Archives: Commentaries

Results of Selfishness

14:1

Shinar refers to Sumeria, and Elam to early Persia. Ellasar was the leading tribe in southern Babylonia and the “nations” was probably a tribe of northeastern Babylonia. Chedorlaomer was obviously the chief leader of this confederacy. (See Genesis 14:4)

14:2-4

The first group of ‘kings’ comes against this second list of ‘kings’ ruling in Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboim and Zoar (Bela). (3.) These groups were joined together, much like a sprawling metropolitan area is today, where one city runs into another. The location was identified by the author as the ‘salt sea’, although at the time it was still fresh water. (4.) The leader was Chedorlaomer and they served him, or were subject to him for a period of 12 years. Then in the 13th year they rebelled against him.

14:5-6

Then in the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer, and the kings aligned with him, killed the Rephaims, the Zuzims and the Emims, and the Horites at mount Seir, all the way to Elparan, near the wilderness. This would have been the uninhabited area. Note that Chedorlaomer and his army must have been very powerful because the Rephaims, Zuzims, Emims and Horites were all known as the powerful ones, or strong ones and all were sons of Anak, or the Anakim and were giants; of the demon-possessed type and kind of Genesis 6. Notice that God uses Chedorlaomer and his armies to slaughter all the wicked demon possessed giants!

14:7

Now they return and come to Kadesh and kill all the Amalekites, and Amorites. We are told this was the area of Hazezon-tamar. God continues to use this wicked king to destroy the even more wicked demon possessed Amalekites. God can, and will, use ungodly people to do His will.

14:8-9

Now the battle and fighting increases fiercely as the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim and Zoar fight for their lives in the vale of Siddim, against the four kings and their armies all under the powerful Chedorlaomer. These four kings fight the weaker five kings of the rich fertile valley, apparently quickly subduing them. God continues to use Chedorlaomer to destroy many of the wicked peoples ruled by these five kings.

14:10

The vale of Siddim was full of slime (tar) pits which the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and fell into this pits and presumably died. All those who escaped fled into the mountain to keep from being killed. These slime pits were very extensive and probably represented accumulations of organic debris from the Flood, which had collected in the basins of the great Rift Valley which traverses the entire region. Early writers also referred to these pits as the Asphalt Sea. This area eventually becomes the Dead Sea as the sea becomes salty over time, because of no outlet, and encompasses these slime pits. Remember, this entire valley is below sea level.

14:11-12

The victors now take all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, stripping the city of everything they can use. They also take Lot and his family and goods. In addition, they take many other people captive to be used as slaves.

14:13

One person manages to escape the carnage and goes to Abram; this is the first time we see Abram identified as the Hebrew, to tell him of the capture of his nephew lot. Abram is dwelling in the plain of Memre the Amorite, brother of Eschol and brother of Aner: all these were confederates of Abram. They had probably formed this confederacy to protect themselves from Chedorlaomer and others who would try to attack them and take all their goods, flocks and people. From these passages we can easily see that the entire region was filled with wicked, demon possessed, warlike peoples! No wonder Abram chose to live in an area away from these people and formed a confederacy to protect himself and his people.

14:14

For the first time we see that Abram has his own army, all of whom were born in his own House, meaning his own Tribe of people. The number of those who were specifically trained for war was 318. These men were experts at warfare. We can safely assume that his entire Tribe was a great deal larger. It appears that Abram has been carefully organizing and training his household to protect themselves against the wicked demon-possessed people around them! They would have had to do this in order to survive. Notice that Abram does not waste any time in arming his highly trained warriors (think of them as Seals or Special Forces) and leads them in pursuing those who had captured Lot and his family all the way to Dan. Some people say that Christians should not prepare for war or be involved in war. Obviously this passage clearly teaches us we SHOULD be prepared for war against God’s enemies! Remember, we are told in Ephesians 6:10-18, to put on the armor of God; so obviously a reference to warfare is used to encourage Christians to be prepared to fight; spiritually, and if necessary, physically.

14:15

Abram skillfully divides his army against them; and by night, he attacks and kills many of them and pursues those who try to escape all the way to Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. This is no short easy trek with an entire army. Notice that they do not rest and continue to fight by night and day. This is a clue that God is giving them supernatural strength and stamina.

14:16-17

Abram and his army are victorious and bring back all the goods, his nephew Lot, and all his goods, and all the peoples with him. (17.) Now we see that the king of Sodom goes out to meet Abram after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer and all the kings that were with him at the valley of Shaveh.

14:18

Suddenly we are given an ‘interval of time’, or a ‘time gap’ in the sequence of events; as we are told Melchizedek, the King of Salem, whose name means King of Righteousness, brings forth bread and wine: and Melchizedek is the Priest of the most high God. Who is this strange personage who evidently represents the most high God? A King is never the Priest, so who could this be?

14:19-20

We are given even more clues: Now He (Melchizedek) blessed him (Abram) and said: “Blessed be Abram of the most High God, possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be the most High God, which has delivered your enemies into your hand.” Then Abram gives Him (Melchizedek) tithes of all he has. Who do the tithes go to? Only the Priest of God can receive tithes for God. Yet Melchizedek is both the King and Priest of the most High God. Notice that the author gives us the exact words of Melchizedek! All the rest of the narrative simply tells us what is going on and that one tells Abram of the situation, not his exact words! The reason we are told the exact words is that this is a very important Person, and the Holy Spirit wants us to take notice! Many serious Bible students believe this as a Theophany of Jesus Christ. How else would Melchizedek know that God had delivered this powerful confederacy of four powerful kings and all their armies to be slain by Abram and his small army. Remember, he only had 318 men in his army! For further proof, read Psalm 110:4 and Hebrews 5:6,10; 6:20; 7:1-21.

14:21

Now, suddenly, the time interval ends and we are shifted back to the king of Sodom who says to Abram: “Give me the people back and you take the goods for yourself.” We must assume that somehow the king of Sodom escaped from certain death from the slime pits; now he wants the people back. As the victor, Abram could keep all the goods AND people. The king of Sodom has no one to rule; so he, in effect, is begging Abram to let his people return to him.

14:22-23

Abram is well aware of the wickedness of Sodom and the king of Sodom and he tells the king of Sodom: “ I have lifted up my hand and sworn to the Lord, God Most High, the Possessor and Maker of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a shoelace or anything that is yours, lest you should say, I have made Abram rich.” Abram clearly wants everyone to know for all time that ALL he has comes directly from the Most High God, not from some wicked king.

14:24

Abram goes on to say: “Take everything except only what my young men have eaten and the share of the men, my allies, who went with me, Aner, Eshcol and Memre; let them take their allotted portion.” According to the rules of war, all the goods and possessions now belonged to Abram; yet he refuses to take anything of value so that no one could ever say that his wealth came from anyone other than the God Most High!

