Genesis 6

Jul 31

1 When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. 3 Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” 4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown. 5 The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. 7 So the LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. 9 These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. 10 And Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. 13 And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth. 14 Make yourself an ark of gopher wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. 15 This is how you are to make it: the length of the ark 300 cubits, its breadth 50 cubits, and its height 30 cubits. 16 Make a roof for the ark, and finish it to a cubit above, and set the door of the ark in its side. Make it with lower, second, and third decks. 17 For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die. 18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. 19 And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female. 20 Of the birds according to their kinds, and of the animals according to their kinds, of every creeping thing of the ground, according to its kind, two of every sort shall come in to you to keep them alive. 21 Also take with you every sort of food that is eaten, and store it up. It shall serve as food for you and for them.” 22 Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him. (Genesis 6, ESV Bible)

The second reading in the book of Genesis is named after Noah. In Hebrew, the name Noah is spelled Noach (נֹחַ). The word Noach is related to the Hebrew word for "rest." Genesis 5:29 says that his parents named him Noah (Noach, נֹחַ) because they hoped their son would give them rest (nacham, נָחַם) from their toil. The contents of section Noach tell the story of Noah's flood, the Tower of Babel, and the beginning of the Abrahamic line.

The Watchers, the Nephilim, and the Judgment of the Flood

“And it happened as humanity (Heb. adam) began to multiply over the ground (adamah), and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God (bene ha-elohim) saw that the daughters of humanity (banot ha-adam) were comely (tovot), and they took themselves women whosoever they chose. [...]
The Nephilim were then on the earth (ba-arets), and afterward as well, the sons of God having come to [bed with] the daughters of humanity, who bore them children: they are the heroes of yore, the men of renown.
And YHWH saw that the evil of humanity was multiplied on the earth [...] and YHWH regretted having made humanity on earth [...] and said, ‘I will wipe out humanity that I created [...]’” (Genesis 6:1-7; trans. Robert Alter, modif. Gruber)

This is a frequently discussed passage and many argue over what this means.

Genesis 6 refers to “sons of God” having relationships with the women of the earth:

“When the human beings (האדם; ha’adam) began to increase on the face of the ground, and daughters were born to them, the sons of God (בני אלהים; benei elohim) saw that the daughters of the humans (בנות האדם; benot ha’adam) were beautiful, and they took as their wives any they chose” (6:1-2).

Though the identity of these “sons of God” is a matter of debate, it is most likely that they were lesser deities who rebelled against the authority of Israel’s God.

In understanding the “sons of God,” the Bible reader has multiple options. Since Scripture sometimes refers to the Davidic king as God’s “son” (בן; ben, e.g., 2 Sam 7:14; Ps 2:7), it’s possible that the “sons of God” in Genesis 6 were royal men who “took women for themselves” (יקחו להם נשׁים; yiqkhu lahem nashim) as an abuse of their power. Others have read these entities as fallen angels, noting the fact that their offspring are called the Nephilim (נפלים)--in Hebrew, “fallen ones.” The word Nephilim is frequently translated as “giants.” We see this in the Septuagint and many other ancient texts. It comes from a root word that can also be interpreted as fallen ones. However, since the “sons of God” are never called “angels” (מלאכים; malakhim), this interpretation goes beyond the textual data. An angel is not an ontological category within the divine council of the heavens. An angel is simply a messenger, a job description rather than distinct entity.

Based on other biblical appearances of the “sons of God,” it is more likely that these entities are lesser gods over whom the God of Israel has authority. The beginning of Job presents a heavenly court scene in which “the sons of God (בני אלהים; benei elohim) came to present themselves before the Lord” (1:6; cf. 2:1). When God speaks to Job toward the end of the narrative, the Lord refers to the heavenly “sons of God” existing prior to earthly creation. God asks Job, “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth… when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God (בני אלהים; benei elohim) shouted for joy?” (38:7). Since in Job the “sons of God” are divine underlings in the Lord’s entourage, it is best to view the episode in Genesis 6 as an instance of the lesser gods leaving their heavenly realm and taking human women; the sons of God choose to abandon their posts under the Lord and enter the earthly realm. This rebellious divine behavior is met with the subsequent flood (cf. Gen 6:11-13) but, ultimately, the Lord exercises continued authority over such rebellion in the preservation of humanity through Noah.

The sons of God are divine beings. In other cases they are called gods. For example, in Psalm 82, an intriguing passages in the Hebrew Bible because it presents a scene where God (Elohim) presides over a divine council, addressing other divine beings referred to as elohim. Psalm 82:1 states:

"God (Elohim) has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods (elohim) he holds judgment." (ESV)

Here, Elohim (God) is depicted as presiding over a council of divine beings. The word elohim is used twice—once referring to the singular God (YHWH) and again referring to the members of the divine assembly, who are also called elohim (gods).

Later in the psalm, God rebukes these divine beings for failing to uphold justice and righteousness:

"I said, ‘You are gods (elohim), sons of the Most High (bene Elyon), all of you; nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.’” (Psalm 82:6-7, ESV)

This passage explicitly calls them “gods” (elohim) and “sons of the Most High” (bene Elyon), reinforcing that these beings are not human but divine. However, due to their failure in ruling justly, they are sentenced to mortality—they will die like humans.

The idea of a divine council was common in the Ancient Near East, including in Canaanite and Ugaritic literature. In these texts, the supreme deity (such as El in Canaanite mythology) ruled over a council of lesser divine beings. The Hebrew Bible retains this imagery but repurposes it under the authority of YHWH. In ancient Israelite theology, the biblical writers were not mono-theist, but heno-theist. There are many elohim in creation but only one elohim is worthy of their worship. Many other gods or divine beings exist and many other nations worship this other gods.

Deuteronomy 32 suggest that the elohim (divine beings) were worshiped by the nations. This is particularly evident in Deuteronomy 32:8-9 and Deuteronomy 32:16-17, where it describes how God assigned the nations to these other divine beings and how the Israelites later turned to worship them:

"When the Most High (Elyon) gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God (bene elohim)." "But the LORD’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage."
— (Deuteronomy 32:8-9, ESV, DSS reading)

A few verses later, Deuteronomy describes Israel’s unfaithfulness in turning to worship these very beings:

"They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods; with abominations they provoked him to anger. They sacrificed to demons (shedim) that were not God, to gods (elohim) they had never known, to new gods that had come recently, whom your fathers had never dreaded."
— (Deuteronomy 32:16-17, ESV)

This passage explicitly states that the Israelites worshiped elohim (gods) whom they were not supposed to worship. These deities are also identified with shedim (often translated as "demons" or "spirits"). The passage suggests that these gods are real spiritual entities, but they are not the true God (Elohim), and Israel was not meant to serve them.

While some wonder if the sons of God and Nephilim could be non-godly descendants of Cain, but other texts like the Genesis Apocryphon from the Dead Sea Scrolls are worried about the mixture of heavenly beings with humans:

"I swear to you by the Great Holy One, by the Ruler of Hea[ven] that this seed is yours, that this pregnancy is from you, that from you is the planting of [this] fruit [and that it is] not from any alien, or from any of the Watchers, or from any heavenly being. Why has the appearance] of your face changed like this upon you? And (why) is it disfigured, and your spirit dejected like this? [ ... for I] tell you (this) truthfully. vacat”
— Genesis Apocryphon (1QapGen), col. 2; trans. John C. Reeves

The sons of God are “putting on flesh.” This is not the only time we see this in Genesis. Another example is Genesis 18, where some alleged divine beings come to meet with Abraham and they eat and hang out as normal people.

The Nephilim bring an impurity to the land and something unnatural that should not exist. This sets the tone for going into the story of the flood. The story of the flood then becomes a story about purity and cleaning the word of the impurity created from the Nephilim.

References

This lesson was adapted from Study Genesis Stories for all they are Worth, as presented on the Israel Bible Center website.

The Fallen Ones

In those days it happened that the "sons of God" consorted with the "daughters of men" and bore children through them. The plain meaning of these words is self-evident, but commentators have worked hard to make them mean something else. The plain meaning is that angelic beings (who are called "sons of God" elsewhere in the Bible) had conjugal relations with human women and fathered a race of half-breeds called Nephilim.

The word nefilim (נְפִלִים) means "fallen ones." Several commentators have worked hard to overturn that plain reading.

