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Teaching And Research By: M. E. Arbaugh
Genesis
Chapter Nine
After the sacrifice presented by Noah, God enters into an unconditional covenant with man. He begins the dispensation of HUMAN GOVERNMENT. God gave Noah laws by which to govern the Earth. Man would be responsible for self government under these laws and this covenant. These blessings and rules are called the Noahic Covenant. What a disaster, letting men rule themselves. Didn’t God know it wouldn’t work? Of course He did, but man didn’t know it. Now there is a record of what happens when we try to operate on our own wisdom. It’s a pity, that we don’t look at that record.
V 1. And God pronounced a blessing upon Noah and his sons and said to them, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.
This dispensation begins with a blessing. It is a new beginning. Note, there is a difference between blessing and miracle. God pronounces blessings, miracles He does. God always gives blessings at new beginnings. He encourages us. He desires our success.
The number one rule (or law) of this new covenant with man, FILL THE EARTH. They were supposed to spread out.
V 2. And the fear of you and the dread and terror of you shall be upon every beast of the land, every bird of the air, all that creeps upon the ground, and upon all the fishes of the sea; they are delivered into your hand.
In the garden, man had dominion through peace and love. Now he has dominion, but it is established upon fear. Even the animals recognize the violent nature of unregenerate man and instinctively distrust man.
Number two rule (or law) RULE THE ANIMALS.
V 3. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; and as I give you the green vegetables and plants, I give you everything.
All moving things shall be food for you. This also included those that were called unclean.
Number three rule (or law), YOU MAY EAT ANIMAL FLESH
V 4. But you shall not eat flesh with the life of it, which is its blood.
Number four rule (or law), YOU SHALL NOT EAT BLOOD. Leviticus 17:10-12.
V 5. And surely for your lifeblood I will require an accounting; of every beast I will require it and of man; of every man [who spills another's lifeblood] I will require a reckoning.
V 6. Whoso sheds man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God He made man.
Prior to this time no rules were established for accounting for actions between man. Recall that Cain and Lamech did not under go any sort of human trial.
Number five rule (or law), Murder and Suicide are forbidden.
Even animals who shed man's blood will be held accountable. The death penalty is established.
Most scholars seems to agree that the Noahic covenant was an everlasting one. So, what do you think about the death penalty?
V 7. And you, be fruitful and multiply; bring forth abundantly on the earth and multiply on it.
Everyone is able to do this spiritually.
V 8. Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying,
V 9. Behold, I establish My covenant or pledge with you and with your descendants after you.
This was God’s grace abounding toward Noah.
V 10. And with every living creature that is with you, whether the birds, the livestock, or wild beasts of the earth along with you, as many as came out of the ark, every animal of the earth.
V 11. I will establish My covenant or pledge with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, neither shall there ever again be a flood to destroy and make the earth corrupt.
V 12. And God said, this is the token of the covenant (solemn pledge) which I make between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations:
This covenant is everlasting. God will never again destroy the earth by flood. This sign of the bow, was the Father's way of counteracting a possible life of fear. Having been through the flood, each rainfall might have terrified the people. The bow brought reassurance.
V 13. I set my bow [rainbow] in the cloud, and it shall be for a token or sign of a covenant or solemn pledge between Me and the earth.
V 14. And it shall be that when I bring clouds over the earth, and the bow [rainbow] is seen in the clouds,
V 15. I will [earnestly] remember my covenant or solemn pledge, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy and make all flesh corrupt.
. V 16. When the bow [rainbow] is in the clouds, and I look upon it, I shall [earnestly] remember the everlasting covenant or pledge between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.
Comforting to know that God will keep an eye on the rainbow, so as to remember His covenant
V 17. And God said to Noah. This rainbow is the token or sign of the covenant or solemn pledge, which I have established between Me and all flesh upon the earth.
V 18. The sons of Noah who went forth from the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham was the father of Canaan [born later].
Shem means renown. It foreshadows the name of all names. Through Shem comes Jesus.
Japheth means he that persuades and enlarges. Ham means hot, dark, swarthy. It is interesting to note that only three sons are mentioned even though there were probably many more after the flood. The same thing is true of Adam after the garden.
V 19. These are the three sons of Noah, and from them the whole earth was overspread and stocked with inhabitants.
