Genesis 6:17-7:617And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. 18But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee. 19And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. 20Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. 21And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them. 22Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he. 1And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. 2Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. 3Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. 4For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. 5And Noah did according unto all that the Lord commanded him. 6And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. (Genesis 6:17‑7:6)
“AND behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and everything that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish My covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee.” vv. 17,18.
Noah labored on his task for perhaps more than one hundred years. Faith and courage were both needed to undertake the tremendous project. Day after day of fair weather, with never a cloud in view, undoubtedly brought forth ridicule from those who were looking on. Yet he persevered, for was it not God’s own voice that had instructed him? Faith in what God said was indeed the answer, just as we are informed in Hebrews 11:77By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. (Hebrews 11:7): “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the sang of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” There are many today who scoff at warnings of impending judgment, too. Yet their scoffing does not alter the fact one iota. “He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world.” Acts 17:3131Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. (Acts 17:31).
“Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.” v. 22. Noah was obedient to all of God’s instructions. He changed no dimension of the ark. He followed the divinely given pattern, which was his assurance of safety. God will never accept compromise or substitution for any of His requirements. Those who tamper with His ways will only find insecurity and trouble. Salvation is found alone in Christ, that blessed One in whom the Father finds full delight.
“And the Lord said unto Noah Come thou and all thy house into the ark.” Genesis 7:11And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. (Genesis 7:1). We do well to notice that the invitation was “Come.” He would ever draw souls to Him with His love, while yet being faithful in warning of impending judgment. His message of old was: “Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.” Jeremiah 31:33The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. (Jeremiah 31:3). The Saviour’s words now are: “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:2828Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28). How sweet it is to accept that invitation.
The call to Noah assured him that God would be in that ark. A precious time lay ahead of him and his family in proving God’s preserving mercy, and Noah’s faith would again and again rejoice in the God who had invited Him in and would never forsake him.
Provision was made for animals and birds, as well. One pair of all the unclean ones were taken into the ark, and seven pairs of the clean, some of which would later be offered up as sacrifices when the passengers of the ark would step out on a purged world. Noah, in fear for his own safety, might have thought only of salvation for himself and his family, but God looked on to their future needs, as well as to the preservation of all His creatures.
ML-10/25/1964