Noah Builds the Ark
May 2, 2024
Commentary
Exactly who were “the sons of God” and “the daughters of men” (vv. 1-4)? Here are two common views: (1) The sons of God were the godly line of Seth, and the daughters of men were descendants of Cain. (2) The sons of God were rulers controlled by fallen angels who intermarried with wicked women. Regardless of the view taken it is evident that Satan was very much at work. These mixed marriages brought a stern rebuke and warning from God (v. 3). Man was given 120 years after this warning before the judgment of the Flood came. Men had become so evil by the days of Noah that God was even sorry that He had made him (vv. 5-8). Every sin imaginable was being practiced.
God is holy. He will not tolerate sin. However, God is also merciful and amid human depravity he always provides a way for His own people to be saved. The story of Noah and the flood illustrates both aspects of the nature of God. The culture of Noah’s day was evil (vv. 11-12). As God looked at the earth and grieved over it, He saw only one good man – Noah. It says that he was a just man and who walked with God (vv. 8-9). For the many years while the ark was being built, he alerted the people of the coming destruction, but they all refused to believe his words and perished in the flood. God told Noah to take his family and a male and female of all beasts, birds, and creeping things on to the ark (vv. 19-22). He didn’t capture these animals; they came to him.
Application
In the wicked world in which we live am I willing to stand alone on the side of righteousness?
Genesis 6:1– 22 (NET)
1 When humankind began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of humankind were beautiful. Thus they took wives for themselves from any they chose. 3 So the Lord said, “My Spirit will not remain in humankind indefinitely, since they are mortal. They will remain for 120 more years.”
4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days (and also after this) when the sons of God would sleep with the daughters of humankind, who gave birth to their children. They were the mighty heroes of old, the famous men.
5 But the Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind had become great on the earth. Every inclination of the thoughts of their minds was only evil all the time. 6 The Lord regretted that he had made humankind on the earth, and he was highly offended. 7 So the Lord said, “I will wipe humankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—everything from humankind to animals, including creatures that move on the ground and birds of the air, for I regret that I have made them.”
8 But Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord.
9 This is the account of Noah.
10 Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
11 The earth was ruined in the sight of God; the earth was filled with violence. 12 God saw the earth, and indeed it was ruined, for all living creatures on the earth were sinful. 13 So God said to Noah, “I have decided that all living creatures must die, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. Now I am about to destroy them and the earth. 14 Make for yourself an ark of cypress wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it with pitch inside and out. 15 This is how you should make it: The ark is to be 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. 16 Make a roof for the ark and finish it, leaving 18 inches from the top. Put a door in the side of the ark, and make lower, middle, and upper decks. 17 I am about to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy from under the sky all the living creatures that have the breath of life in them. Everything that is on the earth will die, 18 but I will confirm my covenant with you. You will enter the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. 19 You must bring into the ark two of every kind of living creature from all flesh, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20 Of the birds after their kinds, and of the cattle after their kinds, and of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you so you can keep them alive. 21 And you must take for yourself every kind of food that is eaten, and gather it together. It will be food for you and for them.”
22 And Noah did all that God commanded him—he did indeed.
Illustration: Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster 1986
Listen to this description of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster in northern Ukraine:"There were two electrical engineers in the control room that night, and the best thing that could be said for what they were doing is they were ’playing around’ with the machine. They were performing what the Soviets later described as an unauthorized experiment. They were trying to see how long a turbine would ’free wheel’ when they took the power off it. “Now, taking the power off that kind of a nuclear reactor is a difficult, dangerous thing to do, because these reactors are very unstable in their lower ranges. In order to get the reactor down to that kind of power, where they could perform the test they were interested in performing, they had to override manually six separate computer-driven alarm systems. “One by one the computers said, ’Stop! Dangerous! Go no further!’ And one by one, rather than stopping the experiment, they shut off the alarms and kept going. You know the results: nuclear fallout that was recorded all around the world, from the largest industrial accident ever to occur in the world.” This city, which formerly had 55,000 people, is now abandoned. The instructions and warnings in Scripture are just as clear. We ignore them at our own peril, and tragically, at the peril of others. (Bobby Scoby – Sermon Central).