For example, some rabbis suggest that the "sons of God" might mean sons of judges who are elsewhere called "gods" (elohim, אֱלֹהִים). In this interpretation, the sons of judges and rulers married ordinary women and begat children. Another explanation suggests that "sons of God" refers to the godly line of Seth, whereas "daughters of men" refers to the ungodly line of Cain. In this interpretation, the trouble all started when Sethite boys started marrying those no-good Cainite girls. The mixing of the righteous and the unrighteous lines of men resulted in gravitation toward the lowest common denominator. The children of the mixed lines came out wicked. These interpretations avoid the shocking suggestion that spiritual beings might employ some physical, sexual agency, and it removes the mythological aspect from the story.

The apostles did not read the story that way. The apostles followed the same interpretation offered in the book of Enoch. The first several chapters of I Enoch tell about the descent of a band of angels called "the Watchers" who fathered the Nephilim. The leader of the band convinced 199 other Watchers to descend with him to take human wives and beget children. They agreed to do so, but he was afraid that they might change their minds and he alone would be punished. They all descended to the top of Mount Hermon and took a solemn vow, binding themselves to the deed:

And they were in all two hundred; who descended in the days of Jared on the summit of Mount Hermon, and they called it Mount Hermon, because they had sworn (cherem) and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it. And these are the names of their leaders: Samiazaz, their leader, Arakiba, Rameel, Kokabiel, Tamiel, Ramiel, Danel, Ezegeel, Baragijal, Asael, Armaros, Batarel, Ananel, Zagiel, Samsapeel, Satarel, Turel, Jomjael, Sariel. These are the chiefs of tens. (I Enoch 6:6-8)

The Targum on Genesis 6:4 says, "Schamchazai and Uzzi’el, who fell from heaven, were on the earth in those days." According to the Talmud, the leaders of the angels were Uza and Aza'el. The Talmud explains that the azazel goat ritual of Yom Kippur "obtains atonement for the affair of Uza and Aza'el. " Rabbi Yehoshua explains that, even though angels are a flaming fire, when they descended from heaven, they took on the form and stature of human beings.

The fate of those fallen angels and their offspring forms the main storyline for the early chapters of 1 Enoch. The women gave birth to the Nephilim. They were giants. The Canaanite family of the Anakim were Nephilim: "There also we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight" (Numbers 13:33).

The giants ravaged the earth and consumed its resources. "They stretched out their hand to commit all kinds of robbery and violence, and shedding of blood." They became cannibals, hunting and devouring human beings. Meanwhile, their fathers taught the human beings the forbidden arts of warfare, metallurgy jewelry making, cosmetics, homeopathy, enchantments, astrology, and reading of signs and omens.

The LORD sent His archangels Raphael, Gabriel, and Michael to bind the fallen Watchers and the Nephilim and imprison them. Meanwhile Uriel went to Noah to warn him about the coming deluge:

And I asked the angel of peace who went with me, saying: "For whom are these chains being prepared?" And he said unto me: "These are being prepared for the hosts of Azaz'el." (I Enoch 54:4)

Several ancient Targums and other midrashic sources tell fragments of the same story. The apocryphal Book of Jubilees tells the same story of how those fallen angels and evil spirits from Noah's time still wait, imprisoned with chains, until the judgment day:

They were bound in the depths of the earth forever, until the day of the great condemnation, when judgment is executed on all those who have corrupted their ways and their works before the Lord. (Jubilees 5:10)

The Apostle Simon Peter alludes to the legends of the binding of the Nephilim:

Messiah went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah. (I Peter 3:19-20)

Obviously Peter knew the Nephilim legends from the book of Enoch and other apocryphal sources. The Apostle Jude concurs with Peter. He reports the legend about the Nephilim in his epistle and mentions that God keeps the fallen Watchers "in eternal bonds" as they await the final judgment. Jude compares the angels who consorted with women, thereby transgressing natural boundaries, to the men of Sodom who indulged in immorality "and went after strange flesh":

And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day, just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these indulged in gross immorality and went after strange flesh, are exhibited as an example in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire. (Jude 6-7)

The Almighty brought the flood, in part, to wipe the earth of Nephilim, but the ultimate and final judgment of the fallen angels and their offspring awaits the final judgment. In that day, all creatures and spirits will give an account before the judge. He will sentence the fallen angels and evil spirits for their crimes against humanity:

And there is nothing in heaven or on earth, or in light or in darkness, or in Sheol or in the depth, or in the place of darkness (which is not judged); and all their judgments are ordained and written and engraved. In regard to all He will judge, the great according to his greatness, and the small according to his smallness, and each according to his way. (Jubilees 5:14-15)

Do you not know that we will judge angels? (I Corinthians 6:3)

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Depths of the Torah, Book One.

Surviving the Flood

Genesis 6 says, “The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward.” The question of how the Nephilim could have survived the flood is a debated topic in biblical and extrabiblical literature. Here are three main explanations based on different interpretations of the biblical text and related traditions:

1. The "Second Incursion" Theory (Post-Flood Reappearance)

Biblical Basis:
- Genesis 6:4 states:
  "The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward…"
  This phrase "and also afterward" suggests that the Nephilim existed both before and after the flood.
- Numbers 13:33:
  "There we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight."
  The spies claim that the giants (Anakim) were descendants of the Nephilim, implying that they somehow reappeared after the flood.
Explanation:
- Some propose that fallen angels (bene Elohim) once again mated with human women after the flood, creating another generation of Nephilim.
- This aligns with the Book of Enoch (1 Enoch 15:8-12), which describes how the spirits of the Nephilim, after their death, became disembodied demons—but it does not explain a second physical incarnation.

2. Survival Through Noah’s Family (Genetic Transmission)

Biblical Basis:
- Some suggest that Nephilim genes could have been carried through the lineage of Noah’s family, possibly through one of Noah’s sons’ wives.
- Genesis 6:9 describes Noah as "perfect in his generations" (תָּמִים בְּדוֹרֹתָיו, tamim b’dorotav), which some interpret to mean that he was genetically uncorrupted by Nephilim blood.
- However, the text does not say the same for his sons or their wives.
Explanation:
- If one of the wives carried Nephilim genetics, then their descendants—such as the Anakim, Rephaim, and Emim—could have inherited traits from the Nephilim.
- This could explain why post-flood giants like the Anakim (Numbers 13:33) and Og of Bashan (Deuteronomy 3:11) are mentioned.

3. Symbolic or Exaggerated Claims

Biblical Basis:
- Some argue that the post-flood mentions of the Nephilim do not necessarily mean they literally survived the flood.
- Numbers 13:33 (where the spies report seeing Nephilim) may be an exaggeration or fear-induced claimrather than an actual genealogical statement.
Explanation:
- The post-flood "Nephilim" (such as the Anakim, Rephaim, and Zamzummim) might not have been direct Nephilim descendants, but rather large or powerful warrior tribes.
- This view suggests that the word Nephilim was used generically to describe mighty or fearsome peoples.

Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. (Genesis 6:5-6)

The Grief of God: Humanity’s Fall and the Flood

The Bible presents a realistic view of human nature and society: when given a choice, we often choose what is wrong, driven primarily by selfish motives. When the opportunity to sin arises, we take it. As Paul writes, "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). As God looked upon humanity, He was grieved by the rampant wickedness. People turned on each other with violence, greed, lust, and theft, and He saw that every heart was filled with evil. The seed of sin, first planted by Adam and Eve, had fully blossomed into widespread corruption. Humanity had fallen far from the innocent state of Eden. "The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart" (Genesis 6:6).

Our sin truly grieves God. Some view Him as a distant, unfeeling judge, handing out punishment without care, but this is not the case. The God of the Bible is deeply concerned for His creation, and our sin causes Him sorrow. Reluctantly, God decided to cleanse the earth through a flood. The world had become so lawless that leaving humanity unpunished would have been unjust. Yet even then, God did not intend to leave humanity without hope. He had already chosen a savior—Noah, the righteous man—but that is another story.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Unrolling the Scroll.

8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. (Genesis 6:8, ESV Bible)

The Signature

The last words of the Torah portion introduce the righteous Noah, savior of the world, who "found favor in the eyes of the LORD." Chasidic teaching associates these closing words with Messiah. The name Noach (נֹחַ), which means "comfort," alludes to Messiah who is called "the Comforter."

