Genesis 8:20-9:29

Notes compiled with my BSF group

GOD PROMISES THE 4 SEASONS SHALL NEVER CEASE (Genesis 8:20-22)

After the Flood judgment, God promised that He will never judge the Earth the same way -- That is, He will never destroy all living creatures, and day and night, summer and winter will never cease.

Sidetrack: God gave us these resources so that we will use them all RESPONSIBLY (Genesis 1:28-29). Thus, while I am not advocating that we go out and do whatever we want, I do want to bring into light that with all this talk about global warming and another huge flood, let us keep it in check. First, science has found that the temperature fluctuations are within NORMAL range. If we take the last 10 years into account, yes, we can argue that Earth is heating up. However, if we look at that last 10 years within the context of the last hundreds of years, we will see that these temperature fluctuations are part of Earth's cycle. This is science.

Now, let us turn to faith. God has promised that He will not judge the Earth with another flood. What do we do with this information? For me, God has done enough in my life to show me the Truth in His Word that I have absolutely no trouble holding absolute faith in His promise. He has never been wrong. He has never backed out of His past promises. Trust God or meteorologists and scientists who are known for making wrong predictions? Easily, I trust God.

Noah always placed God first (Genesis 8:20-21)
Noah was saved for the same reason he built an altar to God after the flood receded: Noah knew God and understand God's sovereignty. Noah lived a blameless life and did not allow the Nephiliums corrupt his family's genome. Noah lived blamelessly because Noah knew God.

When God gave Noah instructions to build the ark, Noah did not doubt. Noah did not stall. Noah simply followed God's command and trusted God.

Imagine how much Noah would be ridiculed in our day! Remember, back then, before the flood, THERE WAS NO RAIN. Here comes Noah, building an Ark. People would ask him what he was building the Ark for, and Noah would say, "God told me there is a flood coming and to build this Ark to prepare for it." If I did not know God, I would ridicule Noah. I would ask Noah, flood? What flood? Where the heck would we get the water for the flood? (Again, "rain" was not a reality back then... So, how could anyone in Noah's time fathom the amount of water to flood the Earth to come out of... nowhere?) I don't know whether Noah indeed got a lot of ridicule for his obedience to the Lord, but I know for sure our society would mock Noah today. In fact, our society is already extremely unkind and intolerant to God's people. Christians preach hard the end of days, where God's judgments will be revealed (very much like the Flood). We also preach hard about God's salvation and His provision of safety through Jesus Christ, His Son (very much like the Ark). I rejoice whenever I see another soul aboard the "Ark." However, I often see more people mock Christians than those who at least pause in their ways and reflect.

The Truth is in plain sight, and we can see it, ONLY IF WE WANT TO. If we are inclined to believe only what we want to believe in, then we will see only what we want to see.

Noah was blameless in God's eyes because his heart followed God. Noah was not perfect, but because his heart followed God, Noah was able to see the Truth, accept the Truth, and prepare for it. And when the flood receded, Noah did not boast. He knew he was saved because of God's provision. Sure, he built the Ark, but he only built it because God told him to! And so, Noah did not boast. Instead, he immediately thanked the Lord, showing us what it means to have truly comprehended God's amazing grace and sovereignty.

God checks the heart
Genesis 3:21; 4:3-5; 8:20-22

To give thanks to the Lord, Noah sacrificed burnt offerings. Long after Noah, under the guidance of Moses, the Jews received the Law, and we see the specific types of offerings that are given to the Lord for different situations listed in detail in the Book of Leviticus.

Did Noah offer his offerings because he knew the Law (before it was given)? How else could Noah possibly have know what to sacrifice then?

First, I do not think we should read too deep into this question. The simple reason is because the Bible does not elaborate. We may speculate, but we should do so knowing we simply do not have the answer.

Having said the above, my opinion on the matter is that it is probable that just as God commanded Noah to build the Ark, God could have also taught Noah about sacrificial giving.

Here is the main reason why I believe: God is consistent. Through the Law given to Moses and the Levitical priesthood, we come to understand that there are different types of offerings (burnt, grain, fellowship, sin, guilt, first fruits, etc.). Although the Law was not given until the time of Moses, we see Cain and Abel giving First Fruits offerings, and here, we see Noah giving burnt offerings. How did Cain, Abel, and Noah know to offer these specific offerings without having learned about it from God?

The Law may not have been given until well after Noah's time, but that doesn't mean God didn't teach people before Moses' time about His ways.