God is teaching us some powerful lessons in this Chapter of Genesis. He has given us some new revealed Truth and Promises that hold True for people of all time down through the ages. Lot’s greedy focus on wealth and ease resulted in his being made a slave and he lost all his earthly ‘wealth’. Yet God, in His infinite mercy, gave him back his life, his family and his possessions. God, who is all powerful, can take a home grown army, led by a faithful, obedient servant of God, and take them to unbelievable victory over wicked evil men who possess all the worlds power and might. God’s power is always more than what the world has. God is in control, He is the Ruler and He can use all the wickedness of the world to accomplish His plans. Remember, our Country was founded by Pilgrims who fled the persecution of Great Britain. They knew they were to worship the One True God in a manner that allowed them to be obedient to what God revealed to them. These Pilgrims, (Puritans) had laws that required every family to own a gun, and to train their children in the use of firearms. Virginia and Connecticut required everyone to bear arms, to be prepared for their own defense and freedom. George Mason, often referred to as the father of the Bill of Rights, stated ‘that the ‘militia’ was the people … to disarm the people is to enslave them’. Our Second Amendment came about because of the need of Believers to remain a free nation. We have a responsibility to protect and defend our God given freedom. We need to pray, yet to be prepared. We do not need to rely on our own strength, our power, our wealth, our resources; we do need to always trust God and rely on His Wisdom, His Guidance, His Strength, and His Power, Timing, and Control and follow Him as He leads us. So, what is God saying to your heart and soul? Are you relying on Him or on the world? Are you a follower of Jesus? Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness and then He will give you all that you need. See Matthew 6:33.

Abram and Lot

As we continue in Genesis, we will see more details of the life of Abram (Abraham) and his lineage. This historical information is being given to us for many reasons. First, as proof of God’s Sovereign Will in selecting Abraham and the Jews as His chosen people. Then to verify that the land and people belong to God. Even today, the land belongs to Israel and each family has a right to ‘use’ the land. God’s Lessons and history are skillfully woven together to benefit us regarding how God deals with all creation, especially those He has created in His Image and Likeness. We will learn that ALL people belong to God, yet ONLY those who respond to God’s call and choose to obey and follow Him are God’s Children. Many people erroneously believe we are ‘all God’s children’; this is false! It has been said that those who ignore history and its lessons are doomed to repeat the very same mistakes that bring pain and suffering. We are being given the privilege of reading and studying God’s Word, let’s not make that same foolish mistake of ignoring the Truth and suffering in sin.

13:1-2

Since Pharaoh orders Abram and his family to leave Egypt, he immediately leaves Egypt along with Sarai, Lot, and all the many men and maid servants and all his possessions, and travels to the south or Negev. Abram now has a huge amount of material possessions; plus sheep, oxen, donkeys, and camels, he also has a great amount of gold and silver. He was very rich.

13:4

Abram journeys from the south back to Bethel to the same place he had established a camp (home) when entering the land; back to the exact place he had built an altar to God. When we make foolish choices and find ourselves in a bad place, we often try to “return home”, back to a place we felt safe. Remember, the safest place to be is always in the Will of God.

13:5-6

The author reminds us that Lot is still with Abram through all the travels, plus all their flocks, herds and tents, all their possessions. We are given some details of the situation regarding the land they lived in not being sufficient to allow all their animals and people to be sustained.

13:7

Not only do they have strife between their herdsmen, the author again reminds us that the Canaanite and the Perizzite both lived in the same land. These Canaanite people were of the same background as the evil ones described in Genesis 6:1-4. Giants, demon-possessed, very strong and evil. They are referred to as Rephaim or Anakim; coming from demon possessed parents; certainly not the type of neighbors one would want to be around. These people would have come about after the Flood, possibly at the rebellion at Babel; and their descendants inhabited Canaan.

13:8-9

Abram, as Patriarch and leader, graciously seeks peace between he and Lot and their herdsman. As Patriarch, he has the right and authority to select the best land, yet he gives up his rights and tells Lot he may choose the land.

13:10-11

Lot probably should have said, “Oh, no, You select which land you want, and we will go wherever you tell us.” Yet, we see the seed of greed and selfishness come out in Lot’s decisions. Lot sees the lush well watered plain of Jordan, described as the ‘garden of the Lord’, and selects that area for himself and his people and moves into the Jordan Valley. The author, perhaps Moses, inserts the information for us that this was before Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by God. We must be careful to avoid this ‘seed of greed’.

13:12

We are told Abram remains in the land of Canaan, in the hill country, and lot dwells in the cities of the plain and ‘pitches’ his tent toward Sodom. This phrase reveals that Lot looks at the wealth and opulence as his ideal, not seeking God’s Will for his life. When we seek wealth and ease as our goals we usually let morality and righteousness slip out of our lives. We must always be on our guard when life becomes too ‘comfortable’. If your life is filled with material wealth and ease, check to make certain you are following Jesus; serving Him and serving others. Find ways to be very generous in giving to those in need. A suggestion: consider your local Food Bank; or perhaps use the LIVE FOREVER flyer and thank you card as a way to help and witness Jesus to the working poor.

13:13

“BUT”, as soon as we see this word it should be a red flag to us, a warning from God. The men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and terrible sinners. In fact, they were so despicable and disgusting in their actions that the Bible spares us the horrible details.

13:14-15

God again speaks directly to Abram, after Lot is separated from him, telling Abram to look, presumably from a high mountain top, north, south, east and west; and all the land he sees will be given by God to him and to his descendants forever. This confirms that the land beyond present Israel is also promised to the Jewish Believers. Why did the Holy Spirit tell us that God spoke to Abram after Lot had departed?

13:16

Abram is a very old man and this promise to make his seed so plentiful that it would be as numerous as the dust of the earth is a certain sign of a promise and a prophecy for the future. If Abram’s descendants could not ever be numbered, then it is a promise that his lineage would continue forever, even though Abram currently had absolutely no children!

13:17-18

Now God commands Abram to walk through the entire land; length and breadth, and God will give it to him. It appears that Abram believes, trusts and obeys God, and moves his camp to the plain of Memre, and builds another altar to the Lord in Hebron. Abram shows by his actions and obedience that He believes God, and worships Him in faith.

Has God given you a promise, or promises for your life? Are you completely obeying God so that God may fulfill His promises to you? Do your actions and worship prove you have trust and faith in God? It is never too late to begin obeying God; remember, Abram was already in his late 70’s or 80’s at this time!

God’s Call to Abram

Review:

The first 11 Chapters of Genesis have given us the History of Creation, mankind, and the fall of mankind into sin, pulling all of creation into a cursed condition. God does not leave mankind in a permanent state of damnation, but gives a promise of a Messiah to save all of mankind. We are given the genealogy and history of Adam and his lineage, following the line of the future promised Messiah. Despite these promises by God, the majority of mankind falls into terrible, horrible, despicable wickedness. Finally, God chooses one man, Noah, his wife and three of his sons, and their wives to be the lone survivors of a catastrophic Flood that God sends to cleanse the earth of all corruption and wickedness. The entire Earth is destroyed from it’s original creation, leaving a much less desirable world, with a fallen nature, but still with the promise of the coming Messiah. God has used divine measures to get the people to begin to re-populate land all around the earth. Now, we are given God’s command to a family from the lineage of Shem, the believing son of Noah.

12:1

NOW, in Haran, the Lord had said to Abram, GO, for yourself (meaning for your own benefit) away from your country, away from your relatives and your father’s house, to the land that I will show you. It seems that immediately after Terah (who name means delay) dies, then God speaks again to Abram. We are given some interesting insight into when God appeared to Abram in Acts 7:2-4. Notice that the God of Glory appeared to Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran (which means parched) and told Abram to leave his country and family and go into a land which God would show him. There is an indication that God is speaking once again to Abram to tell him he is to leave his father’s family, relatives, country, comfort, security, and all the other ties of his homeland, and leave permanently from Ur. Remember, that if the surroundings we live in are corrupt and evil, it is difficult to remain free of the evil influences, especially for our family members.