The last words of a Torah portion are called the "signature." One Chasidic teaching states, "Everything goes after the signature." That means that the essence of the Torah portion is contained in the last few words. The numerical value of the words, "he found favor in the eyes of the LORD" is 357, which, including the whole parashah (as one), equals 358, which corresponds to the numerical value of the word Mashiach (מָשִׁיחַ, i.e., 358). "This teaches that the important thing in the work of creation is the coming of the Messiah. When he comes, he will rectify the world."

In extrabiblical Jewish writings, the Messiah is often associated with comfort and consolation, though He is not explicitly called "the Comforter" (as in the New Testament’s reference to the Holy Spirit). Several rabbinic, apocalyptic, and Second Temple texts describe the Messiah as the one who brings comfort, redemption, and relief from suffering.

Luke 2:25 refers to Jesus as "the Consolation of Israel", a title rooted in Jewish messianic hopes. This idea comes from rabbinic discussions that describe the Messiah as the one who comforts Israel in its suffering and exile. Midrash on Lamentations 1:16 (Eicha Rabbah 1:51) states:

“What is the name of the Messiah? His name is Menachem (מְנַחֵם, Comforter), son of Hezekiah.”

Menachem means "Comforter", reinforcing the Messiah’s role in bringing comfort to Israel. This parallels Noah’s name (נֹחַ, meaning "rest" or "comfort").

Sanhedrin 98b describes the Messiah’s role in comforting Israel:

“Rabbi Yitzḥak said: The world was created only for the Messiah… He will comfort Israel and bring them out of exile.”

The Messiah is the one who will relieve Israel from suffering and bring about the final redemption. This idea aligns with Isaiah 40:1:

"Comfort, comfort my people, says your God."

Jesus speaks words of comfort and relief:

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28)
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."

The word "rest" (ἀνάπαυσις, anapausis) conveys the idea of relief, refreshment, and comfort. Isaiah 61:1-2 describes the Messiah’s mission, later quoted by Jesus in Luke 4:18-19:

"The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor… to bind up the brokenhearted… to comfort all who mourn."

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Shadows of Messiah, Book One.

9 These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. (Genesis 6:9, ESV Bible)

Noah’s Ark

You probably already know the story of Noah. It is a favorite for children's picture books and Sunday school papers. When I think of Noah and the ark, I imagine the boat as it is often depicted, packed with cute cartoon animals. The giraffe is always sticking his head out the window. It seems like a harmless children's story.

On closer examination, it isn't so harmless. The story of Noah is about the near extinction of life on the planet. An angry, all-powerful God decides to wipe out everything-with the exception of one man and his family and a small collection of wildlife. Millions of people die. Not a cute story after all.

The story is ubiquitous. In one form or another, it has been told all over the world, in virtually every culture. The ancient Sumerians, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Greeks, the Germanic tribes, the Celts, the Aztecs, the Incans, the Mayans, the Native North Americans, the Chinese, the Indians, the Indonesians, and still others all tell the story of the great flood. The names and details vary significantly, but most of the story line is consistent: the gods flood the world to wipe out humanity. One man or one family survives, usually in some kind of boat. After the waters recede, the survivors repopulate the world.

The ancient Near Eastern versions of the flood are very similar to the Bible's. In the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, the gods hold a secret meeting in which they resolve to destroy humanity with a flood. They are betrayed when one of them warns Utnapishtim of the impending disaster. At this god's suggestion, Utnapishtim builds a great boat and brings representatives of all living things into it. The god orders him to get inside the boat and close the door behind him. The flood lasts for seven days and seven nights, after which Utnapishtim opens a window to see that the entire earth has been covered with water. The boat comes to rest on top of Mount Nimush. After seven days, Utnapishtim releases a dove, but it circles around, unable to find a perch, and returns to the boat. He then releases a raven that does not return, indicating that the waters have receded. Utnapishtim opens the boat, releasing the animals, and sacrifices a sheep to the gods. The gods gather around the smoke rising from the altar.

The parallels to the Noah story are undeniable. Some believe that the Torah's story of Noah is based on this Babylonian story. Others believe that the Babylonian version, along with the flood stories from other cultures, preserve historical memories of the original story of Noah. In any case, when we read the tale of Noah and the ark, we are obviously reading a very ancient and universal story.

The story has a lot to say about the human condition. It acknowledges the common origin of all human beings, teaching us that we are actually one large family. It acknowledges our tenuous place in the scheme of things. We are one of many species, and extinction is a real possibility for us. The fossil record reveals that far more species of creatures have lived and vanished from earth than the total number that are currently alive. Like any one of those long-forgotten families of animals, the family of man is vulnerable to obliteration -whether by flood, plague, climate change, meteorites, nuclear war, or any number of apocalyptic nightmares that might usher in the end of the world as we know it. From a pagan perspective, humanity is at the mercy of the gods. From a Torah perspective, we are at the mercy of God. The story of Noah is a story primarily about mercy.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Unrolling the Scroll.

In His Generation

Noah lived in a generation that was sick with evil. The whole human race was corrupt. Violence was everywhere. The world that God created had gone terribly wrong. The Torah says that the earth was "filled with violence" because of the wickedness of the people in Noah's generation.

Every generation has an ample share of violence and human evil. History proves that people consistently behave badly. The human story sometimes sounds like an endless litany of wars and savageries.

The Torah describes the depravity of Noah's generation from God's perspective. It says that the earth was "corrupt in the sight of God" (Genesis 6:11) and that God saw this corruption when He "looked on the earth" (Genesis 6:12). God sees. He is watching. He is the objective standard of right and wrong because He is the only observer outside of our subjective relativism. Therefore, if He says something is wrong, it is wrong. If He says something is wicked, it is wicked. We don't get a vote.

But don't suppose that God is peering down on the planet making observations like a dispassionate astronaut. Neither is He watching us like a man sitting on a sofa watching a football game. Rather, He is like a Father who observes the behavior of His children. He is like a king taking note of how events unfold in his kingdom.

When a father sees his children involved in self-destructive behaviors, it grieves him. When a king sees his subjects living in open rebellion against him, it angers him. As God observed humanity He was saddened to see the rampant wickedness of His creations. They turned on one another with violence, covetousness, lust, and robbery. He saw that every human heart harbored evil. "The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart" (Genesis 6:6).

Human evil grieves God's heart. Reluctantly, God determined to wipe the slate clean by flooding the earth.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Unrolling the Scroll.

A Righteous Man

Noah was an exception to the wickedness around him. In describing Noah. the Bible says that he was righteous, blameless, and walked with God.

What does it mean to be "righteous"? In Hebrew, the word "righteousness" is tzedakah (צְדָקָה). A righteous person is one who lives in accordance with the standards of morality. God sets the standards. Breaking God's standards is sin. Therefore, righteousness is the opposite of sin. To be righteous is to live a life of obedience to God. The Torah says, "Noah did [everything] God had commanded him" (Genesis 6:22).

When the Torah says that Noah was "blameless," it uses the Hebrew word tamim (תָּמִים). It is the same word later used to describe an "unblemished" animal fit for sacrifice. The New American Standard version of the Bible sometimes translates the word tamim as "integrity." The same word can also be understood as "impartiality." In other words, Noah was no hypocrite. He lived by his convictions, and he treated others fairly.

The Torah says that Noah was blameless in his generation. What does it mean that he was blameless "in his generation"? Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchak (Rashi for short) says there are two ways of answering this question:

There are some among our rabbis who interpret these words as praising Noah, saying, "If he had lived in a more righteous generation, he would have been even more righteous." But others interpret these words as a criticism, saying, "When compared with the standard of his [wicked] generation he was righteous, but if he had lived in the generation of Abraham [who was very righteous] he would not have been considered righteous." (Rashi on Genesis 6:9)

When compared with the standards of our present generation, we might feel fairly righteous. We can always find people far worse than ourselves. A man might say, 'I'm not a murderer. I provide for my kids. I don't rob convenience stores, and I don't cheat on my wife." According to the standards of our generation, he seems to be a decent fellow. However, that's not a good way to measure righteousness. Suppose we lived in a society of cannibals, where it was considered normal to cannibalize other human beings. The same fellow might say, "Well, I enjoy eating people, but at least I don't cheat on my wife."

Noah's story teaches us about the company we keep. Humans are gregarious creatures. We tend to imitate those around us. The attitudes of family, friends, and colleagues rub off on us. If you want to become a thief, hang out with thieves. If you want to be a godly person, however, you need to hang out with godly people.