Ultimately, though, these offerings reflect the heart. God saw Noah's heart and was pleased (Genesis 8:21).

Blood cleanses

Matthew 26:28
Hebrews 9:22–27


BSF quoted the above passages, as if to equate Noah's sacrifice to blood sacrifices. Given how sin offerings are defined in the Book of Leviticus, Noah's offerings were not sin offerings.

However, since BSF brought it up, I feel I should elaborate on this briefly. Read the Books of Exodus and Leviticus for details.

The Law was given to the Israelites through the Mosaic covenant. The gist of the covenant is, if Israel followed God, God will protect Israel. And so, the Law guides the Israelites about what is right and wrong in the eyes of God. Break any one Law, and a sin has been committed. To right their wrongs, offerings need to be made to fix the break in the covenant between the Israelites and God.

We see the number of offerings listed in Leviticus, and we walk away shocked with the realization of just how serious sin is. Each day, the blood of perfect animals needs to be shed to atone for the sins that had been committed on that day. But that's not enough. Once a year, the High Priest entered the Holy of Holies and atone for the sins that have been committed UNKNOWINGLY by the nation of Israel.

This is what I mean when I say that things are black and white in God's eyes. Sin is sin is sin -- whether we commit it on purpose or unknowingly, SIN IS SIN! And ALL sin needs to be atoned for, even if we didn't mean to commit it!

And so, ultimately, the Law teaches us how perfect God's standards are and how impossible it is for us to fulfill the Law. It also teaches us that the only way to atone for our sins is through the shedding of innocent blood. Yet, because animals are not the perfect substitute for us, the blood of perfect animals was only a temporary band-aid, not a permanent solution. This is why the Israelites had to make daily and yearly sacrifices.

Why is this no longer necessary today? Because of Jesus Christ.

Jesus is our perfect substitute, and He willingly shed His blood for us. This is what Martin Luther called the "Great Exchange": When Jesus went to the Cross, He took our sins and exchanged it with His righteousness. He died the death that we deserve to die and exchanged it for His eternal life. And because the blood of Jesus was the blood of a perfect human, our perfect substitute, His blood atoned for our sins for eternity. No more band-aids. Jesus did it all. "It is finished!" Jesus screamed triumphantly before He died on the Cross (John 19:30).

"Tetelestai!"

There is nothing more for us to do. There is nothing more we can do. We are sinners, and if we were to rely on ourselves for salvation, we will never reach it because it is so easy for us to slip. One bad thought, and that is all it takes. Remember the Law, and remember how impossible it is for us to fulfill it. Then, look to Jesus and realize how He has sacrificed Himself to fulfill the Law for us.

When we remember daily that Jesus died on the Cross for us, we die daily in our sins and are born again through Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:31). We remember the blood of Jesus that has cleansed us of our sins for eternity. 

Offer our heart, not our things
There are many different ways to offer sacrifices to God.


Psalm 27:6
Sacrifice with shouts of joy; singing and making music to the Lord

Psalm 51:17
A broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart

Romans 12:1
Offer your bodies as living sacrifices

Ephesians 5:2
Live a life of love and give yourself up for others

Philippians 4:18
fragrant offering 

Hebrews 13:15-17
Sacrifice of praise

1 Peter 2:5
Offer spiritual sacrifices 

Zondervan NIV footnotes:

* Philippians 4:18 a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice. The OT background is the sacrifice, not of atonement for sin, but of thankgiving and praise (cf. Lev 7:12-15; Ro 12:1; Eph 5:2 and note; Heb 13:15-16 and note on 13:15). 

* 1 Peter 2:5 spiritual sacrifices. The New Testament refers to a variety of offerings: bodies offered to God (Ro 12:1), offerings of money or material goods (Php 4:18; Heb 13:16), sacrifices of praise to God (Heb 13:15) and sacrifices of doing good (Heb 13:16). Genesis 9:1–7


Yes, there are many different ways to offer sacrifices to the Lord. In fact, the Law given to the Israelites documents down to the tiniest details about how those sacrifices must be conducted, under the leadership of the Levites (Leviticus, Exodus).

At the end of the day, however, the ultimate idea is to humble our heart before God.

We sacrifice not because it is a ritual or that "it's just something we do." We sacrifice because we know who God is, we know how sinful we are, and we are so grateful for His grace and love that has provided us eternal life through Jesus Christ.