12:2-3

God is speaking this wonderful great far-reaching Promise to Abram. This magnificent Promise is not only for Abram, but is for all those who live on earth! Not only that, but the indication is that this is an ETERNAL PROMISE down into the future generations, right down into our time! Every time we see one of God’s Promises, we want to carefully examine it to see how it could and will apply to us. God has promised Abram that He will bless him with abundant increase of blessings and favors, making his name famous and distinguished. Abram would be a blessing dispensing good to others. God promises to bless ALL those who bless (meaning do good to and for the Jewish people) and speak well of Abram and confer prosperity and goodness upon Abram and his posterity. This would mean all those down through the ages who bless and do good for the Jewish peoples. Now, pay close attention to the next ‘promise’: to CURSE those who curse Abram, and his posterity, or who use insolent language toward Abram, and his line, the Jews. To treat the Jews with disfavor was to invite God’s wrath and curse. As long as America, as a country, has supported and helped the Jewish people in Israel, we, and our country, have been blessed, despite our wickedness. However, today America is now turning her back on Israel and abandoning her promises to always be a help (blessing) to Israel. Are we now going to receive God’s wrath and curse? This is call for us to pray for our leaders to support Israel. Remember, we as individuals, can still be a blessing to the Jewish peoples. The last promise God makes is to bless all the families of the earth through Abraham. This would directly refer to the Messiah, Jesus.

12:4-6

Abram now obeys God’s command, even though he is 75 years old! What a lesson for us, to obey God, no matter what age we are. It would seem that God is telling us that we are to be obedient servants, willing to obey whatever He requests of us regardless of our age! (5.) Notice that Abram took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot (whose father had died) and all the souls they had obtained in Haran, and all his wealth and assets. This would have been quite a large caravan consisting of all the people, animals and material wealth. (6.) We are given the route he took through Shechem, the plain of Moreh and then are told the Canaanites were in the land. These Canaanite peoples are a problem throughout Jewish history. In Gen. 6:1-4 we learned that there were demon energized and possessed people born of an unholy union between fallen angels and human women. It appears that these demon possessed people are again living on earth. The original ones were all destroyed in the Flood.

12:7

This is the very first mention of an actual appearance of God to man. We call this a Theophany, a pre-incarnate physical appearance of Jesus Christ. Notice that God’s promise to give Abram and his seed, meaning all his descendants, forever, the land of Canaan. This promise was unconditional; Abram had already met the only condition of leaving his homeland to go to the land God commanded him. So we know that God Himself gave the land to the Jewish peoples. Notice we see that Abram built an altar where God had appeared to him; no doubt to worship God and honor and thank Him.

12:8-9

Then we are told that Abram moved from that place to a mountain on the east of Bethel, with Bethel on the west and Hai on the east. Pitching his tent meant that he set up a place to camp. Abram again builds and altar to the Lord and calls upon the name of the Lord. This would indicate that Abram worshiped and followed God in his life. (9.) Exactly where in the land Abram journeys we are not told, only that it was toward the south. With people and animals to feed, Abram is obviously looking for a place to grow crops and pasture the animals. We should assume that he also tries to stay away from the Canaanites.

12:10-13

A famine in the land would mean that it could not sustain Abram and his family, all the people with him and the animals. At this point we are told Abram travels down into Egypt to live there because the famine was grievous. We are not told if Abram consults God as to where to go because of the famine. (11. – 13.) Fear grips Abram as they come near to Egypt and he tells Sarai to say she is his sister rather than his wife; because he fears being killed so the Egyptians can take his beautiful wife. Although Sarai was indeed his half-sister, her position was as his wife, so this was a deception. Remember our definition of FEAR, False Evidence Appearing Real. When we compromise the Truth, our testimony is worthless.

12:14-17

The Egyptians immediately notice that Sarai was a very fair and beautiful woman and tell Pharaoh of this unusually beautiful woman. The Pharaoh has her brought into his palace. We would expect Abram to object, yet it appears he is silent. Probably still in the grip of fear. (16. – 17.) Pharaoh gives generous gifts to Abram for his ‘sister’ whom he brings into his harem. (17.) God sends great plagues upon Pharaoh and his entire household because Sarai, Abrams’s wife, is in his harem.

12:18-20

How Pharaoh found out Sarai was Abram’s wife in unclear. Perhaps she told him before he actually ‘took’ her as his wife. In any case, Pharaoh confronts Abram for their lies and the resulting suffering he and his household has endured because of Abram’s lies. Pharaoh confirms that he had not ‘touched’ Sarai. Pharaoh returns Sarai to Abram and orders him to leave Egypt and yet allows Abram to keep all he has, including all the gifts Pharaoh had given him. How sad that Abram and Sarai lied to everyone because of FEAR; destroying their testimony of the one true God. If they had only told the truth, they might have had the opportunity to lead the Pharaoh, and the Egyptians, back to the one true God. How about us? Have we ever failed to speak the Truth, or kept silent when we should have spoken the Truth? Have you ever told a lie because you feared someone? How about a lie to make things ‘easier’ for yourself? Anything that is deceptive is a lie! We lie because of Fear, or selfish motives.

The Tower of Babel

11:1

It is interesting that we are given the information that the entire world’s population spoke the same “speech” and were of one language. This would seem to indicate that all peoples could communicate easily with one another with the exact same language. Because we have been given such precise information regarding names, ages, genealogies, etc., it would seem quite obvious that everyone could read and write their language.

11:2

When we see the term “it came to pass” this would indicate some time period had elapsed. We are not told who the “they” are just yet, but we will see clues to reveal who these people are. The first is the mention of the land of Shinar, and the fact that they settled and dwelt in that land. In Genesis 10:10 we were told that the leader of the population at this time was Nimrod, the one who was noted as a ‘mighty hunter before the Lord’. The Jewish Bible indicates that Nimrod was a ‘mighty tyrant in the Face of the Lord’. This difference in the meaning would confirm that Nimrod was in rebellion against God, and was bent on leading, or forcing, others to do the same. We still use the term ‘in your face’ meaning in opposition or forcefully. Further, the decision to settle and dwell in one place; building cities, buildings, etc. was in direct violation of God’s command to disperse and populate the entire world.

11:3-4

The ‘they’ who said to one another, seems to indicate there was some sort of governing council that had made decisions that would be implemented upon all the population in that region. They, no doubt under the dictatorship of Nimrod, were intent upon building a great city and a Tower whose top would reach far into the ‘heavens’. This Tower was no doubt used for some sort of worship of the ‘heavens’ or ??. Since all worship of God involved an altar and sacrifices and thanksgiving to God, this Tower seems to be in direct contradiction of what God had ordained. This Tower also became the prototype of all the great ziggurats and pyramids of the world. Note that these monuments have never been used to worship the one True God of the universe.

11:5-6

This term ‘came down’ indicates that God was well aware of what Nimrod and his ‘council’ had been planning and plotting in opposition to God’s command to go and fill all the earth. This rebellion had gone too far, and now God had to intervene divinely in order to halt another fall of mankind into great sin and possibly destroy those who wanted to obey God and go out and populate the earth. (6.) The ‘imagination’ of mankind was not good. The people were all acting as ‘one’ following the rebellious lead of Nimrod. God could not allow these rebellious people to continue, and corrupt the world once again. There was a faithful remnant, among these were Noah and Shem, both of whom were still alive, yet they would be unable to overcome these ‘corrupt’ people as long as they were able to work together doing evil.