Few individuals can maintain high moral standards while living and working with immoral people. Noah was one of those rare individuals. Though the society around him was utterly corrupt, he was able to keep from adopting his generation's social norms. When compared with the godly Abraham, Noah might not have seemed unique, but when compared with the ungodly generation of the flood, he stood out as completely different from those around him.

This teaches us two important things. First, godly people need to be in fellowship with other believers who share their values if they want to remain godly. Second, godly people should conspicuously stick out from the rest of the world. They should be fundamentally different from the generation around them.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Unrolling the Scroll.

Noah Walked with God

Was Noah perfect? Of course not. No one is. Noah sinned. He had the same sort of human failings we all experience. His faith set him apart and allowed him to rise above his failings. The Torah says, "Noah walked with God" (Genesis 6:9).

Noah did not walk with God in the same sense that Adam and Eve walked with God in Eden. "Walking with God" is a metaphor here. The Bible often speaks of life and the choices we make as "a path," "a way," or "walk." The Psalms and the Proverbs contrast the path of the righteous (walking in the ways of God) with the path of the wicked (walking in the ways of death). The path of the righteous is the path of life. Walking in the path of the righteous means keeping God's commandments. The book of Deuteronomy says, "You shall walk in all the way which the LORD your God has commanded you" (Deuteronomy 5:33), "Therefore, you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him" (Deuteronomy 8:6). In the Psalms, King David prays, "Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, for I delight in it" (Psalm 119:35).

The Proverbs counsel us to "walk in the way of good men and keep to the paths of the righteous" (Proverbs 2:20).

From these Bible passages it seems that keeping God's commandments is the same as walking with God, but I think there is more to it. When we really walk with someone, we are in fellowship with them. The Bible asks, "Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?" (Amos 3:3 NIV). This implies relationship. "Walking with God" means keeping His commandments, but it also means enjoying His company.

Noah walked with God. He lived in submission to God. He wasn't perfect, but he had a relationship with God.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Unrolling the Scroll.

The Faith of Noah

The Torah calls Noah a tzaddik (צַדִּיק), that is, "a righteous man." God spared Noah from the flood because he "was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time." In his merit, all humanity and life on earth survived God's judgment. Righteousness (tzedakah, צְדָקָה) implies behavior conforming to an ethical norm, that is, living by the rules of virtue and morality. A righteous man conducts himself according to ethical principles and treats others fairly and impartially by the same standards.

A righteous person is "one whose conduct is found to be beyond reproach by the divine judge." A righteous person lives a life of obedience to God: "Noah did according to everything God commanded him, so he did" (Genesis 622). God makes the rules that define morality. The Bible refers to breaking God's rules as sin. Righteousness is the opposite of sin.

The LORD said to Noah, Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you alone I have seen to be righteous before Me in this time" (Genesis 7). This verse illustrates how the righteousness of a single person can save others and even the whole world. The righteousness of Noah saved his family and made a future for humanity.

Does this mean that Noah was sinless? According to the Scriptures, there' not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins" (Ecclesiastes 7:20), "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23).

If this is so, why does the Torah say that Noah was righteous? Sometimes we confuse righteousness with perfection. Judaism differentiates between the righteous man (tzaddik) and the completely righteous man (tzaddik gamur). Noah was righteous, not perfect. The sages say that God saved Noah from the flood because he found grace in the eyes of God-but not because he deserved to be saved. Righteousness does not demand perfection. Instead, Judaism teaches that the righteous will live by faith.

The writer of the book of Hebrews associates Noah's righteousness with his faith in things not yet seen:

By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. (Hebrews II:7)

Noah demonstrated his faith in the unseen by obediently building the ark. His obedience demonstrated that he possessed the fear of the LORD: "In reverence [he] prepared an ark." His reverent obedience manifested his assurance of things hoped for and his conviction of things not seen. "Faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected" (James 2:22). Therefore, he "became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith," which is to say that he believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Depths of the Torah, Book One.

Noah and Messiah

In what ways did Noah prefigure the Messiah? Noah was the savior of the world. In the days of Noah, the Almighty held a terrible, universal judgment over the world. The whole earth was corrupt, but Noah "was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God" (Genesis 6:9). Noah proclaimed a message of repentance to a wicked and adulterous generation. The apostles called him a "preacher of righteousness" who called his generation to repent. He warned the people of his time about an imminent day of divine fury and judgment. Noah offered men a means of deliverance through which they could be saved from the fate about to befall their generation.

The name Noah (Noach, נֹחַ) also alludes to Messiah. When Noah was born, his parents named him Noach, saying, "This one will give us rest (nacham, נָחַם) from our work and from the toil of our hands" (Genesis 5:29). The name Noach (נֹחַ), which also means "comforter," is a form of the word Menachem (מְנַחֵם). The sages of the Talmud say that Menachem is one of the names of Messiah.

Lamentations 1:16 refers to the Messiah as the menachem, the "comforter." Yeshua told His disciples that the Father would send them another Comforter, indicating that up until then, He had filled that title. The apostles refer to the Messiah as our "Advocate with the Father," a term employing the Greek equivalent for Menachem.

Perhaps this hint toward a messianic title explains the unusual repetition of Noah's name when the Torah says, "Noah, Noah" (Genesis 6:9). The repetition hints toward the first coming of the Messiah and the second coming of the Messiah.

The apostles also compared the salvation God brought through Noah to the salvation that God brings through the Messiah. Unlike Noah, who saved only himself and his family, however, the Messiah will bring salvation to the whole world. A parable comparing Noah and Moses illustrates the point:

It is as if two ships encountered a storm on the sea. Two pilots steered the two ships. One managed to save himself but not his ship, but the other saved both himself and his ship. Which one received admiration? Surely the one who saved himself and his ship. Similarly, Noah saved only himself, whereas Moses saved himself and his generation. (Genesis Rabbah 11:3)

If the Holy One, blessed be He, did miracles for Noah, who was righteous but not completely righteous ... how much more so if he had been a perfectly righteous man! (Midrash Tanchuma, Noach 9.)

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Shadows of Messiah, Book One.

Generation of Cain

Folly is contagious. The end of the world started with the folly bound up inside one man's heart. Cain harbored hatred in his heart, and that hatred tainted his relationship with God. It poisoned his attempt to worship God and made his sacrifices unacceptable before the LORD. However, Cain's brother, Abel, was righteous and blameless in his time. He walked humbly with God: "By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous" (Hebrews 11:4). "The LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard" (Genesis 4:4-5). Jealousy over God's preference for Abel's sacrifice stirred up Cain's hatred. He slew his brother. "For what reason did he slay him? Because [Cain's] deeds were evil" (I John 3:12).

The blood of righteous Abel cried out from the ground in protest, but God dealt mercifully with Cain rather than exacting the measure of strict justice. Instead of demanding Cain's life in payment for his brother's, the LORD spared the murderer. He allowed him to live as a wanderer on the earth.

Cain spread his folly throughout the earth, infecting his children and everyone else with the same wickedness. Ultimately, the whole world fell sick with the insanity of violence, robbery, hatred, and corruption. Human beings soaked the earth in blood:

Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. (Genesis 6:5-6)

God regretted creating human beings, and He regretted allowing Cain's wickedness to flourish. He resolved to wipe the slate clean through a mass extinction of all terrestrial life on earth: "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them" (Genesis 6:7). That's what He would have done if not for one man who caught his attention: "But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD" (Genesis 6:8).

Solomon's proverbs allude to the contrast between Cain and Noah:

The sacrifice of the wicked (Cain) is an abomination to the LORD, But the prayer of the upright (Noah) is His delight. The way of the wicked (Cain) is an abomination to the LORD, But He loves one (Noah) who pursues righteousness. Grievous punishment is for him (Cain) who forsakes the way; He who hates reproof will die. (Proverbs 15:8-10)

The apocryphal book Wisdom of Solomon links the sin of Cain to the flood in the days of Noah. It explains that the earth underwent the punishment of the flood because of Cain's folly:

When an unrighteous man departed from (wisdom] in his anger, he perished because in rage he killed his brother. When the earth was flooded because of him, wisdom again saved it, steering the righteous man by a paltry piece of wood. (Wisdom of Solomon 10:3-4)

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

The Wicked and the Righteous

The Torah says that Noah was "blameless in his time." Those were difficult times to remain blameless. In Noah's day, humanity was broken. As mentioned above, the human species had gone insane with murder, violence, corruption, deceit, and immorality. Imagine a criminal at large who has committed murder and acts of violence. He's a man given to fits of violent rage. He's known to be guilty of robbery, theft, rape, and even cruelty to animals. We would want the police to arrest this person. I would want such a person either put in prison or put to death - not just because he deserves the punishment, but because he's a danger to the world. Later in the Torah portion, God makes just such a rule: "Whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood shall be shed, for in the image of God He made man" (Genesis 9:6).