GOD ESTABLISHES A COVENANT WITH NOAH (Genesis 9:1-17)

Commandments to Adam vs. Noah (Genesis 1:28-30, 9:1-7)

Same commands:
1. Be fruitful and increase in number (Genesis 1:28, 9:1)
2. Fill the earth (Genesis 1:28, 9:1)
3. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground (Genesis 1:28, 9:2)
4. Every seed-bearing plant will be food (Genesis 1:29, 9:3) 

Different commands:
1. To Adam and Eve, they were given every seed-bearing plant as food (Genesis 1:29). To Noah, he was given everything that lives and moves, including plants and animals, as food (Genesis 9:3).
2. To Noah and his descendants, because they have been given animals as food, they were also told to not eat any meat that has its lifeblood still in it (Genesis 9:4).
3. From Noah and all men since Noah, we will each be held accountable for every man and animal (Genesis 9:5-6). 

Zondervan NIV footnote:

* Genesis 9:1-7 At this new beginning, God renewed his original benediction (1:28) and his provision for humanity's food (cf. v. 3; 1:29-30). But because sin had brought violence into the world and because God now appointed meat as a part of the human diet (v. 3), further divine provisions and stipulations are added (vv. 4-6). Yet God's benediction dominates and encloses the whole (see v. 7). 

The life of every creature is its blood (Leviticus 17:14)
God forbade man to eat the blood of animals (Genesis 9:4) because "the life of every creature is its blood" (Leviticus 17:10-11, 14).  

Zondervan NIV footnote:

* Genesis 9:4 you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood. Lev 17:14 stresses the intimate relationship between blood and life by twice declaring that "the life of every creature is its blood." Life is the precious and mysterious gift of God, and people are not to seek to preserve it or increase the life-force within them by eating "life" that is "in the blood" (Lev 17:11) - as many pagan peoples throughout history have thought they could do.

Whoever shed the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed (Genesis 9:6)
Punishment for murder is murderer. If a man kills someone, that murderer will also die at the hands of man. 

Zondervan NIV footnote:

Genesis 9:6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed. In the later theocracy, those guilty of premeditated murder were to be executed (see Ex 21:12-14; Nu 35:16-32; see also Ro 13:3-4; 1 Pe 2:13-14). for in the image of God has God made man. See 1:26 and note. In killing a human being, a murderer demonstrates contempt for God (see also Pr 14:31; 17:5; Jas 3:9 and notes). 

The rainbow is the sign of this covenant (Genesis 9:12-17)
There will never be another flood that would destroy Earth (Genesis 9:11). The rainbow will be the sign of this covenant, so that every time we see the rainbow, we will be reminded of how God has delivered the righteous from the Flood judgment and how God will keep His promise to not send another Flood judgment.


GOD IS LOVE, AND WE ARE TO BE HIS IMAGE BEARERS (Genesis 9:6)

We are to be God's image bearers
God is love. If we are His people, we, too, will live to reflect His love – "For in the image of God has God made man" (Genesis 9:6). 

If we harbor hatred and commit sins, we are not reflecting the image of God, and our heart is not in God. 

"Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love" (1 John 4:8).

"Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister is still in the darkness. Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble. But anyone who hates a brother or sister is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness. They do not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded them" (1 John 2:9-11).

We must be born again to be proper image bearers of God (John 3:1-8)
We are first born of the flesh. Until we are also born of the Spirit, we will continue to walk in sin and suffer eternal death that is the result of sin. As sinners, we cannot and do not reflect the holiness and righteousness of God.

When we are born again in the Spirit, our old nature dies and is replaced with the Spirit. With the Holy Spirit in us, as we walk in God's light, following God's way, the Holy Spirit will shine through us, allowing us to be proper image bearers of God.

Zondervan NIV footnote:

* Genesis 1:26 image...likeness. No distinction should be made between "image" and "likeness", which are synonyms in both the OT (5:1; 9:6) and the NT (1Co 11:7; Col 3:10; Jas 3:9). Since human beings are made in God's image, they are all worthy of honor and respect; they are neither to be murdered (9:6) nor cursed (Jas 3:9). "Image" includes such characteristics as "righteousness and holiness" (Eph 4:24) and "knowledge" (Col 3:10). Believers are not to be "conformed to the likeness" of Christ (Ro 8:29) and will someday be "like him" (1Jn 3:2). 