V 20. And Noah began to cultivate the ground, and he planted a vineyard;
In the Bible human nature is not glossed over, all is laid bare. This appears to be a long term plan to sin. He cultivated, planted, tended, stomped and put into wine skins. Then he got drunk. He was apparently depressed. This was also a problem for Elijah. 1 Kings 19.
V 21. And he drank of the wine, and became drunk; and he was uncovered and lay naked in his tent.
And he drank of the wine and became drunk. Grapes can be eaten fresh. They can be dried and become raisins. Either way they are not going to cause loss of control. Noah experienced the terrible conditions before the flood. He should have known about excesses, still, he made wine. We need to recognize our weak spots and try to avoid them. The verses below from Proverbs describes addiction.
Proverbs 23:31-35 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, <when> it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things. Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. They have stricken me, <shalt thou say>, <and> I was not sick; they have beaten me, <and> I felt <it> not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.
And he was uncovered and lay naked in his tent. In Genesis 10:19 we are told that Sodom and Gomorrah are included in the territory of Ham. Many scholars think that Ham physically abused his father. All we can be sure of, is that something terrible happened. Ham was also married, so if this is true Ham was a bi-sexual.
V 22. And Ham, the father of Canaan glanced and saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside.
Ham came out of his father's tent and told his brothers.
V 23. So Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it upon the shoulders of both, and went backward and covered the nakedness of their father, and their faces were backward and they did not see their father's nakedness.
God places a high premium on honoring our Parents. One of the
commandments is called the commandment of promise. It states, Honor thy
Father and thy Mother, so shall thy days be long on the earth. If we would
have long life, we must honor our parents.
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V 25. He exclaimed, Cursed be Canaan! He shall be the servant of servants to his brethren! Deut.27:16
Deuteronomy 27:16 Cursed be he that setteth light by (dishonors) his father or his mother. And all the people shall say, Amen.
V26. He also said, Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem! And let Canaan be his servant.
V 27. May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant.
Shem was the chosen one of Jehovah. Japheth, multiplied and enlarged would be a partaker with Shem in his spiritual privileges. This scripture foretells of the conversion of the Gentiles. Those who come into the tent of Shem, becoming partakers of Abraham's blessings.
Noah's words were not the cause of what happened. They only revealed what was to happen. Only Canaan out of Ham's family was affected. They are the people who later lived in the land of Canaan (Palestine) prior to the Israelites. The people involved are not Black. There is no basis for race discrimination. All people are important to God. He does not desire that any should perish. What color is man’s spirit? Do you know?
We are not to ill treat any one. Persecution. Enslavement or putting down because of outward condition is WRONG. God looks not on the outward appearance but on the heart. No one is a second class citizen in God’s eyes. Galatians 3:27.
Satan would now work through the rebellious descendants of Ham. The family of Ham refused to accept the place of slaves. As a result they were finally destroyed after a 1000 years of war by the Romans at Carthage.
If they had accepted the judgment of God. Crying out for mercy, it would have been different. God is not only the God of second chance, He is a God of many chances. To repent means to have a complete change and turn around of heart and life. When we repent, He forgives.
V 28. And Noah lived after the flood 350 years.
V 29. All the days of Noah were 950 years, and he died.
Then he died, and went to a better world.
Noah, his three sons and their wives lived to see two worlds. The earth before the flood and the earth after the flood.
By way of review, we have covered:
1. The Dispensation of Angels
2. The Dispensation of Innocence
3. The Dispensation of Conscience
4. We are now in the Dispensation of Human Government
Remember, a dispensation is a period of time where free moral agents are measured against a standard of conduct.
The Covenants:
1. The Solar Covenant
2. The Edenic Covenant (Pre fall )
3. The Adamic Covenant. (Post fall)
4. The Noahic Covenant
An Age is a segment of time of various lengths.
1. Creative ages of the dateless past.
2. Ante chaotic age, from creation to chaos
3. The Chaotic age, between Lucifer’s fall and the beginning of six
days of
recreation.
4. The antediluvian age, from the six days to the flood.
5. The present age. From the abating of the waters until the millennium
Part of number 5 is still to come. Also the millennium is the age to come which is the 1000 years until the new heaven and new earth.
From the dispensations, covenants and ages, we see God unfold His
plan of redemption for mankind.
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Teaching And Research By: M. E. Arbaugh
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January 1, 2007
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