Noah and the Great Flood

Introduction

MacArthur opens up our study guide with a question regarding natural disasters and how people think of these types of events. What is a natural disaster that you experienced/saw that has always stuck with you?

Joplin Tornado

How do people in our world view these types of natural disasters or, in his words, “Acts of God?”

Often times people are angry or they chalk it up to science/random chance.

The Bible tells us that God is sovereign over nature as Jesus shares in the Sermon on the Mount

Matthew 5:45 CSB

45 so that you may be children of your Father in heaven. For he causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

This is good news in the sense that it is not like nature or a tornado is too powerful for our God. We have to be careful in assigning blame to God for these types of natural disasters, though. Sometimes whenever we study the story of the Flood or think of disasters in our world today people chalk it up to chance or they say that God is completely oblivious to what is going on. Both are wrong. We cannot blame God for the destruction because He is not the author of evil, but at the same time we know that He is in control and that He has a purpose behind what happens. For people who disagree with this, the story of the Flood illustrates that God does in fact send things to punish ungodliness. We see this again in Exodus with the Egyptians and we’ll see it again in the book of Jonah as God even uses whales to accomplish His grand purpose. God is in control and even though we can’t always understand His purposes, we can trust in His character!

It is also important to remember before we begin reading these chapters, that God gave others numerous opportunities to repent and escape the coming judgment. It took Noah about 100 years to build the Ark and people would have been ridiculing him during this process. Do you think it would have been difficult to be in Noah’s shoes here? Sure, God has told you to build an Ark and you trust in Him, but people are pestering you and doubting you. Not just for a month or a year, but for decade after decade. Wouldn’t this be tough at times? What helps you remain focused whenever you are going against the flow?

Trusting in God’s plan and Word. Remembering that He knows best.

Our outline for tonight is as follows:

Entering the Ark (7:1-10)

The Flood Begins (7:11-24)

The Flood Ends (8:1-14)

Exiting the Ark (8:15-22)

Could someone start us off by reading Genesis 7:1-10?

We find some interesting things in these opening verses. 2 major things that stand out are “7 of every kind of clean animal” and “I will send rain on the earth for 40 days/nights.” Whenever you think of the flood narrative, do you think of Genesis 7:2 or have you always thought of there being a single pair of each animal?

Why do you think there were 7 pairs of the clean animals rather than just a single pair?

Scholars have different guesses but there isn’t a single clear answer. The fact that Moses (author) notes that the animals are clean has to refer to the sacrificial system in some capacity. Why does God care so much about a clean animal? We know that the Jews have certain dietary restrictions and there are some unclean animals that they are not permitted to eat. Some scholars speculate that the reason there are 7 pairs of clean animals is to provide food for Noah and his family during the journey aboard the Ark. Others speculate that the 7 pairs of clean animals are meant to be used for a sacrifice after Noah and his family exit the Ark as Noah will make an altar/offering for the Lord. We know that God has particular rules in place for offerings as we saw with Cain/Abel and Leviticus opens with this reminder

Leviticus 1:3 CSB

3 “If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he is to bring an unblemished male. He will bring it to the entrance to the tent of meeting so that he may be accepted by the Lord.

How would Noah have known which animals were clean and which weren’t? After all, the dietary codes weren’t in effect during his era and didn’t come around until the days of Moses. We read in the text that the animals came to Noah as verse 9 says that they went into the Ark with Noah. Imagine if Noah had to go around and literally collect pairs of animals at random in the wild in addition to making the Ark! This would have turned a 100 year project into a 200 year project. Aren’t you thankful that, just as God sends the animals where they need to go at the exact time, that He gives us divine opportunities and situations that are perfectly timed? Some people call this luck or “I was at the right place at the right time.” We know better, though. We know that it is God preparing a way for us long in advance.

The pairs of animals is interesting and so is the water that is sent by God.

Again, there are differing perspectives about this rain! MacArthur talks about 1 perspective that it had not rained in a large quantity on the earth prior to the flood - there are other perspectives that it had rained as it does today but it had never flooded. Some even think that it had never rained a single drop for thousands of years before Noah. We aren’t told specifically - we do have some clues though. MacArthur is right that the life spans in Genesis are extremely long prior to Noah and they shrink noticeably after the flood. We also know that people didn’t hop on the Ark with Noah and his family which likely means that they didn’t believe him when he said that a flood was coming. They couldn’t grasp what this type of flood would be. All this to say that we don’t know if it rained before the flood because the Bible doesn’t specifically tell us.

Thoughts on opening 4 verses?

One important thought that MacArthur brings out with verse 5 is that Noah is described as being obedient and doing all that the Lord commanded of him. We know that obedience is critical in following after God! MacArthur talks about how Noah serves as a “type” of Christ in that Christ was perfectly obedient to God’s will as Philippians 2 shares

Philippians 2:8 CSB

8 he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross.

This doesn’t mean that Noah was perfect and without sin, but he obeyed God’s command and sets a good example before us of how important it is to obey God’s instruction!

Please read Genesis 7:11-24. If the Lord sent this flood and the Lord shut the door, do you think that Noah had confidence that the Lord would provide?

Probably so! Obviously we’ve never been in an Ark 150 days while it rained and flood waters covered the earth, but to know from God that the flood was coming, to have been given specific instructions by God as to how to build the Ark, and to be shut in the Ark by God Himself, I think there would be some sort of peace that God was in control and taking care of you! It’s important that we remember that God is in control and taking care of us today - even in the middle storms that we face each and every day. We talked about how the Ark can be a picture of Christ and the cross. How just as the Ark kept Noah and his family safe during the wrath of God, Jesus keeps us safe from God’s wrath to come. We are safe and secured in our Savior!