11:7

This term, ‘Come, let Us go down..’ clearly indicates God, in His Eternal existence of The Triune God, has decided upon a brilliant solution to the ‘problem’, actually sin, of disobedience. God has stated that He will confound, or confuse and mix up their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.

11:8-9

The result is immediate: Because the people could not communicate with one another, they were unable to cooperate in their evil endeavors; they were also no doubt confused and probably frightened and began to move away from those who spoke differently than they did. How many languages were created at this time we do not know, but certainly the majority of peoples spoke so many different languages, that the building projects all ceased and the cities were left to deteriorate. The original language may have been something like the Hebrew language, which has been reinstated as the National language of Israel; we do not really know. (9.) The name of ‘it’ was called Babel, which means confusion. The ‘it’ term is unclear. It may refer to the Tower, or to the city itself. Yet the important fact is given that from this incident, the peoples began to be ‘scattered’ all over the face of the whole earth. Keep in mind that this would mean our part of the world also.

11:10-11

Suddenly we are again given the history of the generation of Shem! What? We thought we were already given them in Chapter 10. Yet, now we are given additional information regarding one of Shem’s sons, Arpachshad, who was born two years after the Flood. So this then allows us to continue our genealogy and dates and ages of the line from which the Messiah would come. (11.) Shem also had other sons and daughters and also lived another 500 years after the birth of Arpachshad. Note that the term, ‘and he died’, has been omitted, yet we know that this means that Shem was 600 when he died.

11:12-15

We are now given some details about Arpachshad being only 35 when his son Shelah was born, and that Arpachshad had other sons and daughters and lived a total of 438 years.
(14. – 15.) The genealogy is the same as Chapter ten with the additional information that Shelah was 30 when his son Eber was born; and that Shelah also had other sons and daughters and lived to be 433 years. Notice that the number of years these men are living is beginning to drop quite a bit.

11:16-19

Eber also has a son when he is quite young; at age 34, when his son Peleg is born. Remember from Chapter 10 that Peleg meant divided. Eber also has other sons and daughters and lives to be 464. (18. – 19.) Peleg also has a son when he is young, age 30; naming him Reu. Peleg has other sons and daughters and lives to be 239 years. This is a sudden drop in the life span to less than half of the number of years his father lived. After this time, we will no longer see the very long life spans of people. We can only imagine that life on this earth became much less healthy after the Flood. Are there any other factors that you might think would shorten their lives?

11:20-25

Reu is 32 when Serug is born. Reu also lives to be 239 years, and has other sons and daughters. Serug has Nahor when he is 30 years old, then has other sons and daughters and lives a total of 230 years. (24. – 25.) Nahor has a son, Terah, when he is 29; then has other sons and daughters and lives to be 148. Again, we see a drastic drop in the life span of Nahor.

11:26-27

We are given the names of three of Terah’s sons, now focusing on Terah, born after he is 70 years old: Abram, Nahor and Haran. We are also told that these are the generations of Terah; and that Haran had a son named Lot. It is interesting that we are NOT given the names of the children of Nahor at this time. We will see in later Chapters how these names are crucial to Jewish history.

11:28

Terah dies in the land of his birth, which is Ur of the Chaldees. So we are given some very important information regarding the history of the Jewish people. Archaeologist C. Leonard Woolley led an expedition that did extensive archaeological excavations in 1922 through l934. It was discovered that an average middle class person had a home with from ten to twenty rooms and measured forty to fifty two feet; with a lower floor for the servants, and the upper floors for the family. In addition, there was a guest chamber and a lavatory reserved for visitors. (Think ‘casita’ in our current society) They also had a private chapel for each home. A school was found, and what was studied was shown by the clay tablets discovered there. In the days of Abram, the pupils learned reading, writing and arithmetic. They also learned the multiplication and division tables and worked at square and cube root math problems. History and the trades were also taught. A bill of lading of about 2040 BC showed that the commerce of that time was far reaching to other parts of the world. Even the name ABRAHAM was found on excavated clay tablets. Much more information is available to indicate that the society and infrastructure was quite advanced. The false idea that these people were ignorant nomads, or cave people, is certainly far from the truth.

11:29-30

It is interesting that we are given the names of the wives of Abram and Nahor. Abram’s wife was named Sarai. (In future chapters we will be given the information that she was Abram’s half-sister, born of a different mother than Abram) Nahor’s wife was Milcah, and she was the daughter of Haran; this would make her Nahor’s niece since Haran was his brother. Notice that we are now told that Haran was also the father of Milcah and Iscah. (30.) For a woman, to be barren was a terrible disgrace and a shame. Why?

11:31-32

We are told Terah made the decision to take Abram, his son, Lot, his grandson, and Sarai, his daughter-in-law (keep in mind she is also his daughter) and move the entire family from Ur into the land of Canaan. But (remember we pay attention when we see a but) they only went as far as Haran, and then settled there. So why did Terah decide to move from Ur to Canaan? The land in Ur was fertile and rich and the society was well developed. He obviously had family and friends around, so what prompted him to move? Could it have been that God had first told Terah to take his family and move to Canaan, or had Abram been told by God to move, and Abram wanted to honor his father by telling him what God had commanded? Why stop in Haran? Any ideas? (32.) Terah lived to be 205 years old and then dies in Haran.

This chapter covers a great deal of history, with important details regarding people, clans, language, and exactly how new languages were formed (by the divine intervention of God). We also see what happens when ‘world dictators’, Nimrod, in this chapter, try to thwart God’s eternal plans. This society was quite advanced; people were educated, were skilled in science, architecture, and technology. Even their cities were carefully planned and had advanced infrastructure. As archeologist excavate these areas they are continually shocked to learn how advanced these societies were. Yet all of these physical, earthly ‘advances’ do nothing to help us, or them, unless we align our spiritual souls and spirits with God.

A Genealogy of Nations

10:1

Immediately we are told that we will be given the generations, or genealogy of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham and Japheth. This notation reinforces that all mankind came from Noah and his three sons. Any false ideas that somehow some other peoples survived the Flood are clearly denied by this statement. All this was after the Flood. Keep in mind that the only eyewitness account of the Flood is given in Genesis. All other accounts are a combination of myths and legends.

10:2-3

As we read these genealogy records, it is easy to become confused as to whom refers to whom. Seeing a table of the Nations that come from these genealogy listings is often the easiest way to tell what genealogy lines established which countries, etc. Japheth, Gomer, seem to be the ancestors of the Greeks and some European countries. Ashkenaz has been associated with the German Jews, as well as a region of Armenia once know as Sakasene. Togarmah was probably ancestor of the Armenians as well as Germany. Both Magog and Tubal refer to the areas we know as Russia. Meshech is associated with Muskovi and Moscow.

10:4-5

Elishah known as Hellas, was another name for Greece. Tarshish was a name for sea-faring people who settled in North Africa and Spain. Kittam is another name of Cyprus or Macedonia. The Islands and coast lands were populated by these “Europeans”. The term ‘after his tongue’ probably meant that it was written after the dispersion at Babel, when ‘new’ languages suddenly were in use. Remember, we are often given the genealogy and then in a subsequent chapter given some of the details of why something happened, such as the peoples being dispersed to different areas, or lands.

