BIBLE STUDY BASICS
THE GENESIS FOUNDATION: NOAH THROUGH THE FLOOD
In our last lesson we learned the Biblical account of Creation of the world and
the creation of man. We also studied the entrance of sin, separation from God and
death into the perfection of God’s creation. By the time we get to the 4th Chapter of
Genesis, we find the first children born to Adam and Eve. Let’s begin this lesson with
the sons of the first parents.
Read Genesis 4:1-10. Eve gave birth to two sons, the older was Cain and
younger was Abel. They were very different in personality as Cain was a farmer
(tiller of the ground) and Abel was a shepherd (keeper of the flocks). At some point
in their adult lives, the two men each brought an offering to God. There are many
commentaries on why God rejected the offering of Cain. Some say it is because there
was no blood sacrifice. These men would have known the story of how God killed
innocent animals to cover sin as we learned at the end of Genesis 3. We also read
that Abel offered ‘the firstlings of his flock’… or that which was most desired by the
shepherd. We aren’t told that Cain’s offering was costly or dear to him. Also, God
knew the condition of both men’s hearts… and most likely knew that Cain offered
out of obligation and Abel out of love and reverence. Whatever the reason, God
rejected Cain’s half-hearted offering.
Cain’s character is revealed as we read of his anger at the rejection. God
addressed that in verse 7 when He told him that ‘sin was crouching at his door to
master him’ and that ‘he needed to master that sin’. Instead of heeding that sage
advice, Cain allowed the sin nature of his parents to take authority in his life and
then murdered his brother. When confronted by the Lord, Cain sarcastically
responded with, “What am I, my brother’s keeper?” God knew what Cain had done
and was giving him the chance to confess and express sorrow for his actions.
Instead, rebellious Cain responded in defiance. God pronounced his punishment:
The ground would be cursed before him; and he would wander from his family as a
vagrant his entire life.
Read Genesis 4:11-15. Cain felt no remorse for the murder of his brother
but felt great remorse for the consequences of his sin. He wasn’t sorry he committed
the killing but was sorry he had to pay a price for doing it. We see here how the sin
nature is passed from the first generation of man, to the second… and on into the
heart of every man ever born of the flesh. Some religions (for example Islam) don’t
believe in the ‘original sin’ of Adam and Eve being of impact to future generations.
They believe the first parent’s sin to be an ‘indiscretion’ like every other sin
throughout history… that is how they can refute our need for a Redeemer to redeem
us from our sin and to reconcile us to our Creator God.
Cain cried out to the Lord, “My punishment is too great to bear!” God, in His
mercy—which I don’t always understand—placed a mark upon Cain so no one
would kill him. He left his family and went out to populate the earth. Adam and Eve
also had a son named Seth along with many other sons and daughters. As the
generations of Cain, Adam, Seth and the others continued to populate the earth, man
grew increasingly evil. Read Genesis 4:16-5:32. Don’t get all hung up on the names
or the length of their lives. Simply read the text, which will bring you to the next
hero of the Bible—Noah—and his three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth.
As you read Genesis 6, look for key statements God makes about man and
the constant barrage of sin he carried upon the earth… (Verses 3, 5, 6, 7, 11 and
13). God had created man in His image… and man had forsaken his Creator to serve
his own flesh and desires. What a powerful statement this is about the human
condition… hearts hardened to God in every area. In verse 13, God states His clear
intention to Noah—the only righteous man in his day. “I am about to destroy
creation and the earth as it exists.” Imagine Noah’s horror as he looked at the land,
the creatures and the people he lived in the midst of. Would God really destroy all
He had made? Noah believed He would and thus heeded God’s command to build an
ark (a huge boat)—far away from water in a land with very little or no rainfall. Noah
was willing to be labeled a fool in the eyes of his peers.
Noah, his wife, his three sons and their wives followed the very specific
commands of God on how to build the ark, how to stock it and populate it with
animals. Notice the words of verse 18. God makes a covenant (a promiseagreement-contract) with Noah. Throughout the pages of the Bible you will find
covenants between God and specific men. In the first chapters of Genesis we found
that God covenanted with Adam: “You tend the garden and refrain from the
forbidden tree and I will be your God.” Adam broke covenant. Here, Noah is told that
if he builds the ark, enters it with his family and the animals God would send to him
(verse 20)—then God would preserve the lives of all within its walls… as He
destroyed everything outside its refuge.
