Noah & the Mighty Flood
October’s theme For the month of October we will be discussing the following themes: 1) the consequences of sin & 2) the power & judgement of God. For this presentation we use the lesson on Noah & the flood to highlight these 2 themes.
God’s regretted making man
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During the time of Noah, the human race continued to grow & grow. Wickedness was at an all time high. The earth was filled with violence & bloodshed. So much so, that God was grieved in his heart & regretted creating the human race. As such, God set out to destroy this earth and practically every living creature therein. Reference Scripture: (Genesis 6: 1-7)
There was a man named noah
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However, there was one man that stood out amongst all the wickedness and that man was Noah. Noah was just and righteous, finding grace in the eyes of the Lord. He also had 3 sons by the names of Shem, Ham and Japeth. Reference Scripture: (Genesis 6: 8-10)
An ark of gopher wood “And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.� (Genesis 6: 13-15)
Building specs “A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it. And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee.� (Genesis 6: 16-18)
Gathering of animals
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Noah was to bring animals from all species onto the ark as well. There is often a misunderstanding on exactly how the animals were to be numbered by Noah. In Genesis 6:19 it states... “And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. When God said “two of every sort” he was stating that all living creatures had to be gathered in pairs, which was comprised of 1 male + 1 female to ensure they could continue to procreate. Let’s continue.....
Gathering of animals • • • • •
In Genesis 7:2 it states... “Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female:” If one does not review this scripture closely they might assume that this verse contradicts Genesis 6: 19 but this is NOT the case. Remember, Noah was instructed to gather the animals in pairs, with each pair consisting of a male & female so that they could be fruitful & multiply. If they were clean animals he needed 7 pairs, meaning seven females for seven males. That would make a total of 14 for an animal species (i.e. Cow). For clarification on what a clean animal vs an unclean animal is please review Leviticus Ch. 11.
Gathering of animals • • • •
In Genesis 7:2 it also states... “and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. If they were unclean animals he needed 2 pairs, meaning two females for two males. That would make a total of 4 for an animal species (i.e. pig). In Genesis 7:3 it states... “Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. If they were birds, he needed 7 pairs, meaning seven females for seven males. That would make a total of 14 for a bird species (i.e. Dove).
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Noah followed all of God’s instructions. He, his wife, his sons and his sons’ wives along with all the living creatures went into the ark. And after seven days it began to rain upon the earth. Reference Scripture: (Genesis 7: 1-5)
To the ark they went
God destroys It rained 40 days and 40 nights upon the earth. And there was a great and tumultuous flood covering even the mountains. And the flood killed all living creatures that were not on the ark, both young and old.....large & small. But Noah, his family and the animals on the ark were saved. “The waters prevailed upon the earth 150 days.� (Genesis 7: 24)
Facts & numbers
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Noah was 600 years old when the flood began. It occurred on the 17th day of the 2nd month. It rained a total of 40 days and 40 nights, with the water remaining exceedingly high upon the earth for a 150 days or 5 months. After those 5 months or on the 17th day of the 7th month, the waters began to gradually diminish and continued to do so. On the first day of the 10th month, the top of the mountains could be seen. 40 days later, Noah sent a raven out to see how far the waters had gone down, he also sent a dove.
Facts & numbers
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The dove had no place to rest her feet because of the water and therefore returned unto Noah in the ark. Noah waited 7 days and sent the dove out again. In the evening the dove returned with an olive branch. Noah waited an additional 7 days and sent the dove out. This time, the dove did not return. Reference Scripture: (Genesis 8: 8-12)
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Finally, the waters were dried up from off the earth. Noah was 601 years old. It was the next year during the 1st day of the first of month. But it was not until the second month on the 27th day, that God commanded Noah, his family and the animals to leave the ark.
• Reference Scripture: (Genesis 8: 13-19) The water is dried up
On dry land again
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As God instructed, Noah, his family and the animals left the ark and walked upon the dry land of the earth. Noah built an alter unto the Lord and took of every clean beast and of every clean fowl and offered burnt offerings unto the Lord. The burnt offerings were pleasant to the Lord & he accepted them. Reference Scripture: (Genesis 8: 20-21)
God makes a covenant
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God commanded for Noah & his sons to be fruitful & multiply upon the earth. And he vowed to not destroy the human race again with WATER and this was the covenant or promise he established with Noah & all generations thereafter. And the sign of this covenant was a rainbow. Reference Scripture: (Genesis 9: 1-16)
Spiritual significance
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When we think about the lesson on Noah and the Ark, it is more than just a nice story to learn for yourself or share with little ones. This lesson is indeed spiritually significant to each of us in this current day as well as to our salvation in the upcoming future. How so?
Spiritual significance
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When thinking of the ark, a particular song comes to mind entitled “A Shelter in the Time of Storm,” (Words: Vernon J. Charlesworth,1880. & Music: Ira D. Sankey, 1885)
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Here is an excerpt of the a first verse below:
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“The Lord our Rock, in him we hide. A shelter in the time of storm. Secure whatever ‘ill be tide. A shelter in the time of storm.”
Spiritual significance power of God is a part of the theme this • The month. ark during the time of Noah was sturdy, strong • The and powerful. was able to protect Noah, his family and the • Itanimals. did it succumb to the tumultuous waters or • Nor wind. • It was their “shelter in the time of storm”
Christ is that sturdy ark
can liken Christ, who is the Word and law, to that • We ark, (St. John 1: 10. Savior has the power to protect and preserve his • Our children even in the most turbulent times.
Spiritual significance • • • • •
In Noah’s time, God sent floods to destroy the wicked people of the earth. In this current day, Satan sends spiritual floods to the people of God to destroy them. These floods are the trials, temptations and persecutions we face in our lives. We are able to withstand & rise above these “floods” not by our own skill and ability but through the power in God’s law....his ark! Additionally, by obeying God’s law, we protect ourselves from God’s wrath and judgement that is rendered on the wicked for their disobedience.
God judges
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When God looked upon the face of the earth during the days of Noah, he saw an abundance of wickedness. He judged the people of the earth and deemed that most were worthy of destruction with the flood. This flood was the consequence of their sins, another theme. This may sound harsh but God is not only a God of mercy.
The Days of noah
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God is also a judge, this is another part of our theme. He becomes wrathful when people disobey his laws. (Isaiah 33: 22, Ezekiel 7: 3, 8, & 27) He is fair and renders judgement based upon people’s works and actions. (Psalms 98: 9) According to the scriptures, the last days of this earth will be as the “Days of Noah.” (Matthew 24: 37-39) We can note the ever increasing violence in this land.
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Spiritual significance will destroy this earth once more but this time • God he will do so with fire (2 Peter 3: 5-7). as Noah was protected from destruction during • Just the flood, we want to be protected from the destruction of this earth with fire. receive God’s protection we must be just and • To obedient just as Noah was.
Spiritual significance
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We can see that Noah diligently prepared himself for the flood as God so instructed. We too must prepare ourselves. We may not physically be building an ark but we are building our treasures in heaven. These treasures represent our obedience to the laws and the works and sacrifices we make on behalf of God. That is how we prepare for God’s coming. And through obedience, we will be preserved and saved when destruction falls upon this earth, avoiding the consequences of sin And just as God established a covenant with Noah, he will establish a new covenant with his saints, in which the law will permanently be placed in our hearts and we will never sin again
Special Thanks
This presentation was developed by: Elisabeth C. Pointer
Questions For questions regarding this presentation please contact us via email at info@householdofisrael.org or by phone at 219.949.9308.