10:6-8

Ham, Cush, and Mizraim. Cush referred to Ethiopia, although some stayed in Arabia. Mizraim refers to Egypt; Mizraim is the same as Menes, Egypt’s first king. Phut refers to Libya, and Canaan is the progenitor of the Canaanites. Sabtech, also Seba migrated into the Sudan. Dedan and Sheba were well known Arabians in the days of Abraham. Nimrod, the son of Cush, became known as the mighty one, a great emperor. His name means “let us rebel!” It makes us wonder why would Cush give his son a name that means let us rebel?

10:9-11

Nimrod built a kingdom bent on rebelling against God. Mighty hunter connotes a man who was a great hunter yet mighty in wickedness. Some view him as a type of the antichrist. He put himself before the Lord. He establishes cities that are known for their opposition to God and His chosen people. All this despite his knowledge of what happened to people who opposed God and chose evil. Note infamous cities like Babel and Nineveh, (named for Nimrod) and the land of Shinar.

10:12-17

This ‘great city’ was actually a large metropolitan area, much like we see in Southern California, where one city runs into another. Sidon was the name of the chief city of the Phoenicians, and still exits today. Heth was the ancestor of the Hittites, who ruled a great empire in Asia Minor for 800 years. These names have changed over the centuries and may refer to China. When we read these names of all the ‘something ites’, we know none of these peoples are considered godly. Eventually many of them become the enemies of the chosen people of God. More about Nimrod and what took place in Chapter 11.

10:18

The statement ‘spread abroad’ indicating the descendants of Canaan, including the Mongol peoples, spread across the Bering Strait into North and South America, becoming what we refer to as the American Indians.

10:19-20

These Canaanite families were also dispersed and their borders are very similar to the borders of the lands given by God to Abraham and the Chosen People of God. The summary lets us know that all these peoples and nations are decedents of Ham.

10:21

Now we are given the lineage of Shem. Keep in mind that these people were not as numerous as Ham, yet this is the Messianic line. The term “Hebrew” comes from Eber. This also clarifies that Japheth was the eldest son of Noah, with Ham being the youngest son.

10:22-24

Elam, one of the sons of Shem, is the ancestor of the Elamites, who later merged with the Medes to form the Medo-Persian empire. Asshur was the forerunner of the Assyrians, although the settlement on the Tigris river was later taken over by Nimrod in Genesis 10:11. Aram is the father of the Aramaeans or Syrians. The Aramaic language was almost a world language in the ancient world. Even some portions of the Old Testament were first written in Aramaic. (23. -24.) Uz gave his name to Job’s homeland. Little is known of these other sons.

10:25

The name Peleg means “division”. There was some sort of a great event that took place that divided the known world. This “division” probably had two meanings: The first was the division of the language and peoples as indicated by the language divisions caused by God to force the people to migrate all over the earth to fulfill His command to multiply and fill the earth. (More about this in Chapter 11). The second may have been some large earthquake or something else that caused the land to be cut off from the continents comprising Alaska to the south American continent. A rise in the ocean levels or some other event? We just don’t know. Remember, also, that the continent, Australia, was also isolated from the rest of the world by the oceans. Keep in mind that all these peoples all came from Noah’s lineage.

10:26-31

We are given 13 sons of Joktan, yet non of Peleg’s sons are listed. It could be that Peleg, and his lineage, had moved away from where Shem was living. Again, remember the reference to the division. (30. -31.) All of these are the sons of Shem, meaning Shem’s lineage. Notice the reference to families, tongues, lands and their nations.

10:32

The summary indicated that all these people are of the families of the sons of Noah, listing their generation and the nations. Note the additional reference of the nations being divided in the earth, after the Flood. Since Shem appears to be the one compiling this record for the Table of Nations, we are told that there was a division of the people, and most probably, the continents, at this time. It is interesting to notice that there are a total of 70 Nations listed by Shem. Remember something else that is crucially important: All these peoples are of the same race: The Human Race. There are no ‘races’! The idea of different races was an evolutionary idea. Even today, most people are brainwashed to believe that there are different races. DNA testing shows that there is very little, less than 2%, difference between people of different colors, facial features, etc. The amount of melatonin in the skin determines the color of one’s skin, not a “race”. This false teaching of different ‘races’ has caused unnecessary suffering for all peoples. Where one’s ancestors lived determines, to a great extent, the color of one’s skin. The more sun people are exposed to, the more melatonin the body produces to protect the skin from sun damage. So we see peoples closer to the equator with darker skin, and those further away with lighter skin. Those who live outdoors a lot, have darker skin, and those who stay out of the sun, lighter skin tones.

A New Beginning

9:1

This verse reveals God blessing Noah and his sons, commanding them once again to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. This is a repeat of the original command given to Adam and Eve. Remember, without God’s blessings and man’s obedience, it is impossible to be successful and please God.

9:2

Something entirely new is given here by God. The animals were now to fear and dread man! Yet, man is to maintain dominion over all animals. This means mankind has a responsibility, before God, to properly care for the animal kingdom. This does not mean we try to preserve every animal life, but that we are good stewards over the animal kingdom. We must consider the consequences of managing the earth’s resources and the impact on animal life. We must remember that our primary mandate is to fill the earth with humans. Thus human life always takes precedence over animal life. Yet, we cannot allow animal abuse or cruelty anymore than we can allow human abuse or cruelty. Putting animals before men is not what God intended.

9:3-4

This gives us the answer as to why animals would need to fear and dread humans. Mankind was now given the mandate that every living thing, in addition to the vegetation, was to be food for mankind. In addition, some of the animals also, would now be meat eaters. Therefore, God put a fear of man on the animals, otherwise animals might overpower man and mankind could be exterminated. (4.) Mankind could eat everything except the blood of animals. Why? Because God tells man that the very life of all living things is contained in the blood. Our lifeblood is the basis of our life and its functioning. Blood carries nutrients and oxygen to our organs and allows us to function and live.

9:5-6

Now God mandates, or commands, that anyone who takes the lifeblood of another human being, killing the person, shall be required to die by the hand of man. This mandate for the death penalty for murder is very clear. Prior to this time, God had retained the authority to require the death of another human. In addition, any animal that causes a human’s death shall also be put to death by man. Since God uses the term ‘reckoning’ this would mean that some sort of social civil government would be established to insure the truth of the situation would be determined before the accused murderer would be put to death. This would later be termed a magisterial power, and the power of the sword. It is very important to note that the first governmental authority over another man’s life is given by God, not to just to punish them, but to require that they be put to death! Some of us may cringe at this, yet we must understand that God says to allow a murderer to continue to live is to pollute the land. See Numbers 35:30-34. God says that to allow a murderer to go on living, after he has been convicted by two witnesses, its to pollute and defile the land in which we live. The shed blood of innocent people pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land except the blood of him who did the murder. Mankind is made and created in the image and likeness of God, and God greatly values all humans. God says that He lives in the midst of the land that we live in. Jesus Himself said that He came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. Jesus gave His blood for the atonement of all mankind. At no time did Jesus ever state that murderers were not to be executed. So, here in America, have we polluted our land by allowing convicted murderers to continue to live? According to God, we have.

9:7

God repeats again the primary mandate that they are to be fruitful and multiply and to fill the Earth abundantly. Yet those who are anti-God scream and yell that there are too many people. Really? Look around us, there is plenty of vacant and empty land. There are large vast regions of land that are uninhabited, yet could easily be farmed and used for human habitation. Remember, God wants more people in His image and likeness. He welcomes more people to be born and become His Children to enjoy Heaven forever. Yet, who doesn’t want people in Gods image and likeness? Who hates humans and wants to destroy all mankind? The evil one, Satan.