If we look at humanity as a whole, the history of the species tells a story exactly as I have just described it. Consider our history of war, conquest, abuse, misuse, corruption, and self-destruction. We are a violent, impulsive, and self-destructive species of criminals. An extraterrestrial alien studying human beings would be forced to conclude that the whole human race is insane. In Noah's day, the insanity had reached the point where the criminal needed to be arrested and put to death.

The Bible refers to the type of people populating the planet in Noah's day as "the wicked." The wicked are people with severe moral and ethical deficits. The term "the wicked" appears hundreds of times in the Bible, primarily in the books of Job, Psalms, and Proverbs. It appears in both the singular form (referring to a wicked person) and the plural form (referring to wicked people). In the Bible, the wicked are not your everyday ordinary sinners. They are the type of people who sin flagrantly without thought for God or others. They are the type of people who lie in wait to attack the innocent, spill innocent blood, dig pits for traps, defraud and abuse, lie and deceive, accept bribes, perpetrate injustices, pursue the afflicted, tread upon the poor, and scoff at godliness. They are likened to unreasoning beasts, but their violence and cruelty exceed that of animals. What makes the wicked so very wicked? King David explains, "The wicked, in the haughtiness of his countenance, does not seek [God]. All his thoughts are, "There is no God" (Psalm 10:3-4). He applies the same sentiments to describe the foolish who says in his heart, "There is no God." The wicked are wicked because they have no fear of God:

The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds; there is no one who does good. (Psalm 14:1)

Standing opposite "the wicked" are "the righteous." The term "the righteous" appears more than one hundred times in the Bible, primarily in the books of Job, Psalms, and Proverbs. It appears in both the singular (a righteous person) and the plural (righteous people). The word "righteousness" refers to godly and upright conduct, moral character, and integrity. In a legal context, it refers to the administration of fair justice. If a court of law declares someone "righteous," it means the judges have found the accused "not guilty." Simply put, the righteous are people who do the right thing.

In the days of Noah, God looked down from heaven and surveyed humanity. His eyes searched the earth for a righteous person, but He saw only the foolish and the wicked:

The LORD has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. (Psalm 14:2-3)

God regretted making human beings at all. Their self-destructive folly grieved His heart and drove His presence away from the world. Rather than bearing His image in the world, they marred His image and defaced His likeness.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

Noah Walked With God

But then He saw Noah.

The Torah describes Noah as a righteous man. It describes him as a blameless man. It describes him as someone who walked with God. These three descriptions are closely related. Let's put it this way: The Torah considers Noah a righteous man because he was blameless in his time, and he was blameless in his time because he walked with God. Life continues today here on planet earth thanks to the merit of one man who walked with God.

What does it mean to walk with God? Before their sin, Adam and Eve walked with God in Eden. He walked with them during the cool morning hours of the day. We also met Noah's great-grandfather Enoch, of whom the Torah said, "Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him" (Genesis 5:24). In future studies, the LORD appears to Abraham and says to him, "I am God Almighty; walk before Me, and be blameless." (Genesis 17:1)

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

Blamelessness

Blameless? Was Noah really blameless? How is a person supposed to go about being blameless?

The Hebrew word translated as "blameless" (tamim) is the same word we use to describe an animal fit for sacrifice as unblemished. It doesn't mean "sinless." As the apostles tell us, all have sinned and fallen short, and if anyone says he is without sin, the truth is not in him, Instead, we could translate tamim as "wholeness." Noah was a whole man. Nothing was missing from his integrity, moral character, or spiritual being. Nothing was false in him. To be whole, in this sense, means you are fulfilling your soul's mission. It means Noah was living up to his godly potential. He wasn't perfect. He was as human as you or I, but he was doing his job as a person. He was fulfilling his mission of representing the LORD within the created order. Being made in the image of God, that's what we are supposed to be doing.

Isn't that what we all innately long for? It's the answer to that nagging inner feeling that something is amiss. It's why we are always looking for wholeness in other people and always being disappointed in relationship after relationship. The wholeness we desire needs to come from within, not from without. Every human being instinctively feels that he or she should be better. Somehow, we know we should be better people. Maybe it's the spirit within us that desires to become a person consistent with the blueprint of what God designed us to be.

At the same time, we long to be in relationship with people who are whole. I'm thinking of people who are natural and at ease in their skin because they have nothing to hide and no ego to protect. A rare person like that seems unconcerned with the self because he or she is so full of God's presence. In most of us, too much of the "self" obstructs the image of God we are meant to reflect. We feel blemished and incomplete when we think of ourselves outside of God, forget about our connection to God, and conduct ourselves according to the concerns of the ego. The selfish concerns of the ego sweep us along with the flood of madness called humanity. It doesn't need to be that way. We can learn to walk with God.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

Walking With God

The biblical idiom of "walking" refers to one's behavior and deeds. The path upon which one walks refers to the course of one's conduct in life. King Solomon said, "I have directed you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in upright paths. When you walk, your steps will not be impeded; and if you run, you will not stumble" (Proverbs 4:II-12).

The common Jewish term for religious law, halachah, literally means "a walk" and figuratively refers to how one walks out God's commandments. Moses enjoins us "to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments" (Deuteronomy 30:16).

Based on that verse, you might assume that to walk with God simply means to keep His commandments, statutes, and judgments. It certainly does entail that. But that's not all of it. It's possible to be religious and far from God. The sages distinguished between walking in the ways of God and keeping the commandments. The sages explain that to walk in God's ways means to imitate Him in the practice of godliness.

The rabbis give us some examples. When Adam and Eve realized they were naked after eating from the fruit of the tree of knowledge, they felt ashamed. They tried unsuccessfully to cover themselves. What did God do? He made garments of skin to clothe them. Just as God clothed Adam and Eve so they would not be naked, we should be concerned for those who need basic human necessities. We should clothe the naked. That's an example of walking in the ways of God.

The Talmud offers several more examples, Just as God visited Abraham when he was convalescing (Genesis 18), we should also visit the sick to encourage them. Just as God fed the children of Israel in the wilderness, we should feed the hungry. Just as God attended to the body of Moses and buried him, we should also attend to the dead. Walking in God's ways means following God's example. If God is merciful, we should be merciful. If God is just, we should be fair and just. If God is compassionate, we should be compassionate.

The imitation of the deity encompasses the commandments of the Torah and transcends them. It goes beyond the letter of the Law or any rote observance and reaches the spirit of the Law. Someone who is walking with God is more concerned with the intention behind the commandments, which is to bring godliness into this world. That's how the sages understood the concept of walking in the ways of God, and that's how our Master Yeshua lived His life.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

The Fear of God, the Love of God, and Cleaving to God

The Torah pairs walking in God's ways with three obligations: to fear God, love God, and cleave to God.

To walk in His ways and to fear Him. (Deuteronomy 8:6)
To fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. (Deuteronomy 10:12)
To love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and cleave to Him. (Deuteronomy II:22)

From this, we learn that to walk in God's ways--to walk with God-involves the love of God, the fear of God, and clinging to God.

To love God with all one's heart, soul, and strength is the greatest of the commandments, the one on which all the other commandments are hanging. But what does it mean to love God? It means to serve Him not out of obligation but out of desire. To love God is to reflect back to Him His love for us, to desire to know Him more and more, and to draw ever closer to Him in thought, speech, and deed, with our minds, with our lives, and with our resources.

To fear God is to know that He exists, that He is watching and ever-present, that He sees even our innermost thoughts, and that He punishes sin and rewards righteousness. One who fears God keeps God in mind constantly, never imagining that God is not present with him.

To cleave to God means to cling to His presence. This is accomplished through cleaving to the godly and clinging to the righteous. For example, the three sons of Noah are saved from God's wrath, not on the merit of their own virtue but because they cling to godly Noah; as Solomon says, "The descendants of the righteous will be delivered" (Proverbs 11:21).

