A New Beginning
Notes
Transcript
A New Beginning: God’s Covenant with Noah
text: Genesis 8:20-9:17
20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD. And taking from every kind of clean animal and clean bird, he offered burnt offerings on the altar.
21 When the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, He said in His heart, “Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from his youth. And never again will I destroy all living creatures as I have done.
22 As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall never cease.”
1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.
2 The fear and dread of you will fall on every living creature on the earth, every bird of the air, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are delivered into your hand.
3 Everything that lives and moves will be food for you; just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you all things.
4 But you must not eat meat with its lifeblood still in it.
5 And surely I will require the life of any man or beast by whose hand your lifeblood is shed. I will demand an accounting from anyone who takes the life of his fellow man:
6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
7 But as for you, be fruitful and multiply; spread out across the earth and multiply upon it.”
8 Then God said to Noah and his sons with him,
9 “Behold, I now establish My covenant with you and your descendants after you,
10 and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock, and every beast of the earth—every living thing that came out of the ark.
11 And I establish My covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”
12 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:
13 I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.
14 Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds,
15 I will remember My covenant between Me and you and every living creature of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.
16 And whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of every kind that is on the earth.”
17 So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between Me and every creature on the earth.”
PRAY
Introduction
Those of you who know me know that I am a huge baseball fan. I grew up down in South Carolina rooting for the Atlanta Braves, and I got to go to several of their games.
From November to February is the off-season, and so no new games are being played during these months, but there is something else happening. Each of the teams is working behind the scenes to prepare their team to perform better the next season. One of the main things they are doing during this time is making trades or signing free agents (that is, those whose contracts have expired).
And so during this time, many players and teams are preparing and signing contracts, an agreement between the team and the player. The player agrees to do or not do certain things, and likewise the team agrees to certain terms, including a certain level of pay for the player.
Of course, contracts are not unique to baseball. Most jobs involve some sort of contract or agreement about performance and pay. There are also contracts for renting or buying a house or car, for different kinds of insurance, and for many other things.
In our passage today we have a covenant, which shares many characteristics in common with a contract, though there are also differences. So as we begin, let’s consider what a covenant is:
The Meaning of Covenant
The Meaning of Covenant
“A covenant is a chosen relationship in which two parties make binding promises to each other.” – Schreiner
• It is a relationship between 2 or more parties
• It is a chosen relationship (made between unrelated people)
• It includes binding promises and obligations
• It is mutual
• It often involves blessings for faithfulness and curses for unfaithfulness
The Recipients of the Covenant
The Recipients of the Covenant
(8:21-22; 9:9-10, 12, 17)
In this covenant, God makes promises to…
• Himself (8:21-22)
21 When the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, He said in His heart, “Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from his youth. And never again will I destroy all living creatures as I have done. 22 As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall never cease.”
• Noah and his sons and their descendants (9:8-9)
8 Then God said to Noah and his sons with him, 9 “Behold, I now establish My covenant with you and your descendants after you,
• every living creature that was on the Ark (9:10)
10 and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock, and every beast of the earth—every living thing that came out of the ark.
The earth
13 I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.
• every living creature of every kind (9:16-17)
16 And whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of every kind that is on the earth.” 17 So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between Me and every creature on the earth.”
What we see here, then, is not merely a covenant with one man, but a universal covenant with Noah’s family and all creation.
The Elements of the Covenant
The Elements of the Covenant
• I will never again curse the ground because of man (8:21)
21 When the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, He said in His heart, “Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from his youth. And never again will I destroy all living creatures as I have done.
• I will never again destroy all living creatures/ cut off all life by a flood (8:21; 9:11)
21 When the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, He said in His heart, “Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from his youth. And never again will I destroy all living creatures as I have done.
11 And I establish My covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”
• The fixed order of seasons, weather, day and night will last as long as the earth does (8:22)
22 As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall never cease.”
• God blesses Noah and his sons and repeats the command to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth (9:1, 7)
1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.
7 But as for you, be fruitful and multiply; spread out across the earth and multiply upon it.”
• God repeats the reality of man’s dominion over animals, and now permits people to eat animals. (9:2-3)
2 The fear and dread of you will fall on every living creature on the earth, every bird of the air, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are delivered into your hand. 3 Everything that lives and moves will be food for you; just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you all things.
• God forbids consuming blood (9:4)
4 But you must not eat meat with its lifeblood still in it.
• God institutes capital punishment for murder (9:5-6)
5 And surely I will require the life of any man or beast by whose hand your lifeblood is shed. I will demand an accounting from anyone who takes the life of his fellow man: 6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
• God repeats the truth of His image in man (9:6)
6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
• God tells Noah and his family to spread out on the earth (9:7)
7 But as for you, be fruitful and multiply; spread out across the earth and multiply upon it.”
• I will remember my covenant (9:14-16)
14 Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember My covenant between Me and you and every living creature of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 And whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of every kind that is on the earth.”
The Sign of the Covenant
The Sign of the Covenant
(v. 12-17)
12 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: 13 I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.
14 Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember My covenant between Me and you and every living creature of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 And whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of every kind that is on the earth.”
17 So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between Me and every creature on the earth.”
• The bow/rainbow – God set down His weapon of war
• God promises to see the rainbow when He sends clouds and that He will remember
• The rainbow is for our benefit, to remind us that God is merciful and faithful to His promises
The Duration of the Covenant
The Duration of the Covenant
(8:22; 9:11-12, 16)
• As long as the earth endures (8:22)
22 As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall never cease.”
• For all generations to come (9:11-12)
11 And I establish My covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.” 12 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:
• An everlasting covenant (9:16)
16 And whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of every kind that is on the earth.”
Noah, a New Adam
Noah, a New Adam
How does this relate back to God’s covenant with Adam?