9:8-11

It is marvelous that the Holy Spirit actually gives us God’s very Words for the Covenant to Noah and future generations; that’s us! God’s pledge and promise is to all living creatures: Never again will all living things be destroyed by a flood, neither will the Earth be destroyed by a flood. This Covenant is known as the ‘Noahic Covenant’. Despite the fact that they would sin, and we also sin, this Covenant was unconditional; they and we, do nothing to earn it. There are no conditions to it’s being fulfilled.

9:12-13

God graciously and lovingly gives a token of His solemn promise to Noah, future generations and every living creature: God sets His bow, which is a Rainbow, in the clouds and sky for all to clearly see and enjoy. What a powerful reminder that God makes and keeps His promises to us.

9:14-17

God assures Noah, and future generations, that when He brings clouds over the earth, and the rainbow is seen, He remembers and keeps His solemn pledge between Himself and mankind. That never, ever, would there be a flood to destroy all men, animals and the world. God continues to assure them that He is giving them an everlasting covenant that cannot and will not ever be broken. God tells Noah personally that the rainbow is God’s sign of his promise to Mankind and all flesh upon the Earth. This was to give assurance to people when any kind of heavy rainfall came, that a worldwide flood was NOT happening. The rainbow has always been a reminder to us that God always keeps His promises to us. We use the ‘rainbow’ as the background for our Evangelical Pamphlet, LIVE FOREVER, in sharing the Good News of Eternal Salvation through Jesus Christ.

9:18-19

We are reminded of the names of Noah’s three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. We are also told that Ham is the father of Canaan. All the Earth is to be populated by these men. This is quite possible considering that 4,000 + years have passed and that they lived long lives.

9:20

Noah takes up a profession as a Husbandman, and plants a vineyard. Husbandman could mean a man of the ground, a man of cattle, a man of words, a man of war, a man of blood. The Bible gives us all these meanings. We do know that since Noah planted a vineyard and had the clean animals, he was a farmer and cattleman.

9:21

Oh, oh! This is the first failing we see of Noah. When he became drunk, he evidently fell asleep without covering himself. Keep in mind that he is in his tent, not just out in the open. Remember, sinful men are destroyed, yet we all have hearts that are not perfect, and can and do chose sin.

9:22

Now Ham willfully looks at his naked father. Certainly a sign of disrespect. When Ham realized his father was naked, he made a sinful choice to ‘look upon him’. He could have just immediately looked away, and then graciously found a way to cover him, or secure the tent flap, or? Some scholars believe there was some sort of sexual sin involved in the son looking at the fathers nakedness. To make matters worse, he tells his brothers about Noah’s being drunk and naked, thereby dishonoring his father by his lack of respect and discernment. These actions denote a strong hint of rebellion in the heart of Ham. Why else would he do something to harm his father’s reputation and honor? Remember, by dishonoring his father, Ham also dishonored God. Today, those who do not honor their father, also dishonor God.

9:23

Shem and Japheth immediately take a garment, probably some kind of a blanket, and hold it on their shoulders and go backward into the tent, keeping the backs of their heads toward their father, and cover their father’s nakedness, without seeing him naked. They honor their father by not looking at him, and by covering him so no one else can look at him and humiliate him. Their immediate response is to protect and honor their father. How we respond to someone else’s failure speaks a great deal about our own integrity, honesty, kindness, love and respect of others. We should never reveal another person’s sin unless it is to prevent harm to another person, and then only to the proper authorities.

9:24

When Noah woke up he somehow knew that his son had dishonored and disrespected him by looking at him and revealing his nakedness to his other sons. (25.) Noah curses Canaan, Ham’s son, with a prophecy, stating that his grandson would be a servant of servants to his kinsman. Why would Noah curse his grandson, when he had nothing to do with his father’s sin? The father wants his son to be successful and receive God’s blessings; now, however, because of Ham’s sinful actions, he has caused his own son to be cursed. Any other ideas? Perhaps Noah saw the bent of Ham and realized by divine inspiration that he would be leading his son, Canaan, into similar disrespectful and ungodly ways. The Canaanites in later history become wicked and immoral people. God in later history eventually orders them to be driven from the land.

9:26

Noah now gives a prophetic blessing to Shem, identifying Shem as a believer, by calling God, the God OF Shem! He further prophecies that Shem will be blessed by the Lord my God. It would be from the line of Shem that the promised Redeemer would come. The last part of the prophesy states that Canaan shall be his servant, indicating the lineage was to serve Shem’s lineage.

9:27

Noah’s prophetic blessing to Japheth indicate that he would be enlarged and spread to other lands, and possibly be made fruitful, wise and wealthy. Dwelling in the tents of Shem indicates that their respective kinsmen would live together in peace. Again, Canaan’s lineage was to also be the servant of Japheth’s lineage. These prophetic blessings on each of Noah’s sons, gives a future bent of those peoples. Japheth’s line of Greeks, Romans, Aryans, and Europeans have supplied the philosophers and scientists of mankind. Whereas Ham’s line was dominated by physical attributes. Shem’s line was to continue the spiritual concerns of following the One True God. These three attributes emphasize the tripartite nature of man (Body, Mind and Spiritual). Even today, we see nations of peoples who emphasize these different areas of man.

9:28-29

We are again given the important information of how long Noah lived after the flood and the exact number of years of his entire life, 950 years. The Holy Spirit has carefully preserved the exact age of all the line of the seed of the Messiah so that we can know with certainty how much time has been involved. Why? Because God knew evolutionists would try to discredit the creation of mankind, the world and the universe by God. We are given the Truth and can know by the evidence we see, that God is our Creator. The last phrase of this chapter, ‘And he died’, is another reminder that all of us will die someday.

We should all be living our lives in ways that honor God by doing what is best for others, in the view of Eternity. All of us leave the Earth the same way, are you prepared?`

The Flood – Destroying Earth

8:1

The Lord God remembers Noah and all that are with him in the ark. God causes a wind to begin blowing over the earth and causes the waters to assuage and sink downward. Before the Flood, all the earth was of a uniform temperature, creating ideal growing and living conditions. Plus the great canopy prevented harmful rays from aging humans, animals and plants. In addition, the atmospheric pressure was probably much higher and more oxygenated. With the earth covered with plant life, large amounts of oxygen were constantly being produced. We know that increased oxygen enables us to breathe easier and be more efficient in our body functions, healing, etc. These conditions were now all destroyed. The wind would be created as the temperatures began to change and the shoreless ocean would allow significant wind movements. As the winds increased it would add to the size and movement of the waves. We know that waves increase in size as soon as winds begins to move over the surface of the water. The assuaging, would mean that the waters would begin to settle down in the subterranean reservoirs that were now emptied of their fresh water storage chambers. These areas would now begin to form the oceans we now see on our earth. Keep in mind that these oceans were free of salt, and were all fresh water oceans. Psalm 104:6-9 “You covered the earth with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. At Your rebuke the water fled; at the voice of Your thunder they hastened away, The mountains rose up, the valleys sank down to the place which You appointed for them. You have set a boundary for the waters which they may not pass over, that they turn not again to deluge the earth.” The additional verses of Psalm 104 goes on to state how God created springs in the valleys to water plants and provide drink to all the animals, and how God watered all the earth with rainfall to satisfy the plants and animals and causes vegetation to grow for the benefit of man and beast.

