SCRIPTURE: GENESIS 9
BIBLE VERSES:
“Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.” (Genesis 9:1)
“Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything. “But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it. 5 And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being. “Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind. As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.” (Genesis 9:3-7)
“I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.” And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.” (Genesis 9:11-16)
GOD’S COVENANT WITH NOAH (vs. 1-17)
After the flood God blessed Noah and told him to be fruitful and increase in number. Then he made an everlasting covenant with Noah never to used flood to destroy the earth. He set a rainbow in the clouds as the sign of the covenant between God and the earth, between Noah and all living creatures of every kind.
THE SONS OF NOAH (vs. 18-29)
Noah had three sons. Shen, Ham and Japhet. One day, Noah get frunk and became naked. Ham saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers. But Shen and Japhet took a garment to cover it. When Noah awoke from his wine and found our what Ham had done to him, he cursed him and his generations to become slaves to his brothers. He blessed Shen to be the master and extend the territory of Japheth. Noah lived a total of 950 years.
THOUGHTS:
The sign of the covenant was a rainbow, a bridge of beauty that joins heaven and earth. It is a promise for God never to use flood to destroy mankind, the living creatures and the earth. Three different people saw the rainbow in different stages. Noah saw it after the storm. Ezekiel saw it in the midst of the storm (Ezekiel 1:4) while John saw it before the storm of judgment (Rev. 4:1-3)
God will require each person to account for his actions. Killing a human being is killing one made in God’s image. He is answerable to God and justice must be served with a penalty.
Noah was a man of faith. Yet he was capable of commiting sins of drunkenness. Although wicked people had been killed by the flood, the possibility of evil still exist. Ham’s mocking attitude revealed his lack of respect to his father. As a result, he was being curse. Canaan was his descendants and they were driven out by the Israelites when they enter the promised land. this teaches children to show proper respect to their parents despite of human weakness.