*Genesis 7:1-24
God instructs Noah to enter the ark with his family and animals before a flood destroys all living things on Earth.
- God’s Command:
- God instructs Noah to enter the ark with his family because He has found Noah righteous among his contemporaries.
- God commands Noah to take seven pairs of clean animals and one pair of unclean animals, along with every kind of bird, to preserve their species on the earth.
- Noah’s Obedience:
- Noah, following God’s instructions precisely, enters the ark with his wife, his sons, and their wives, as commanded by God.
- All the animals, clean and unclean, also enter the ark according to God’s directive, ensuring their preservation during the impending flood.
- The Arrival of the Flood:
- After seven days, the waters of the flood are unleashed upon the earth, as promised by God.
- Rain falls for forty days and forty nights, flooding the earth and covering even the highest mountains.
- The Destruction of All Living Creatures:
- Every living thing on the face of the earth is wiped out, including humans, animals, birds, and creatures that move along the ground—everything perishes except those on the ark.
- The floodwaters prevail on the earth for one hundred and fifty days, signifying the completeness of the judgment.
- The Preservation of Noah and His Companions:
- The ark, built according to God’s specifications, floats safely on the surface of the waters, protecting Noah, his family, and the animals within from the devastation outside.
- Through Noah’s obedience and God’s mercy, humanity and the animal kingdom are given a fresh start, paving the way for the eventual renewal of life on earth.
Genesis 7:1-24 teaches us about trust, preparation, and God’s faithfulness. Noah obeyed God and entered the ark, trusting that God would keep His promises. This reminds us that when we follow God’s direction, He will take care of us, even in life’s storms. Just as Noah prepared for the flood, we should prepare our hearts by living in a way that honors God. Hard times will come, but if we stay close to Him, He will guide us through them. This passage encourages us to trust God, be faithful in our actions, and find peace in His protection.
Genesis 7:1-24 (WEB)
7:1 The LORD said to Noah, “Come with all of your household into the ship, for I have seen your righteousness before me in this generation. 2 You shall take seven pairs of every clean animal with you, the male and his female. Of the animals that are not clean, take two, the male and his female. 3 Also of the birds of the sky, seven and seven, male and female, to keep seed alive on the surface of all the earth. 4 In seven days, I will cause it to rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights. I will destroy every living thing that I have made from the surface of the ground.”5 Noah did everything that the LORD commanded him.6 Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters came on the earth. 7 Noah went into the ship with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives, because of the floodwaters. 8 Clean animals, unclean animals, birds, and everything that creeps on the ground 9 went by pairs to Noah into the ship, male and female, as God commanded Noah. 10 After the seven days, the floodwaters came on the earth. 11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst open, and the sky’s windows opened. 12 It rained on the earth forty days and forty nights.13 In the same day Noah, and Shem, Ham, and Japheth—the sons of Noah—and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered into the ship— 14 they, and every animal after its kind, all the livestock after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. 15 Pairs from all flesh with the breath of life in them went into the ship to Noah. 16 Those who went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God commanded him; then the LORD shut him in. 17 The flood was forty days on the earth. The waters increased, and lifted up the ship, and it was lifted up above the earth. 18 The waters rose, and increased greatly on the earth; and the ship floated on the surface of the waters. 19 The waters rose very high on the earth. All the high mountains that were under the whole sky were covered. 20 The waters rose fifteen cubits higher, and the mountains were covered. 21 All flesh died that moved on the earth, including birds, livestock, animals, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man. 22 All on the dry land, in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, died. 23 Every living thing was destroyed that was on the surface of the ground, including man, livestock, creeping things, and birds of the sky. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ship. 24 The waters flooded the earth one hundred fifty days.