With any portion of Scripture, it’s important to remember the covenantal context, and especially when studying covenants, we must remember what has come before and what is coming after.
In this passage, Noah is being presented as a new Adam, and all of creation itself is also experiencing a new beginning. The main difference, of course, is that sin is now in the world. But Moses clearly intends for us to see a connection between this passage and Gen. 1-2.
The word “establish” in 9:9 (also v. 11 and 6:18) indicates a continuation or renewal of a previous covenant. If this were a new or completely distinct covenant (or the first covenant), the Hebrew expression we would expect here is “cut a covenant.” But since He now establishes His covenant with Noah and his descendants, He is indicating the continuation of His previous covenant, that is, with Adam. There too, God’s covenant does not only involve Adam but also his wife and all creation.
There are also many things in this passage that clearly relate back to Creation and God’s covenant with Adam at Creation:
• The new beginning of the world started with the earth covered with water and chaos, as in Gen 1:2. And as the Spirit hovered over the waters at the beginning, so now His breath blows away the waters of the flood in Gen 8:1.
• In the beginning, God had created birds and all kinds of land animals to multiply and flourish on the earth, and now as some of every kind exit the Ark, God says once again in Gen 8:17 that He desires for all these living creatures that He saved on the Ark to be fruitful and multiply on the earth.
• On the fourth day of Creation God made the sun, moon, and stars to govern the day and night and mark seasons, days, and years. Now after the flood, God declares that the patterns of the seasons and the weather will resume as before (Gen 8:22).
• Then just as God blessed Adam and Eve and commanded them to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth (Gen 1:28), so now He blesses Noah and his sons and commands them to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth (Gen 9:1, 7).
• God had also commanded Adam and Eve to rule the earth on His behalf and have dominion over the creation including all the animals (Gen 1:26, 28). Now again, God gives dominion of all the animals to Noah and his descendants (Gen 9:2).
• At the beginning, God had provided every green plant for food for both man and animals (Gen 1:29). Now He repeats that provision in Gen 9:3, but He also provides animals as food for people.
• When God first created mankind, He stated that they are created in His image and likeness (Gen 1:26-27), and as we also saw in Gen 5, here again that truth is restated. Mankind has not lost God’s image because of the Fall into sin, but it continues to be passed down to every generation. Here God’s ongoing image in mankind serves as the basis for capital punishment in the case of murder (Gen 9:6).
• And again, that word “establish,” when used in the context of covenants, almost always indicates the renewal of a previous covenant. So when God establishes His covenant here with Noah and his descendants, He is showing us that we ought to view God’s relationship with Adam and Eve as a covenant as well, even though that word is not used in Gen. 1-2. And He also makes it clear by repeating several of the same phrases and ideas from Creation.
God means for us to see Noah as a New Adam and to see this as a New Beginning of Creation. It’s also helpful to consider how this covenant relates to the later covenants in Scripture, and we’ll focus especially on the New Covenant.
How does it relate to the New Covenant (see Isaiah 54:1-10; Jeremiah 31:31-37)?
The four biblical covenants that come after this have to do with God’s plan to bring salvation for the world, that is, to redeem people from sin and Satan and death. Through the progression of God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, then His covenant with Israel, then His covenant with David, and finally the New Covenant, God brought forth His Son, Jesus Christ, to accomplish the redemption He had promised in Genesis 3:15.
But God’s covenant with Noah doesn’t have to do so much with redemption as with preservation. Here God is promising to preserve His creation.
“The covenant doesn’t promise universal salvation, but it does guarantee universal preservation.” – Schreiner
That is, until all of God’s purposes for humanity are accomplished, He will preserve the created order. And so this covenant provides the context in which salvation can occur. If God kept wiping out all creation with a flood every generation or two (as we certainly deserve) and kept starting over with one family, not a lot of people would be saved. God’s covenant with Noah establishes the context for God’s plan to send His Son to redeem His people.
And as we read earlier from Isaiah 54, there is a connection between this covenant and the New Covenant. Although God’s covenant with Noah does involve some commands and requirements for Noah and his descendants, it is an everlasting covenant with unconditional promises. When God makes the New Covenant, we find that it too is an everlasting covenant with unconditional promises.
Just as God will see to the preservation of His Creation, He will see to the salvation of His people. The earth and its seasons and day and night continue as a testimony to God’s faithfulness to His covenant, and in the same way we can trust His promises in the New Covenant (and all His promises to us).
God’s Character Revealed in His Covenant
God’s Character Revealed in His Covenant
God is merciful
God is faithful
God wants us to know Him.
God wants us to trust Him.
9 “For to Me this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So I have sworn that I will not be angry with you or rebuke you.
10 Though the mountains may be removed and the hills may be shaken, My loving devotion will not depart from you, and My covenant of peace will not be broken,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
The same God who has mercifully and faithfully kept this covenant for the last 4500 years is faithful to all His promises. We can trust Him. Everything He tells us is true. Everything He promises, He’ll do.
He promises to forgive our sins if we confess them
He promises to always be with us and never forsake us
He promises that nothing can separate us from His love
He promises that He is working all things for our good
He promises that His goodness and mercy will pursue us all the days of our life
He promises to give us His peace
He promises us rest if we’ll come to Him
He promises mercy and grace for our time of need
He promises us eternal life through Jesus Christ
He promises that Jesus is coming back for us
He promises us a new body that won’t get sick or die
He promises us that He will be our God and we will be His people
He promises to satisfy us and fill us with joy in His presence forever
He promises us that He will never change
and much, much more.
So let us consider the faithfulness of God and build our lives on His great and precious promises to us.