We see a lot of dates and numbers in these verses. Do you think that this adds support to the perspective that Noah and the Great Flood were real, literal, historical events? Does it matter that this “really” happened?

Yes it does! The dates help us see when in the timeline the Flood took place. It certainly matters because Jesus talks about the flood in Matthew 24 and the New Testament talks about it in other places as well. If it were just a story, these people wouldn’t be talking about it as a historical fact.

MacArthur brings out the point that God shuts the door after the time is right and it is time for the rain water to begin. Thinking about this story and how it applies to us, is the “door” still open today? Absolutely! Will the door stay open forever? No.

Hebrews 3:13 ESV

13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

We are to take advantage of the time that we have “today” to encourage one another and call others to repent and trust in Jesus while the door is still open because one day, just as God shut the door to the Ark, we know that He will shut the door and pour out His wrath on the earth and on those who reject Christ. At the same time, just as Noah and his family were protected in the Ark, if you are in Christ, there is therefore now no condemnation (Romans 8:1) and you can be assured that you will be protected as well!

We read in these verses that the mountains were covered with water. We don’t have large mountains in the Ozarks, we primarily have foothills. Can you imagine the huge hills in Southwest Missouri being flooded with water? We can’t imagine that! Now, can you imagine the Rocky mountains being covered with water? Absolutely not. This is a ton of water and it destroys everything in its path.

Some speculate about the extent of the Flood. There seem to be 2 camps among Christians. They both believe in the historic account of Noah and the Flood but they differ on how wide ranging it was. Some speculate that the “known” world of Noah and Moses was completely submerged in water (you could say the Middle East) while the other parts of the earth were not or they believe that the continents as we know them today were not the way that they were in Noah’s time and that the flood was a regional flood. Others, the majority of conservative scholarship, believe that this was a worldwide flood that truly encompassed every square inch of land on the planet. We read in Genesis 7:21

Genesis 7:21 CSB

21 Every creature perished—those that crawl on the earth, birds, livestock, wildlife, and those that swarm on the earth, as well as all mankind.

Unless the creature could swim in the sea, it died. This seems to boost the argument that it was a worldwide occasion. We also read stories in other cultures (Mesopotamia groups) talking about a flood. Also, if the flood was simply going to impact a region, wouldn’t it make more sense for Noah and his family to move rather than construct an Ark? Surely they could have moved to a different region/mountain in the same 100 years it took them to build the Ark. The evidence in Scripture points to a worldwide flood and science, though not universal, supports this idea as well.

Thoughts on verses 11-24?

Please read Genesis 8:1-14. Does Genesis 8:1 sound a little familiar? *look at the second half of the verse*

Yes! It sounds like Genesis 1:2 as the Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the waters. What is God doing here now that His wrath has been poured out? He is in the process of renewing creation. He is abounding in mercy and is providing for Noah and his family.

How important do you think the first 2-3 words of Genesis 8:1 are to this story and for all humanity? God remembered! MacArthur is helpful in noting how this does not mean that God forgot about Noah, but instead that He is acting in accordance with His promise to Noah in Genesis 6:18.

Genesis 6:18 CSB

18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark with your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives.

Isn’t it a good thing that our God remembers His promises and is faithful to them through and through? God remembers His people in Egypt. He remembers them in the book of Judges. He remembers them in exile. He remembers them in the New Testament church and He remembers His people today. He

Noah and his family had been on the Ark for a long time and the water is starting to go down. We see some significant numbers in this passage of Scripture as well. Noah waits 40 days to send out the raven and 7 days to send out the dove. We see the number 40 appear several times in Scripture as a period of testing/trial. We know the Israelites wondered in the wilderness for 40 years after they failed to enter the promised land. We know that it rained for 40 days/nights. We see that Noah waited for 40 days to send this raven. We also know that 7 is a significant number in Scripture as it represents completeness.

Finally, the dove was released and did not return. After over 370 days, it was finally time to get off of the Ark!

Please read Genesis 8:15-22. Imagine that you are in Noah’s shoes and you finally get off the Ark. What would you want to do first?

Run around and do something… Probably not build an altar and offer sacrifices to God.

Noah was a man who walked with the Lord and wanted to worship Him accordingly now that they were back on dry ground. As he makes this sacrifice, MacArthur makes the point that we see a picture of the sacrifice Christ has made for us as He perfectly satisfies the wrath of God against sin.

We see the fulfillment of Genesis 3:15 coming ever closer as the genealogical options have shrunk substantially. Now the seed of the woman will come through Noah.

Thoughts on final verses?

Exploring the Text (75)

God always rescues His people from His wrath

God is faithful to His promises but sometimes we make promises for God that He’s never made. We have to be sure that we don’t make a promise to others (God just wants you to be happy) that God Himself never makes!

Pg 76. There is no other way of salvation available to mankind outside of Jesus Christ! Just as there was no way a person could be saved from the flood outside of the Ark. Sneak peak for Sunday’s message: Without Jesus, we have no hope! We all are called to repent of our sins and trust in Him - regardless of our ancestry list/background. It’s only through Jesus that we are saved.

Bottom of 76. Is Worship central in our lives? How can we prioritize it more? We see that it is in Noah’s life and that He pleased God/walked with Him.