8:2-3

All the subterranean reservoirs were now emptied of their water and the canopy of water above the earth ceased to pour water on earth. Even the conditions to cause rain were held back by God so that the waters could continue to sink down and collect in the large sunken reservoirs now become oceans. We are told again that at the end of the 150 days the waters stopped pouring forth, and began to recede. We can still see evidence today of the subsidence and drainage of the waters receding from covering the entire earth.

8:4

We are given the exact month and day that the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. The Seventh month on the 17th day was an important prophetic ‘new beginning’ for Noah, his family, the animals and all the Earth. So why did the Holy Spirit go into such detail to tell us the exact date and month that the ark came to rest? Remember, God never gives any information, especially dates and numbers, unless there is some important significance to them. A little research tells us that in Exodus 12:2, God tells Israel: “This month (Nisan) shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.” This was to be the month the first Passover was celebrated. This would be the “new beginning” for Israel as a Nation. We must understand that in Judaism there were two calendars, one was the Civil or government calendar, the other was the Religious calendar. Why the difference? One referred to Judaism, the other, to the Gentile world at large. This prophetic “new beginning” in Genesis, was for all mankind. Then in the new Testament we are told that Jesus was crucified on the 14th day of Nisan (the Seventh month of the civil calendar) Jesus was in the grave three days, and rose from the dead on the 17th of Nisan! This marked our “new beginning” in Christ Jesus! So we now know and understand that Noah’s “new beginning” was the prophetic anniversary – in anticipation- of our new beginning in our Messiah and Savior, Jesus!

8:5

Remember, the Earth is still covered with water; the ark was ‘grounded’ on the mountains, yet because of it’s size and weight, it no longer floated around, yet was still in water. It wasn’t until the first day of the tenth month that the very tops of the mountains could be seen.

8:6-7

The term “and it came to pass” gives us a hint of something being fulfilled, something God had planned. After another forty days, then Noah opened the window of the ark, and sent out a raven. (The raven is an unclean bird) Again, why are we told it was another forty days after the resting of the ark on Mr. Ararat? Remember, in the new Testament we are told Jesus spent forty days in the desert fasting and preparing for His mission. Then He spends another forty days after His resurrection from the dead, teaching believers and showing himself to his followers. We are also told the raven flies to and fro until the waters were dried up from the land. The raven is a meat eater and is a strong flyer and could fly for long periods of time without tiring.

8:8-9

Moses now sends out a dove to see if the waters had decreased from the surface of the land. The dove is not a long distance strong flyer, and would need a safe place to land. In addition, the dove needed dry land and vegetation in order to survive. (The dove is classified as a clean bird) Remember, everything was so saturated there was no solid ground. However, we are told there was no place for the dove to safely land, so she returns to Noah and he brings her back into the safety of the ark.

8:10-11

Again we are told Noah waits another seven days, then sends the dove out again to see if she finds any dry land or vegetation. Again, we need to remember the importance of the sevens in God’s plans. Noah was probably waiting another week (seven days) at God’s direction. Keep in mind that the Seventh day was a holy day, according to God’s original creation week. Since Seven often denotes God’s plan for completion and/or perfection, this would also indicate the need to wait for God’s perfect timing. This time the dove returns in the evening with an olive leaf in her mouth. This new leaf would mean that an olive branch had survived the flood, was rooted, and sprouted a leaf. The olive tree is extremely hardy and can grow on barren rocky slopes. Experiments have shown that seeds and a wide variety of plants can grow even after many months of submergence in salt water. But remember that the waters of the earth were not yet salty right after the Flood. So this would mean that all kinds of plants and seeds could begin growing as soon as enough soil and sunlight were available. We know how quickly greenery appears in our desert after a rainfall.

8:12

Sometimes we want to jump ahead of God’s perfect timing. So notice that Noah waits another seven days before sending the dove out again. This time she does not return to the ark. I suspect they were very anxious to get out of the ark and check things out, yet they waited for God’s direction.

8:13

Now we see the phrase “it came to pass” again indicating the was the pre-planned timing of God. We are also given the exact year, month and day that Noah removes the covering of the ark and looks out at the earth and sees the face of the ground is dry. This is a hint that only the surface was dry. There was probably still thick mud and sediment under that thin dry crust that was unsafe to walk on! So notice that Noah does not yet leave the ark.

8:14

So here they all are still sitting in the ark waiting, waiting, waiting. For what? God’s perfect timing! So they remain another month and 27 days before the earth is completely dried and safe to walk on.

8:15-17

Now we are given God’s Words, speaking to Noah telling him to go forth from the ark with his wife, sons and their wives. He also tells him to bring out all the animals, birds and every living thing so that they may breed abundantly and be fruitful and multiply upon the earth. We remember that this was God’s command in the beginning, to multiply and fill the earth. So God had Noah wait until it was safe for both humans and animals to walk on the dried earth. That would probably also have given the earth time to grow vegetation as food for Noah and the animals and birds, which was necessary for their survival. God knew that to exit the ark too soon would have been disastrous! How many times do we fail to wait for God’s perfect guidance and direction; not waiting for his perfect timing, and then things turn out badly? We cry “Why did this happen, how could You let this happen to me, Lord?” Who is truly at fault, God or us? We need to prayerfully consider God’s guidance, direction, wisdom and His perfect timing in everything we do and plan. Do we ask God for His direction, His wisdom, His guidance and timing, or just plunge into things ourselves?.

8:18

Noah obeyed God again, just as He had commanded. No wonder God chose Noah to be His instrument to be used in saving both mankind and the animal kingdom. Noah always obeyed God. What a great example he is to us. No questions, complaints, arguing, or hesitation. Just faithful obedience to God’s every command. Notice that even though Noah obeyed, it was not easy, in fact it was very difficult, hard and time consuming. Yet the end result was the saving of mankind and the animal kingdom. All our land animals today had to come from these animals, chosen by God, to be on the ark.

8:19

All the animals all exit the ark and remain in their family groups. So even the animals somehow knew to obey God’s command. If we are smarter than animals, and we are, how much more should we obey God?

8:20

Noah does something extraordinary; he builds an altar then sacrifices one of every clean animal and bird on the altar as an offering to God. Noah and his family immediately gave thanks to God in a sacrificial way. Since there were only seven pairs of each of the clean animals and birds, this would have been a great act of Trust in God on Noah’s part. Remember, Noah and his family needed these clean animals in order to begin life anew on earth. We would probably expect them to immediately begin to assess their surroundings and provide for food and shelter for themselves and their animals. The animals would be their source of both food and clothing. Yet, they thank God first by sacrificing one of each of the animals they needed to survive! When God grants us his Mercy and Grace for some situation, are we immediately thankful and offer a tangible act of thanksgiving, or do we just say “Thank God!” Really thanking God for His blessings, should mean a change of heart and actions. How are we doing in this area of true thanksgiving to God?

8:21-22

We are told that God smelled a sweet pleasant scent of their act of worship in the burnt offerings, He said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man…” Even though we are told the imagination of our hearts is evil and wicked from our youth, God promises ecological stability until the end of history. This regularity in our seasons is the basis for science. God also has mercy on us and even though our hearts imagine and think evil thoughts, God still keeps His promises to us. Even though we act unfaithfully, God is ALWAYS FAITHFUL!

