarry and we have the flood. We have Noah. Now we have the seed of woman in Noah, Shem, Terah, Abraham and the Israelites develop and then the land on Canaan. A complete list is in chapter 10. So as we look backward and gather up facts we have the beginning and all men coming from Adam. Now we have had the destruction of the human race and man beginning again in Noah and his sons. Starting with Adam the human family was a unit. They came from one source. That same thing is true with Noah. So in (Acts 17:26) “And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation.” This is the background of what will be studied from hereon.
In chapters 10 and 11 we have the following points to remember. This record is historical. It is a history of the origin of nations. It is the only history that we have of the origin of nations.
This account is political. By this I mean that we have the background of the nations with their political operations. When you began to read of Egypt and her kings or Babylon and her kings this is the background of them all. This is very important to our understanding where all of these nations came from on down through the Old Testament even into the New Testament.
This record is geographical. It shows us where people scattered and settled. It is not our purpose to go into these but here they are. God has set the bounds for the nations and that is seen right here. Paul said this in his sermon at Antioch. It is also genealogical because here we have the list of the names giving their genealogy. It is also biographical. All of this is found in these chapters.
“By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations” (Gen. 10:5).The word nation will come to mean Gentiles when the Jewish nation develops. Now we have listed 70 Gentile nations. The word nations included all that were not of Israel. All of this is intended to show that before the calling of the nation of Israel there was only one people.
“And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the Lord: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel…”(Gen.10: 8-10).
This is where Babylon will come from later on. Babylon is all the way back here in Babel. Does this indicate on his part that he wants to become a world empire? What is said about the Tower of Babel—is this said because of wanting to become a world power? I do not know but this is worth thinking about. It seems to me that this is the case because that the people all wanted to be one and have a one-world government. How could there be freedom in a one-world government if there were dictators? God did not intend for there to be one world power. The events in chapter 11 occurred in chapter 10 and chapter 11 shows why these things happened. This needs to be kept in consideration as we study the confusion of tongues. All these families belonged to the same nation and spoke one tongue. There was the unity of all the people.
In chapter 11 there is a universal outlook over all the nations not just the house of Shem. Chapter 11 becomes the background of idolatry. In building the Tower of Babel they were defying God and trying to establish a social order. Up to this time there is one people, one tongue and one purpose. We see again how sin separates. It separated Adam and Eve from God. It separated Cain and Abel. It separated the righteous from the wicked in the flood. Now it is taking place again. Sin separates it always has and always will. “For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent” (Zeph. 3:9).
The tongue was confused in Genesis 11 and in Acts 2 a pure tongue was given to make men one through the Gospel. We have the background of two seeds and will depend on Abraham to further the promise.