For disciples of Yeshua, to cleave to God means to cleave to our Master Yeshua through whom God has been revealed to us. We glue ourselves to Him by making Him the most important thing in our lives. He is the only thing that matters and the center of our being. Since He is in the Father, and the Father in Him, we cleave to God when we cleave to Yeshua.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

Noah Fears the LORD

The average person in Noah's day had no fear of God. If the average person even believed in the existence of the one true God, he did not expect God to act or intervene in the world. He certainly did not believe God might hold him accountable for his behavior. A wicked person rarely anticipates divine consequences for his actions. "He says to himself, 'God has forgotten; He has hidden His face; He will never see it. ... He has said to himself, 'You will not require it' (Psalm 10:11-13).

Noah was just the opposite. The book of Hebrews says, "By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark" (Hebrews I1:7). A more literal translation would read, "In fear he prepared an ark." Noah feared God. He believed God exists and that He punishes sin, and he believed that punishment was coming. Under that healthy fear of God, Noah prepared an ark "for the salvation of his household ... and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith" (Hebrews 11:7).

The Apostle Peter used this story to underscore his conviction that God will ultimately punish wickedness and reward righteousness. Peter said that just as God "did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly," He will do so again in the future. He will rescue the godly from trial, but He will keep the wicked "Under punishment for the day of judgment" (2 Peter 2:9):

Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found; Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him. (Psalm 32:6)

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. (Genesis 6:11-12, ESV Bible)

The Earth was Corrupt

In Noah's day, corruption, violence, and immorality filled the earth. "The wickedness of man was great on the earth, and every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" (Genesis 6:5). Those descriptions, however, could apply to any generation. So why does God not destroy every wicked generation with a flood? Two unique factors made Noah's generation especially wicked and flood-worthy: the sons of Cain and the sons of God.

The corruption that led to the flood began hundreds of years earlier with the murder of Abel. After murdering Abel, Cain begged for mercy and received it. Rather than requiring Cain to pay for his crime, God placed " mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him" (Genesis 45). Cain fathered a whole race of murderers. Cain's direct descendant Lamech declared a law of murder and sevenfold retaliation, which became the societal norm.

In addition to the murder and violence, the presence of the Nephilim also made Noah's generation especially worthy of obliteration. As described in the previous parashah, angelic beings consorted with human women who in turn begat a race of giants called the Nephilim. Like tares sown among the wheat, the Nephilim corrupted the human race. "The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart" (Genesis 6:6).

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Depths of the Torah, Book One.

Impending Cataclysm

Yeshua came preaching repentance to avert a coming day of calamity upon the house of Israel. When He comes again, He will bring the calamity of God's judgment on all nations.

The story of Noah begins with a description of the problem from Gods perspective. The earth was corrupt. God saw that human beings uttel corrupted the earth with their sinful behavior. His righteous attribute of justice compelled Him to bring judgment, "The LORD saw that the widkedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5).

The wickedness of humanity pains the heart of God, "The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain" (Genesis 6:6). In the day of judgment associated with the coming of the Messiah, "the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness" (Romans I:18). Every generation stands condemned under the righteous judgment of God.

Simon Peter saw the story of Noah as a picture of the coming judgment on earth and the establishment of the kingdom of heaven on earth. The earth must first pass through a time of travail during which the wicked will perish and the enemies of God will be defeated. Those within Messiah's salvation (symbolized by the ark), though few in number, will pass through the cleansing waters of judgment and enter the kingdom, just as Noah and his family survived the flood and repopulated the earth. He pointed to the story of Noah and said, "If God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world ... when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly," then certainly God will bring "the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment" (2 Peter 2:4-9).

The people ignored Noah's warnings and went on with life as normal. While Noah built the ark, preached righteousness, and warned his generation of their impending doom, the people carried on with their affairs. Just as the people did in Noah's day, the generation of the Master's return will ignore the warnings leading up to the big event. Life will go on as normal until catastrophe strikes: "They were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all' (Luke 17:27). People wil remain occupied with their mundane tasks and pleasures until the day of the LORD suddenly overtakes them.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Shadows of Messiah, Book One.

13 And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth. (Genesis 6:13, ESV Bible)

Fixing a Broken World

The Bible says that the wages of sin are death. Sin affects the world around us. It affects others around us. For example, an alcoholic might suppose that his drinking problem is his own business. But when he abuses his wife and children, it is their problem. When he can't perform at work, it is his employer's problem. When he loses his job, it is his creditors' problem. When he can no longer afford to take care of his family, it is the community's problem. Our sins touch the lives of everyone around us. They pollute the spiritual environment of our world.

Human beings are naturally selfish creatures. We rarely consider the consequences that our choices have on others. In the days of Noah, the violent man never stopped to say to himself, "My violence is making this world worse. My sins are hurting the whole of humanity." Each time we sin, no matter how private and personal we imagine the sin to be, we contribute to the destruction of the world.

God punishes sin. For Him to leave sin unpunished would be unjust.

Think of it this way. Suppose there was a murder trial. The defendant was proven guilty. The jury returned a guilty verdict, but the judge, being a kindly fellow, dismissed the verdict, saying, "Well, the poor bloke is probably sorry. I don't think we need to punish him." Everyone would be outraged at the travesty of justice.

Yet people want to imagine God like that. We don't like to think of God as a punisher of sin. We want Him to just look the other way, like a kindly old grandfather who winks at the misdeeds of his grandchildren. The Bible says, "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of [God's] throne" (Psalm 89:14). In other words, God's kingdom is founded upon justice. Since God is the very standard of justice, He cannot be unjust.

This is the problem with sin. It begets judgment. In the days of Noah, the sin of humanity was so great that justice demanded God take action against it. The easiest thing for God to do would have been to simply will the universe out of existence. He could have just shut the entire thing down and started over with a new creation. Instead, He chose to try to fix the world.

In Judaism, "fixing the world" (tikkun olam, תִּיקּוּן עוֹלָם) is an important concept. The world is broken, and it needs to be fixed. Whenever we apply our efforts to doing good—by alleviating human suffering, standing up for justice, making peace in the midst of strife, and choosing to do right instead of wrong—we are fixing the world. As we make the world a better, more godly place, we are restoring it to God's original intent.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Unrolling the Scroll.

Noah’s Preaching

Noah did not abandon the world to its fate. According to apostolic tradition, Noah labored as a "preacher of repentance" (2 Peter 2:5) who tried to persuade his generation to turn from their sinful ways. Clement says, "Noah preached repentance, and as many as listened to him were saved." In another passage, Clement says, "Noah, being found faithful, preached regeneration to the world through his ministry; and the Lord saved by him the animals, which, with one accord, entered into the ark." Simon Peter taught that "the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark" (1 Peter 3:20). "By this [testimony] he condemned the world" (Hebrews I1:7).

The apostolic tradition about the teaching of Noah also appears in Jewish sources:

For a whole one hundred and twenty years Noah planted cedars and cut them down (for the construction of the ark). When they asked him, "Why are you doing this?", he replied, "The Master of the universe has warned me that He will bring a flood on the world." They replied, "If a flood does come, it will only come on you and your father's household." (Genesis Rabbah 30:7)

Noah took fifty-two years to make the ark so that they would repent of their ways. But they did not repent. (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 23)

Yeshua taught that "just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man" (Luke 17:26). This does not mean that that the generation of the Messiah will be equally as wicked as the generation of Noah or that Nephilim will roam the earth again. It means that the generation of Messiah will ignore the signs and warnings and will fail to repent before judgment begins, just as Noah's generation ignored Noah's preaching and refused to repent. They will be distracted with the business of life:

For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. (Matthew 24:38-39)

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Depths of the Torah, Book One.

Cleansing Through Flood

The LORD chose to wash the earth clean and begin again. He could have started over with a new universe. Instead, He chose to cleanse, redeem, and repair the broken one. God is in the business of putting broken things back together. He labors toward redemption. Judaism refers to the concept as "fixing the world" as tikkun olam (תִּיקּוּן עוֹלָם). God busies Himself with the work of repairing His world. The righteous are those men and women who choose to partner with Him in that endeavor.