Read Genesis 7 and note these things. Noah was 600 years old at the time of
the flood. Remember that man was created to live forever in a body that never wore
out… until death entered history through Adam’s sin. In Noah’s days, the life span
was hundreds of years but tapered off to the one we live today. Secondly, Noah’s
family went along with the events of these chapters. Noah had to have been a good
and godly leader to gain the obedience of his wife, sons and daughters-in-law.
Thirdly, most of the animals entered the ark in pairs but some in multiples of 7
pairs. Those animals would later be sacrificed to God after the flood and their larger
number would allow for their species to carry on. Fourth, verse 11 shows the water
coming from the depths of the earth and the rains of the sky. God was going to cover
the entire earth with the flood over the next 40 days and nights.
As you picture these events, I want you to think about the implications of
what was happening both inside and outside of the ark. Outside, the people who had
never experienced rain and an abundance of water, would have started off enjoying
every bit of it… letting the drops fall upon their faces, tasting the heavenly drops on
their dry tongues, splashing in the puddles, kicking water at one another, wading
through it as it came up their legs… But, the water didn’t stop and they didn’t know
how to swim. Imagine the horror as parents tried to lift their children above the
rising levels. Imagine them remembering how they had laughed at Noah and his
family as they entered the ark and the door closed sealing them inside. Imagine
screaming for that same door to be opened to them. Imagine clawing at the pitch
sealed outer shell. Just imagine…
Now imagine the same period from within the walls of the ark. Imagine the
noises of the animals, the sounds of the first raindrops upon the high roof. Imagine
the sounds of the people playing outside, the doubts of why you were locked inside,
and the fear of the entire experience. Imagine too when the laughter turned to cries
for help. Imagine wanting to open the door and rescue the people. Imagine… not
wanting to open the door for fear of what God was doing! Let me say one thing
about what you are imagining as you read these paragraphs: Those of us who know
and serve Jesus Christ and have professed Him as our Lord and Savior… are ‘in the
ark’ and are preserved for eternity. However, our lost family, friends and neighbors
are ‘outside of the ark’ and judgment is coming with death. When the flood started, it
was too late for the door to be opened… but we still have time to share the hope of
Christ with our lost loved ones.
After God’s judgment upon the earth was complete, the water finally began to
subside. Read Genesis 8 and 9. I don’t know about you… but being in that ark for
nearly a year with family, stinky animals and flying birds wouldn’t be my idea of fun!
Finally the door was opened and the first real, fresh air washed into the stale air of
the ark. The first thing Noah did was build an altar and offer animals in gratitude
and worship to the God who had preserved he and his family through the flood. God
smelled the pleasing scent of the offering and promised to never again destroy
creation… through a flood.
I remember the first time I read these chapters in 1995. When I discovered
the promise of God to never again send the flood… and that God sent the rainbow in
the sky to remind us of that promise… I was amazed. I had always looked for
rainbows after rain never knowing the rainbow held real significance between God
and me. I would like to tell you everyone lived happily ever after once the ark was
emptied… but that is not the case. Remember that Noah found favor in the eyes of
the Lord. There is no place where Scripture says Noah’s sons found that same favor.
Flesh—with all of its flaws—walked into the ark; and flesh—with all of its flaws—
walked back out of it. Look closely at Genesis 9:20-29.
Noah, after the flood, became a farmer and planted a vineyard. After
sampling a little too much of his ‘grape juice’ Noah passed out naked in his tent. His
son, Ham, discovered his nakedness and decided to show his brothers. In Biblical
days, modesty was everything and looking upon the nakedness of a parent was
unheard of. Ham may have thought he was being funny; but his brothers didn’t join
in his sin. They covered their sleeping father without looking at him. When Noah
awakened he knew what Ham had done. Ham’s son was named Canaan, and Noah
pronounced a curse from God upon Canaan. He said that Canaan would serve his
brothers all his days and that his brothers would multiply and be blessed. The
disputed land of Canaan would from that day… until today… be a hotspot in the
world. This land is in the heart of the Middle East and surrounds the nation of Israel.
By the time history brings us to the events of Genesis Chapter 11, we see a
sinful populace all speaking one language. Read 11:1-9 to understand how we will
end this portion of teaching. As the people gathered in the plain of Shinar, they
spoke one language and then together decided to build a monument to
themselves—up to the heavens—a place to worship the glory of man. God, seeing
their idolatry of the tower they had made, divided them by language. This kept them
from communicating and conspiring together and they scattered throughout the
earth. The tower they had built was named Babel (confusion). It is the sight of
Babylon, which gets its name from Babel. And now you know the rest of the story .
I pray you enjoyed this lesson and are getting more comfortable with reading
Scripture and handling your Bible.