The Holy Spirit changes us (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)
When we accept Christ with our heart, the Holy Spirit will dwell within us and seal us in salvation. Through the Holy Spirit, we will be transformed to increase in our likeness to Christ. We will be transformed because through studying the Word of God, through listening to the Holy Spirit, we will become more aware of God’s love, become more aware of the sins we commit, and we will be driven to adopt the love of God and turn away from the sins that plague our lives. 

When our heart yearns to be more like Christ, we will be more attuned to the Holy Spirit. We will hear Him when He convicts us of our sins. Before accepting Christ, we may not even know we are sinning; we may not even care. But after accepting Christ, our eyes are opened. We now know what acts are acts of God's love and what acts are acts of selfish men. And as we become more and more aware of God's love, we are compelled to leave the wicked ways of men and lead others to the awesome love of God.


NOAH LAYS NAKED IN DRUNKENNESS (Genesis 9:18-23)

All 3 of Noah’s sons saw Noah laying naked in drunkenness. 

"Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs" (Proverbs 10:12).

"Whoever would foster love covers over an offense, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends" (Proverbs 17:9).

Hatred stirs up conflict
Ham saw Noah and was more eager to gossip about what he saw rather than lovingly care for his father – Hatred stirs up conflict; whoever repeats the matter separates close friends. 

Love covers all wrongs
Shem and Japheth, however, instead of judging their father for getting drunk or taking advantage of the situation for their own benefit, respectfully covered their father's nakedness – Love covers over all wrongs; whoever would foster love covers over an offense. 

He who covers over an offense promotes love (Shem and Japheth), but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends (Ham) -- One of the 7 things that God hates is "one who sows discord among brethren (Proverbs 6:19).

Shem is blessed; Canaan is cursed (Genesis 9:24-27)
Blessings of Shem and curses of Canaan are played out in history. 

Zondervan NIV footnote:

* Genesis 9:25 Cursed the Canaan! Some maintain that Ham's son (see vv. 18, 22) was to be punished because of his father's sin (see Ex 20:5), but Ex 20 restricts such punishment to "those who hate me." This account of Noah's cursing and blessing of his sons is addressed to Israel. Most likely it is for this reason that Canaan is here singled out from Ham's descendants as the object of Noah's curse. Israel would experience firsthand the depth of Canaanite sin (see Lev 18:2-3, 6-30) and the harshness of God's judgment on it. In that judgment Noah's curse came to be fulfilled in the experience of this segment of Ham's descendants. But Ham's offspring, as listed in 10:6-13, included many of Israel's other long-term enemies (Egypt, Philistia, Assyria, Babylonia) who also experienced severe divine judgments because of their hostility to Israel and Israel's God. lowest of slaves. Joshua's subjection of the Gibeonites (Jos 9:27) is one of the fulfillments (see also Jos 16:10; Jdg 1:28, 30, 33, 35; 1Ki 9:20-21). Noah's curse cannot be used to justify the enslavement of blacks, since most of Ham's descendants are known to be Caucasian, as the Canaanites certainly were (as shown by ancient paintings of the Canaanites discovered in Egypt).

* Genesis 9:26 Blessed be the LORD. The Lord (instead of Shem) is blessed (praised) because he is the source of Shem's blessing. He is also the "God of Shem" (and his descendants, the Semites - which included the Israelites) in a special sense.

* Genesis 9:27 live in the tents of Shem. Share in the blessings bestowed on Shem.



AFTERTHOUGHTS

God is love, God is faithful
As we continue through the Book of Genesis, we will become more and more aware of God's love and faithfulness. Through Enoch and Noah, we see how God protects the righteous, how God reserves judgment for the wicked, and how God keeps His promises.

God detests a person who stirs up conflict in the community (Proverbs 6:19)
We are very quick to judge. It is easier for us to point out what other people are doing wrong than it is for us to reflect on our own imperfections and therefore be more forgiving and understanding. 

We readily find excuses for ourselves whenever we do something wrong, while we jump at every opportunity we can to point out the wrongs of others.

And taking the story of Noah and his sons into consideration,  we should come to understand that such actions do not reflect the love of God. Worse, it makes us detestable in God’s eyes.

We are all sinners. None of us are better than another. Instead of stirring up more conflict, instead of taking advantage of other people when they fall, we should be there to help them, because we would want to be helped when we fall. Because none of us are perfect, we need even more love and understanding. We are redeemed because of God's love. God doesn't laugh at us when we fail; He reaches out and helps us, even when we are so undeserving. So, let us reflect the love of God in our walk and share God's love with others!