God redeemed His creation on earth by passing it through the cleansing water of a flood. Chasidic Judaism teaches that the floodwaters purified the earth like a mikvah cleanses a ritually unclean man:

Water possesses the ability to spiritually purify. The corruption of that generation had defiled the very earth, as we are told, "For the earth is [corrupt]" ... God also wished to purify the world. He therefore chose water, which has the ability to accomplish this, as it is written (in Ezekiel 36:25], "And I will sprinkle upon you pure waters and you will be purified; from all your defilements and from all your idols I will purify you." In this sense, the flood waters were similar to a spiritually purifying mikvah (ritual bath)-according to Jewish law, the proper mikveh must contain 40 seah of water, and this is the symbolic reason why the rains of the flood fell for 40 days and 40 nights. (Torah Or, Noach 8c)

Ritual immersion into a mikvah symbolically depicts death and rebirth. "Just as initially, all creation emerged from a watery mass, so too, after immersion in a mikvah, a person becomes a new entity, charged with a new spiritual vitality." Likewise, during the flood, the whole earth reverted to its primordial state, as it says, "The earth was formless and void, and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters." The survivors on the ark represented a new creation, like those born again.

Our apostles offered a similar interpretation for the story of Noah's flood. Just as the waters of the mikvah symbolize rebirth, those in the ark were "saved through water" and went on to renew life on earth:

The patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you - not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience-through the resurrection of Yeshua the Messiah. (I Peter 3:20-21)

Just as only a few survived the great flood in the days of Noah, only a few among Israel heeded the apostolic call to repent and be immersed in the name of Yeshua. Immersion symbolizes an act of repentance connected with the forgiveness of sins through Yeshua's death and resurrection. Simon Peter said, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Yeshua the Messiah for the forgiveness of your sins" (Acts 2:38). Therefore, repentance and identification with the death and resurrection of Yeshua grants us "an appeal to God for a good conscience."

Simon Peter saw the story of Noah as a picture of the coming kingdom. The earth must first pass through a time of travail. The wicked will perish and the enemies of God will be defeated. Those within Messiah's salvation (symbolized by the ark), though few in number, will pass through the cleansing waters of judgment and enter the kingdom, just as Noah and his family survived the flood and repopulated the earth.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe offered a similar interpretation:

Just as immersion in a mikveh is associated with re-experiencing the act of creation, so too the forty days and forty nights of rain brought about the dawning of a new age: "Noach saw a new world."

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Depths of the Torah, Book One.

Preacher of Righteousness

By his testimony of building the ark, Noah "condemned the world" (Hebrews II:7). The apostles taught that Noah labored as a "preacher of repentance" (2 Peter 2:5) who tried to persuade his generation to turn from their wickedness. Simon Peter said, "The patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark" (1 Peter 3:20). The Jewish commentator Rashi explains that Noah took over a century to build the ark to give people plenty of time to repent:

The reason God told Noah to build the ark was so that the people of the generation of the flood should see him laboring on it for 120 years, and they would ask him, "What is this you are doing?" And he would say to them, "In the future, the Holy One, blessed is He, is bringing a flood to the world." All of this was so that they would repent. (Rashi)

Noah offered God's wisdom to the world, but the world refused to listen. Wisdom says, "I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; and you neglected all my counsel and did not want my reproof" (Proverbs I:24-25). Noah offered the world the knowledge of God, but the wicked "hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD" (Proverbs 1:20). "Fools despise wisdom and instruction" (Proverbs I:7).

Simon Peter's disciple Clement adds some thoughts to the discussion. He says, "Noah preached repentance, and as many as listened to him were saved." How many listened? Clement probably had in mind the seven people who got into the boat with Noah. And the animals. Clement continues, "Noah, being found faithful, preached regeneration to the world through his ministry; and the LORD saved by him the animals which, with one accord, entered into the ark" (I Clement 7).

The people of the world ignored Noah. They were too busy with everyday life to pay attention or heed his message. "They were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be" (Matthew 24:38-39). In that hour when "dread comes like a storm... calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come ... Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but they will not find me" (Proverbs 1:27-28).

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

Noah and the Animals

God appointed human beings as stewards over the lower creatures. He said, "Rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth" (Genesis 1:28). He gave humankind the authority to name the animals, "and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name" (Genesis 2:19). In the Bible, naming someone implies taking authority over that person. Likewise, the privilege of naming the animals implied Adam's authority over them.

The story of Noah's ark shows us God's intention behind granting that authority to human beings. He charged us with authority over nature to preserve it and protect it. Ever since human beings designed the first Clovis-point spearheads, our technological advances and reckless disregard for God's creatures have abused that authority. We are responsible for the extinction of numerous lesser species that God left in our charge. Modern habitat destruction through human development, deforestation, and environmental pollution have dramatically accelerated the losses. The book of Revelation warns that in the final judgment, God will "destroy those who destroy the earth" (Revelation 11:18).

Noah took authority over the lower creatures to preserve life. He gathered seven pairs of every clean species and one pair of all other species into the ark. The animals heeded Noah and came to his summons. It's almost as if Noah spoke their language.

Jewish tradition says that Solomon could speak the languages of birds and animals. Solomon's great wisdom included knowledge of the animals and the natural world. After telling us that Solomon's wisdom exceeded that of all others and that Solomon composed 3,000 proverbs, the Bible says, "He spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon even to the hyssop that grows on the wall; he spoke also of animals and birds and creeping things and fish. Men came from all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon" (1 Kings 5:13-14 [4:33-34).

Solomon learned wisdom from studying the natural world. His proverbs frequently refer to flora and fauna. From the ant, Solomon learned to be industrious and store for the future. From the rock badgers, he learned to build defensible houses on solid foundations. The locusts taught him the power of community solidarity. The lizard taught him that lowliness could grant access to places of power and influence (Proverbs 30:24-28).

Likewise, Solomon's proverbs speak of birds, dogs, donkeys, bears, eagles, goats, horses, leaches, lions, ravens, roosters, serpents, and swine, not to mention trees and plants and the heavenly bodies:

He spoke a parable about every sort of tree, from the hyssop to the cedar; and in like manner also about beasts, about all sorts of living creatures, whether upon the earth, or in the seas, or in the air; for he was not unacquainted with any of their natures, nor omitted inquiries about them, but described them all like a philosopher, and demonstrated his exquisite knowledge of their various characteristics. (Josephus, Antiquities 8:44)

Jewish tradition embellished Solomon's wisdom about the natural world to suggest that the king not only spoke about plants and animals but also spoke their language. What language does nature speak? According to the Bible, all creation speaks the language of the praise of God. Everything that exists reveals His glory. The trees of the forest clap their hands and sing for joy before the LORD. The grass of the field lifts its voice. The wilderness shouts for joy; the seas roar, the field exults, the heavens are glad, and the earth rejoices. God's wisdom sustains "all flesh in which is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth" (Genesis 6:17). "How many are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your possessions" (Psalm 104:24).

Like King Solomon, we can find wisdom in the natural world around us. Close connection with the natural world should draw us into communion with the Creator who made all things, sustains all things, and reveals Himself through all things.

In Noah's day, robbery, violence, and bloodshed filled the earth, but the animals in the ark dwelt peaceably under his authority. This alludes to the future when, under the authority of King Messiah (the one who will be like Solomon), the wolf will dwell with the lamb; the leopard will lie down beside the young goat and the calf beside the lion, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. "They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea" (Isaiah 11:9).

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

House of the Wise Man

As King Solomon considered the wisdom of the animal kingdom, he took note of the rock badgers (also known as hyraxes). The rotund rodents are called shephanim in Hebrew. They are ubiquitous in the land of Israel even today. Solomon noted that "the shephanim are not mighty people, yet they make their houses in the rocks" (Proverbs 30:26). They are not warriors but prefer defensible points of elevation for their homes. One typically sees rock badgers sunning themselves on craggy heights or even congregating on the tops of towers.

Perhaps Yeshua had this proverb of Solomon in mind when He advised His disciples to build their houses on the rock and not on the sand. A disciple who listens to His words but does not implement His instruction or apply His teaching is like a foolish man who builds his house on the sand. When the rains fall, the winds blow, and the waters rise, his house is swept away in the flood. The wise man hears His words and does them. Such a man is like a builder who built his house on the rock. Although the rains fell, the winds blew, and the waters rose, his house stood fast. He does not perish in the flood. King Solomon said, "The wicked are overthrown and are no more, but the house of the righteous will stand" (Proverbs 12:7).

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ The Beginning of Wisdom, Book One.

14 Make yourself an ark of gopher wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. (Genesis 6:14, ESV Bible)

Repentance

Why did God tell Noah to build an ark? Rashi points out that "God has many means of rescue and salvation before Him." In other words, He could have saved Noah and the animals without all the trouble of having Noah build the ark. "Why did He bother Noah with building [the ark]?" Rashi asks.

