The Global Flood on the Earth
Genesis 8:1 - 22
Message
1 But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded. 2 Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky. 3The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the water had gone down, 4 and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5 The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.
The flood started when Noah was 600-year 2-month 17-day old as shown in Genesis 7:11.
The rain continued for 40 days & nights (Genesis 7:12). In the end of these 40 days, the surface of the waters was at least 6.8 meters above the tops of the mountains (Genesis 7:20). I think 40 days were short and quick enough so that no one outside the Ark could escape from the Flood. Also I think 40 days were long enough so that no one outside the Ark could survive in the waters. Now God needed to dry the waters for Noah and his companions. How? By the way of ‘wind’! See v1b. Sometime after the 40-day rain stopped, God sent a wind over the earth to make the waters receded (1b). But it took for a long time until the land went completely dry: 110 days till the Ark rested on the mountains of Ararat + 7 more months.
The Judgement was sudden and quick. But the effect of the Judgement was removed not instantly but very slowly. The prevention is better than the cure because the recovery may take long time and the scars may remain... Get right with God before He may discipline you!
I want to think of God who sent a wind for Noah and his companions. It was the grace of God. Within the Ark of Noah, they were experiencing God’s grace while outside the Ark of Noah the Flood continued in the extended period of time.
Once started, the Judgement of God was sudden, quick and complete. Where do you want to stay? Now the Ark is open. Jesus welcomes you with open arms. Will you still insist there will be no judgement of God? Will you insist you will be OK outside the Ark during the Judgement?
On the 1st day of the 10th month, the tops of the mountains became visible (5).
6 After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark 7 and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. 8 Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. 9 But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. 10 He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. 11 When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. 12 He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.
Verse 6 – 12 is the record on the period of 40 + 7 + 7 days since the 1st day of the 10th month.
13 By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year, the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry.
The first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year may be 40 + 7 + 7 + 7 days after the 1st day of the 10th month, when Noah removed the covering from the Ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry.
14 By the twenty-seventh day of the second month the earth was completely dry.
15 Then God said to Noah, 16 “Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives. 17 Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you—the birds, the animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground—so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number on it.”
18 So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives. 19 All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birds—everything that moves on land—came out of the ark, one kind after another.
The land was completely dry when Noah was 601-year 2-month 27-day old. So it was after 1 year and 10 days after the beginning of the Flood. On this day, God said to Noah to come out of the Ark.
20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. 21 The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.
22 “As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night
will never cease.”
Noah built an altar to the LORD and sacrificed burnt offerings on it (20). Noah expressed his dedication and gratitude to God. Also, we notice that Noah practiced ‘priesthood’ here. And it was far before the Mosaic Law was given.
I want to think of “Never again will I curse the ground” (21).
If we read carefully, what God swore was that “never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.” (21c) In the Flood, God destroyed ALL LIVING CREATURES except those in the Ark. And God will never destroy ALL LIVING CREATURES again as He did in the Flood.
Global warming was and is being caused by our own misuse of the earth, which has brought and would bring many serious problems. I hope it might result in not as serious consequences as the Flood.
God Himself will not make the earth go barren… as long as the earth endures… based on verse 22. It is God’s promise.
Was our sinfulness removed from our heart after the Flood? No. See verse 21b.
“even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood” (21b)
This promise shown in v21 & 22 was despite of our sinfulness. Based on our sinfulness, we deserve the death by the Judgement of the Flood. Water baptism symbolizes the destruction in the Flood, which we deserve as sinners. When we are baptised, we count ourselves dead to sin (Romans 6:2, 11).
Conclusion
Today we learn the justice & power of God through the Judgement of the Flood.
First, know what you deserve.
This global Judgement by the waters teaches us that the Flood is what we deserve as a matter of fact. The reason we can live on the earth now is only due to God’s grace & promise shown in v21 – 22.
We better follow Noah’s faith and obedience than the way of people in Noah’s generation. We better become the disciple of Jesus in this generation.
- Remember the Flood. Remember what you deserve according to God’s justice.
- Repent your sins before God.
- Confess your faith in Jesus.
- Count yourself dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Second, fear God.
This event teaches us the wrath, anger & power of God, who can destroy absolutely ALL if He wants.
10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, (Proverbs 9:10a)
Also, Ecclesiastes 7:1 – 5 says,
1 A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of everyone;
the living should take this to heart.
3 Frustration is better than laughter,
because a sad face is good for the heart.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
5 It is better to heed the rebuke of a wise person
than to listen to the song of fools.
As the conclusion of Ecclesiastes, Solomon says in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14.
13 Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the duty of all mankind.
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.
Read the Holy Bible every day.
Pray every day.
