A Lamp Unto My Feet Bible Study Website
GENESIS 8:20 – 9:19
Lesson #20
THE GLORY OF GOD’S MERCY
- Memory verse: 2Cor 5:17
- Read Gen 8:20-9:19 A new beginning, another covenant
- The first thing Noah does after getting off the ark is to offer a sacrifice to God. (20-21)
- This is why he brought the groups of 7 of the “clean” animals (7:2).
- Christian’s obedience to God’s pattern is pleasing to Him (a sweet smell). 2Cor 2:14-16
- The name that Noah used for God during this time is “jehovah“, the personal covenant making God.
- God had promised another covenant to Noah even before the flood (see Gen 6:18).
- The word covenant is mentioned 8 times (6:18 9:9, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17)
- Remember that the number 8 = the number of new beginnings.
- The first thing Noah does after getting off the ark is to offer a sacrifice to God. (20-21)
- The Third Dispensation: The Age of Self Government
- The Third Covenant: The Noahic Covenant
- Man is now given the responsibility for social government to curb the outbreak of sin and evil.
- This is a dispensation of law.
- The covenant is unconditional and unilateral.
- God will fulfill his part irregardless of man’s faithfulness or lack of it to fulfill his part.
The Noahic Covenant
| God’s Promises | Man’s Responsibilities |
| No addition to the curse on the ground, times and seasons continue | Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth |
| Man again given dominion over the animals | Responsibility for the sanctity of life: Capital punishment ordained for murder
|
| Man given meat and plants to eat | No cannibalism
No animals eaten alive No drinking of blood |
| No more world-wide flood | Animal sacrifice continues |
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- Sign of the covenant: The rainbow
- Life span: 200-600 yrs.
- Covenant duration: In force until the age of Messiah (The Millennium)
- A comparison of the first and third covenants:
- The Noahic Covenant (the third covenant) and the first covenant (The Edenic Covenant) in the garden of Eden were both covenants of law.
- Both covenants give man dominion over animals.
- Here man is told to replenish the earth while in the Edenic Covenant he was told to subdue the earth.
- Remember, because of the original sin, man no longer had the authority to subdue the earth.
- Both covenants give man responsibility to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth.
- Animals with blood in them shall not be eaten–why?
- There is something sacred and very special about blood!
- The Bible says that life is in the blood. (Lev 17:14)
- The spiritual principle is that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness for sin. (Heb 9:22)
- In the Old Testament they offered the shed blood of animal sacrifice to cover over their sin. In the New Testament we have faith in the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross to take away our sin.
- The shedding of blood of animals was to point to the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross.
- Blood carries disease (Lev 17:10,14)
- Draining meat of its blood before eating became part of the Law of Moses. God gave it for spiritual reasons, but he also gave it for hygienic health reasons.
- Because blood can be a carrier of disease, God chose it to be the element to bear judgment. Sin is a spiritual disease.
- The principle of capital punishment as a deterrent to evil:
- God indicates many times over in the Old Testament his plan to deter evil by capital punishment. The responsibility is given to human government.
- God expands capital punishment to offenses other than murder in the Mosaic Covenant. (For just a few examples see: Exo 19:13 Exo 21:12,28-29 Num 15:32-36 Lev 20:2 Lev 20:27 Lev 24:11-17 Deu 21:18-23)
- God tells Joshua to annihilate all the evil inhabitants of the land when they enter the Promise Land. (Deu 9:3-5 Jos 1:18)
- Capital punishment remains in the hands of human government in the New Testament:
- Rom 13:1-4 (Government does not use the “sword” in vain but to deter evil)
- 1Tim 2:1-3 1Pet 2:13-17 Rev 13:10
- According to this covenant, man does not only have the right to preserve life through capital punishment but man has the responsibility to do so.
- Why is this authority given to human government?
- God reserved this right for himself up to the Noahic Covenant.
- Now God is impressing upon man to regard human life as a means by which man will acknowledge God. Life is created in the image of God.
- To take life is to display contempt for God. You don’t deface the king’s image!
- The degree to which society acknowledges God is directly related to its level of capital punishment (swiftly and justly administered) and its resultant level of rampant crime.
- The sign of the rainbow is a type or an illustration of Christ (Gen 9:13 Rev 4:3 Rev 10:1 Eze 1:28)
- The rainbow is a symbol of God’s mercy. (Gen 9:11-12) Christ on the cross is God’s mercy. (Joh 3:16)
- The creation of a rainbow depicts the relationship between God the father, and Christ the Son, and the cross:
- The sun gives off white light = God dwells in unapproachable light (1Joh 1:5)
- White light rays hit the clouds where water droplets act as a prism dividing light into component parts enabling us to see rainbow colors clearly = Jesus Christ came from God, the Father, through clouds of judgment where sin was judged on the cross so that we might see God in all his aspects more clearly. (1Pet 4:10)
- 1Joh 2:8-11 tell us about the blending of light and love in Jesus Christ
- (Joh 6:37-40 Joh 14:7-11 Joh 9:5)
- There are 3 primary colors of light: red, green, and blue.
- When these 3 are mixed together, they make white light.
- There is one God in 3 persons:
- God, the Father; God, the Son (Jesus); God, the Holy Spirit.
- Red in the Bible symbolizes the shed blood of Christ.
- Green in the Bible symbolizes new beginning, the hope of eternal life.
- Blue in the Bible symbolizes heavenly things.
- When these 3 are mixed together, they make white light.
- The rainbow is made up of 7 colors
- Number 7 is God’s number of perfection or completeness.
- The rainbow joins heaven to earth.
- Jesus Christ joins God in heaven to man on earth. (Phil 2:5-11)
Homework
Genesis 9:20-29 10:1-32
- Application of Genesis 8:20-9:19
- What have you learned in this lesson that changes or reinforces your beliefs regarding:
- The nature of man:
- (changes)
- (reinforces)
- The nature of God:
- (changes)
- (reinforces)
- The purpose of human government:
- (changes)
- (reinforces)
- The nature of man:
- What have you learned in this lesson that changes or reinforces your beliefs regarding:
- Preparation for Genesis 9:20-29 & 10:1-32
- Read Gen 9:20-29
- Why do you think this passage was included here?
- What was Noah’s sin?
- Read the following scriptures and write your interpretation of God’s view of drinking alcohol. (Jdg 9:13 Jdg 19:19 Psa 104:15 Pro 31:6 Ecc 10:19 Eph 5:18 1Tim 5:23 Deu 29:19 Ecc 10:17 1Cor 11:21-22 Gal 5:21)
- What was Ham’s sin?
- What prophecy was given to each of Noah’s 3 sons?
- Ham
- Shem
- Japeth
- Read Gen 10:1-32
- What do you learn about the character of Nimrod (8-10)?
- Read Gen 9:20-29
- Memory verse: Ephesians 5:18