Then he explains:

[The reason God told Noah to build the ark was] so that the people of the generation of the flood should see him laboring on it for 120 years, and they would ask him, "What is this you are doing?" And he would say to them, "In the future, the Holy One (blessed is He) is bringing a flood to the world." All of this was so that they would repent. (Rashi on Genesis 6:14)

The Apostle Peter would likely have agreed with Rashi's answer. Peter says, "The patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark" (1 Peter 3:20). It took Noah 120 years to build the ark.

God held off judgment for 120 years in order to give people an opportunity to repent. Peter's disciple, Clement of Rome, echoes these sentiments in his epistle to the Corinthians:

Let us turn to every age that has passed, and learn that, from generation to generation, the LORD has granted a place of repentance to all such as would be converted unto Him. Noah preached repentance, and as many as listened to him were saved. (I Clement 7:5-6)

God punishes sin, but He does not enjoy it or want to do it. Some people imagine God as an abusive father who overreacts to his children with severe discipline for their every misstep. Others imagine Him like a cosmic traffic cop, just waiting for you to run a red light by committing some sin so He can pounce on you. The Bible dispels these misconceptions about God. Through the mouth of the prophet Ezekiel, the LORD declared that He does not delight in punishing the wicked, but instead hopes that the wicked will turn away from evil and start doing good:

"As I live!" declares the Lord GOD, "I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die?" (Ezekiel 33:11)

God does not want to punish sinners. He wants them to turn from their evil ways so they will not need to be punished. Turning away from evil is called "repentance." In Hebrew, the word for "repent" is shuv (שׁוּב). It means "to turn around." Repentance (teshuvah, תְּשׁוּבָה) in the noun form is a foundational concept in the Bible. It means "to return." Unlike the Greek equivalent, which implies a change of mind, teshuvah means "to turn around and go back in the other direction." To repent means "to quit sinning, turn around, and start doing good." It is more than just a change of mind; teshuvah demands a change of behavior. It's about starting over fresh and trying to do better.

In the days of Noah, God did not want to flood the earth. He wanted the people of the earth to repent.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Unrolling the Scroll.

The Ark

The LORD gave Noah instructions for building the ark. He gave him precise dimensions and directions in the form of a verbal blueprint. He told him the type of materials to use, the type of lumber, and how to prepare and finish the ark. He described the placement of the entrance, and the number of decks. In some ways, the instructions for the ark seem to anticipate the instructions for the building of the Tabernacle that Moses received on Sinai.

The word "ark" translates the Hebrew word "tevah" (תֵּבָה). The Torah uses the same word for the basket in the story about baby Moses: "When she could no longer hide him, she got him a wicker tevah and covered it over with tar and pitch. Then she put the child into it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile" (Exodus 2:3). Both arks, coated with tar and pitch, float on the waters and preserve the lives of their passengers.

Chasidic teachings note that, in Rabbinic Hebrew, tevah also means "word." Based on this equation, Noah's ark might symbolize a person's prayers, which he offers with words:

In the face of the flood of concerns over one's livelihood, one should get into one's tevah, the words of prayer, which have the ability to keep one afloat, and even more--to raise one up above the waters. (Torah Or, Noach)

Likewise, the ark might be compared to the study of the words of Torah, or it might be compared to our Master who is the Word made flesh.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Depths of the Torah, Book One.

16 Make a roof for the ark, and finish it to a cubit above, and set the door of the ark in its side. Make it with lower, second, and third decks. (Genesis 6:16, ESV Bible)

The Light in the Dark

The LORD told Noah to make a "tzohar" (צֹהַר) for the ark and to place it a cubit from the top. The sages debate the meaning of the word tzohar. The word tzohar implies something bright and shining, a resplendent source of illumination. What was the tzohar of the ark? Some of the sages said, "It means a skylight." Rabbi Levi said, "It means a precious stone."

According to Rabbi Levi's opinion, "During the whole twelve months that Noah was in the ark, he did not need the light of the sun by day of the light of the moon by night. He had a polished gem which he hung up. When the gem shone dimly, he knew it was day. When it shone brightly, he knew it was night."4 Rabbi Meir said, "One pearl was suspended in the ark, and it shed light upon all the creatures in the ark, like a lamp which gives light inside a house, and like the sun which shines in its strength."

The light in the ark can be compared to the menorah in the Temple. It symbolizes spiritual illumination, revelation, and the light of Messiah.

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Depths of the Torah, Book One.

17 For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die. (Genesis 6:17, ESV Bible)

Left Behind

Yeshua compared the generation of Noah to the generation that will witness the day of the LORD and the coming of the Son of Man. When the Messiah returns, He will usher in a day of judgment. In that day, some will be taken away in judgment and others will be left behind:

Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one will be left. (Matthew 24:40-41)

1 tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken and the other will be left. (Luke 17:34-35)

A husband and wife will be in the same bed. One will be taken, the other left behind. Two men will be at work together in the same field. One will be taken the other left behind. Two women will be turning the stone mill to grind flour. One will be taken the other left behind. Surprisingly, Christians today often interpret these words to mean that when Jesus comes, the one taken will be whisked away to meet Him in the sky. Since the spouse left lying in bed is not a believer, he (or she) will be left behind. Likewise, the one left working in the field is not a Christian, so he is left behind. The one left grinding at the mill, also not a believer, is left behind.

Contrary to the popular teaching, however, the one "taken" in Matthew 24 and Luke 17 is not raptured to join Jesus in the air. Just as the flood came and took people away in the days of Noah (and just as fire and brimstone fell upon the people of Sodom in the days of Lot), being "taken away" in Matthew 24:40-41 refers to people taken in judgment.

The disciples asked Him, "Where [will they be taken], Master?" He answered, "Where the body is, there also the vultures will be gathered" (Luke 17:37). In other words, the corpses of those taken away will be food for the birds. With these words, our Master invoked the dire apocalyptic predictions of the Prophets Ezekiel and Jeremiah.

The horrific massacres of the war with Rome that engulfed the Jewish people of Yeshua's generation fulfilled His prophecies: "They left the dead bodies to rot under the sun, and they bestowed the same punishment to anyone who buried a body ... anyone that granted the mercy of a grave to another quickly needed a grave himself." The people of the generation became food for the vultures. Our holy Master Yeshua foresaw it all.

The Hebrew word nesher (נֶשֶׁר) can mean a "vulture" or an "eagle." The Romans used the eagle as the symbol of their empire. In that sense, Yeshua might have used the word "eagles" as a cryptic reference to Roman legions:

The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as the eagle swoops down. (Deuteronomy 28:49)

Those "left behind" in Matthew 24 and Luke 17 are the righteous, not the wicked. Those "left behind" can be compared to Noah and his seven family members who survived the flood, as Peter says, "The Lord knows how to rescue the godly" (2 Peter 2:9). The thrust of the passage calls upon disciples to remain vigilant as they await the coming of the days of the Son of Man. Yeshua's disciples must not be like the complacent generations of Noah and Lot that were caught unawares, for the Messiah will come suddenly, like a flash of lightning, like a thief in the night. "Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming" (Matthew 24:42).

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Shadows of Messiah, Book One.

19 And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female. 20 Of the birds according to their kinds, and of the animals according to their kinds, of every creeping thing of the ground, according to its kind, two of every sort shall come in to you to keep them alive. (Genesis 6:19-20, ESV Bible)

Kingdom Aboard the Ark

Chasidic teaching says that Parashat Noach is connected to the future perfection of the Messianic Era. The LORD told Noah to gather into the ark representatives of every living species. God sent two of every kind of unclean animal, and seven pairs of every type of clean animal to Noah. Ferocious predators and dangerous beasts came to Noah and conducted themselves under his care as if they were tame, domesticated animals. The predators did not attack the herds and flocks of clean animals. The peaceful behavior of the animals foreshadowed the Messianic Era, "For behold, in the ark all the animals lived peaceably together, as in the prophecies that state, 'the wolf will dwell with the lamb' and 'they will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain.' Moreover, the LORD miraculously sustained Noah and the animals on the ark with sufficient food and drink, a portent of the miraculous provision that will characterize the Messianic Era: "There will be neither famine nor war, neither envy nor competition, for good things will flow in abundance. "

References

This section is from teachings from FFOZ Shadows of Messiah, Book One.

Disciple X