Chapter Summary 8 - 9

 

Gradually the waters of the great Flood subside. Noah and his family begin life in a fresh new world with sacrifice and worship (8:1-22). God introduces human government by making human beings responsible to resist evil in society (9:1-7), and commits Himself to never again destroy all life by floodwaters (vv. 8-17). The earth was cleansed. But the little family carried the fallen human nature and the sin which almost immediately expressed itself in the drunkenness of Noah and the immorality of his son, Ham (vv. 18-29).

 

Key Verse 9:6:

 

God institutes human government when He makes man responsible to punish evildoers.

 

Personal Application:

 

What contribution can I make to creating a more just, righteous society?

 

How long was the Flood? Gen. 7-8 give specifics.

The animals entered May 10 (7:8-9).

The rain began May 17 (v. 11)

The water rose till June 26 (v. 12).

The ark did not touch land until Oct. 13 (8:4).

Mountaintops were seen on Jan. 1 (v. 4),

The ark doors finally opened on April 1 (v. 13).

The land was dry enough for Noah’s family to exit May 27 (v. 14)

one year and 10 days after the Flood began.

 

“A pleasing aroma” (8:21).

 

The phrase means that Noah’s offering was accepted by God. All too often the sacrifices of God’s O.T. people were not acceptable, because of their sin.

 

“Food for you” (9:1-4).

 

In the original Creation man and animals were given green plants for food (1:29-30). Only now, after the Flood, are living creatures given for food, with the single condition that the blood not be eaten with the flesh. This is consistent with the small number of animals taken into the ark. Before this all animals lived on vegetation rather than meat!

 

Capital punishment.

 

The text quotes God as commanding capital punishment for murder. The reason given is that God made man in His own image. It is important to understand that the death sentence is neither retribution, nor simply preventative. Because we bear God’s image, each human being is irreplaceable. Every human life is so significant that no penalty less than death provides an adequate measure of its value. Only by decreeing capital punishment as a penalty for murder can society affirm the ultimate worth and value of each individual citizen. Most scholars see the responsibility to impose the death penalty for murder as the institution of human government, for it implies that society is obligated to restrain individuals from sin.

 

Rainbow.

 

The rainbow is described as a “sign” of God’s covenant with Noah. In the O.T. a covenant is a promise stated in a legally binding form: a binding promise made openly before witnesses. Today the rainbow makes us witnesses with all the rest of mankind to God’s firm commitment never again to destroy all life on earth by a flood. Let the next rainbow you see remind you that God has kept His promise for millenniums. He will keep every promise He makes to you and me.

 

Ham’s sin (9:18-23).

 

The sin is much debated, as the phrase “uncover the nakedness of” is used of illicit sexual relationships (Lev. 18, KJV). Here the text suggests that Ham’s sin was one of ridiculing the father he should have honored (Ex. 20:12). The flaws in Noah and Ham remind us that however perfect the environment, the root of sin is planted deeply within the human personality. The cause of our failures lies within us.

 

The curse on Canaan  (9:25).

 

The curse here is a prediction, not a malicious wish. Once this passage was used to support slavery in the United States. The argument is doubly flawed: the curse is pronounced against Canaan, just one of Ham’s sons. Canaan’s descendants are described in Gen. 10 as the peoples who lived in that land in the days of Abram and later when Joshua invaded that land. The ancestors of Africa’s black races are represented by Cush (Ethiopia) and Mizraim (Egypt).