Meditations on the Word: Genesis 6-9

From: The Christian Shepherd: 1999 By: Norman W. Berry

Genesis 6‑9 • 4 min. read • grade level: 6

Genesis 6

Verses 1-6. By this time sin, having spread all over the world, corrupted everyone. God’s description of the condition of the world is in verse 5.

Verse 7. Sin brings punishment. There is no other result, and it must be paid for with blood (Heb. 9:22²²And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. (Hebrews 9:22)). “Remission” means payment.

Verses 8-22. Noah is a picture of Christ. He was a “just” man (fair and honest) and perfect (upright). In contrast to all those around, Noah stood alone, being faithful among the faithless.

Verse 13. Punishment from God. People say, “Smile, God loves you.” They forget this verse: “Repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ” are necessary. Then the smile comes.

Verse 14. Grace brings deliverance. Though it must be paid for by the shedding of blood, God delights to act in grace (Rom. 5:20²⁰Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: (Romans 5:20)).

Verses 14-22. The time comes when judgment falls. But God makes a way of escape. The ark was the only means of escape from the waters of death.

Today, only by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is there salvation from coming judgment. Every picture of deliverance from the punishment of sin in the Old Testament is a picture of the cross of Christ. Water sometimes is a picture of judgment (Psa. 69:2,14-15²I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. (Psalm 69:2)
¹⁴Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink: let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters. ¹⁵Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me. (Psalm 69:14‑15); Psa. 42:7⁷Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me. (Psalm 42:7)). Noah in the ark passing through the water is such a picture (Matt. 24:37-39³⁷But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. ³⁸For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, ³⁹And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. (Matthew 24:37‑39)).

Genesis 7

Noah obeyed God’s word to him (Gen. 6:22; 7:5,9²²Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he. (Genesis 6:22)
⁵And Noah did according unto all that the Lord commanded him. (Genesis 7:5)
⁹There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. (Genesis 7:9)). The ark provided a perfect shelter from God’s judgment. Obedience to God brings deliverance, blessing and happiness, all through a believer’s life.

Verse 1. “Come” in we have to come in (Matt. 11:28²⁸Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)) before we can go out (Mark 16:15¹⁵And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15)). Then we must separate from the world (Heb. 13:13¹³Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. (Hebrews 13:13); James 4:4⁴Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. (James 4:4)). However, separation is not isolation. Mixing with the world to socialize spoils our testimony. Telling others about Christ keeps us healthy Christians.

Verse 10. After Noah enters the ark, God waits in patience for others to flee to Him for safety. Even after He had gone back to heaven, Jesus was “standing,” waiting for Israel if they would turn to Him (Acts 7:56⁵⁶And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. (Acts 7:56)).

We are now in that “waiting time” the “door” is still open and God is waiting for the last soul to flee to Him and be saved before He acts in judgment. When the Lord Jesus comes for believers (1 Thess. 4:13-18¹³But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. ¹⁴For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. ¹⁵For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. ¹⁶For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: ¹⁷Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. ¹⁸Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:13‑18)), the day of grace will end and the “door” of safety will be forever shut.

Verses 11-24. All the souls in the ark were there for one year and ten days (Gen. 7:11; 8:14¹¹In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. (Genesis 7:11)
¹⁴And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried. (Genesis 8:14)).

Verse 23. Judgment fell on every living person, animal and bird outside the ark. And so today, no person who has heard and rejected the gospel of the grace of God will ever have another chance to be saved after the Lord Jesus comes.

Genesis 8

Verses 1-14. God does not forget Noah and his family in the ark. We learn many interesting details as God makes a fresh start with the human race.

Verses 15-22. Noah builds an altar to God and offers burnt offerings. Notice only the clean animals (Gen. 7:2-5,8²Of 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. (Genesis 7:2‑5)
⁸Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, (Genesis 7:8)) were sacrificed. They are a picture of the Lord Jesus, God’s Lamb (Rev. 5:6⁶And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. (Revelation 5:6)). Noah’s sacrifices, which remind us of the coming sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, were a sweet smell to God. God’s promise of seasons has never failed and never will.

Genesis 9

Verses 1-17. God makes a new covenant (agreement) with man. It starts in Genesis 8:20²⁰And 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. (Genesis 8:20) and runs to Genesis 9:17¹⁷And 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. (Genesis 9:17).

Verse 4. For the first time, God allows man to eat the flesh of animals. But they were NOT to eat the blood, for that is the life of the flesh (Lev. 17:10-14¹⁰And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people. ¹¹For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. ¹²Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood. ¹³And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, which hunteth and catcheth any beast or fowl that may be eaten; he shall even pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust. ¹⁴For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off. (Leviticus 17:10‑14)).

Though we have natural life, we need a new life spiritual life. When Jesus died, His precious blood was poured out. When He rose from the dead, His body had flesh and bones, but no blood (Luke 24:39³⁹Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. (Luke 24:39); 1 Cor. 15:43-50; 2⁴³It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: ⁴⁴It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. ⁴⁵And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. ⁴⁶Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. ⁴⁷The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. ⁴⁸As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. ⁴⁹And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. ⁵⁰Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. (1 Corinthians 15:43‑50)
⁴For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. ⁵Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God. ⁶And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another. ⁷For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it? ⁸Now ye are full, now ye are rich, ye have reigned as kings without us: and I would to God ye did reign, that we also might reign with you. ⁹For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men. ¹⁰We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honorable, but we are despised. ¹¹Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace; (1 Corinthians 4:4‑11) Cor. 5:17). Believers have a new life eternal life the very same life that the Lord Jesus has.

Verses 11-12. Every time you see a rainbow, you can remember that God has promised to never again judge the world with a flood. But there is going to be an even worse judgment someday God will judge the world by fire (2 Peter 3:6-7,10,12⁶Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: ⁷But 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 Peter 3:6‑7)
¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. (2 Peter 3:10)
¹²Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? (2 Peter 3:12)).

Verses 19-29. Alas, people did not improve after the flood. Even Noah falls into sin, and the human race once again starts down the road to worldwide corruption.

N. Berry

(to be continued)

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