The Days of Noah – The Flood

7:1

The Lord God again speaks directly to Noah, telling him when he and his family are to enter the ark. God also confirms that He sees Noah righteous before Him. Remember, all that Noah has been doing; building this gigantic ‘Ark’ and stocking all types and kinds of foods, water and provisions, must have been an enormous undertaking, and all based on Noah believing and obeying God even though he saw nothing to prove this thing called a ‘flood’ would ever even come about. Note that the Hebrew word for flood is ‘Mabbul’, and is used only to describe this worldwide cataclysmic flood.

7:2

Notice that God only gives the specific instructions after seeing Noah’s obedience and faith. Often we are only given general words of wisdom and/or commandments from God, then, as we step out in faith and begin obeying God, then He gives us more specific instructions and guidelines to obey. God also reveals that He wants Noah to take ‘sevens’ meaning seven pairs of each of the ‘clean’ animals on board the ark. How would Noah know which ones were clean and not clean? Remember, God had given ceremonial distinctions about which animals were to be sacrificed. Although we are not given this information in Genesis, it is revealed elsewhere in the bible.

7:3

The details continue to be revealed by God to Noah. Even birds are to be brought into the ark; again the clean by ‘sevens’. Why? Genetically, multiple pairs would allow for a greater variety of reproduction, and much more quickly. Domesticated animals would also have been a kind of ‘fellowship’ for man, just as pets give a form of ‘fellowship’ to humans today. (In addition, some of these answers will be provided in following chapters.) God tells Noah it is to keep their ‘seed’ alive on the earth. Anything NOT brought on the ark would have become extinct. Keep in mind Noah does not know how deep this flood will be, nor how long it will last, nor how violent the waves will be.

7:4

Notice the importance of the ‘seven’. God warns Noah that in exactly seven days He will cause it to rain for forty continuous days and nights. Noah is again told ALL living entities and substance WILL die. Note that this refers to the animal life AND the plants. We know that plants cannot continue to grow while covered with water for long periods of time. However, the seeds of the plants probably did float together in large masses during the flood. This is the first of future prophecies giving this seven day period. It would seem plausible to assume that mankind had already been using the seven days as the time frame for a week. In the future, we also will see seven months, sometimes seven years, sometimes 70 years; all in multiples of seven. Why do you think God used sevens for His time frames?

7:5-6

Notice that Noah obeyed EVERYTHING God told him to do, not just what he understood, or felt ‘comfortable’ doing. We are given the additional information that Noah was six hundred years old when the flood water came upon earth. The reason God gives us Noah’s age is to help us understand and determine that times and dates are very important in God’s planning. God is also giving us information to counter the lies of evolution, and others who deny the Truth of Creation, the Flood and the True history of mankind.

7:7-9

We are given confirmation of exactly who enters the ark, so there can be no dispute in the far future times, meaning our times. We are also reminded that all the animals come in pairs of male and female, probably young, healthy animals and birds, so they could reproduce healthy offspring.

7:10

Prophecy fulfilled! God’s Word is always absolutely correct and prophecies always fulfilled. We realize that Noah obeyed God for a century before the actual event that God foretold was to take place. It must have been very difficult and discouraging to continually plan for an event that Noah could have no idea how or when it would be fulfilled. Do we, today, give up too soon in trusting God?

7:11

We are now given the exact year, month and day that the flood begins. The six hundredth year of Noah’s life, the second month, the 17th day of the month. This is an important clue that people probably kept tract of time in weeks, months and years. At the same time we are told ALL the fountain of the great deep were broken up AND the windows of heaven were opened. Was there an earthquake or some other event God used to suddenly cause all the underground water to begin pouring out on the earth? We are not given the specific details, but we can surmise this is what probably happened. The ‘windows of heaven being opened’ or ‘floodgates’; sounds like the ‘waters above the firmament’ suddenly began pouring down. This would be more than just a normal heavy rain, it literally POURED down in a great torrent on the earth.

7:12-13

Meteorological conditions today make it absolutely impossible for a worldwide rainfall to continue for forty days and nights. So this again would be a clue that the ‘waters above the earth’ were used to bring this continuous forty day and night ‘flood from the heavens’. The vapor canopy or frozen water canopy that encircled the earth was part of the original ‘perfect creation’ for our planet. This perfect atmospheric condition was probably the reason man, animals and plants lived such a long time. God created everything absolutely perfect for us. The destruction of all living beings (except Noah and his family and the male and female of the animal kingdom) meant the destruction of the perfect physical world of earth. (13.) God repeats again the names of Noah, and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, and their wives, to make certain we in the future will always remember and know exactly who was saved in the ark, and why.

7:14-16

Every beast, domesticated animals, creeping things and fowl and birds of every kind and sort went in unto Noah, into the ark. The language seems to indicate that the animals went to Noah, he apparently did not have to go out and ‘select’ them, or round them up. These animals, birds, etc. were obviously directed by God in some way to go to Noah and go into their respective rooms. Because of the number of animals and the length of time they were on the ark, it may have been that they all, or most of them, went into some state of hibernation. Perhaps after Noah fed them all. How God ‘closed the door and shut them in’ is a mystery. Perhaps it was to keep out any animals or persons God did not intend to be saved. Perhaps it is a way of securing Noah, his family and all the animals to protect them from the coming deluge which was probably terrifying. In any case, we know God closed them in, giving them His protection.

7:17

The ark was thirty cubits high, and when loaded, probably had a draft of almost fifteen cubits. As soon as the water rose to a level of fifteen cubits above the platform on which it had been constructed, it would have begun to float.

7:18

The word ‘prevailed’ in the Hebrew means ‘were overwhelmingly mighty’. These powerful waves and water movements were of such magnitude that the ark was probably tossed about quite it bit. The animals probably were in a semi-hibernation state, or were too frightened to move. Many animals just seem to ‘freeze’ when they are in a state of fear. Noah and his family probably just clung to one another and prayed! Some scholars believe that God steered the ark away from the zones of the most serious hydrodynamic violence. In any case, this was not a pleasant ocean cruise!

7:19

The waters are continuing to prevail over the entire earth. The eruptions of the ‘fountains’ of the great deep would been magma and other materials being extruded from the earth’s mantle. The termed prevailed exceedingly, assures us that the entire earth was completely covered. We are told ‘ALL the high hills under the heavens, were covered’! This is no small flood! There were tsunamis, vortices, turbidity flows, cyclic erosion and deposition, and other types and kinds of geomorphologic activity taking place. The tremendous volcanic underwater explosions no doubt shook the earth repeatedly. We know that some of the highest mountain ranges, our Rocky Mountains and other mountain ranges throughout the world, were all formed by violent volcanic eruptions. These mountain ranges are continuing to rise! This means that volcanic conditions are still in effect. Mt. St. Helens proved just how violent these eruptions can be. We see continuous erupting of Mauna Kea in Hawaii. The magma continues to pour out day and night, flowing to the ocean and actually adding a great deal of ‘land’ to the island of Hawaii! In II Peter 3:6-7 we are told: “Through which the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished (or was destroyed), But by the same Word the present heavens and earth have been stored up and reserved for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly people.” So we know that the perfect world of Noah’s day was destroyed, and we now live in a very imperfect world; filled with ungodly people, which will eventually be destroyed by fire. What type of fire? Other scriptures say the earth will ‘dissolve’, or ‘melt away’. See II Peter 3:11-12. The sky shall ‘roll up like a scroll and vanish’ Revelation 6:14. Also read Isaiah 34: 3-5. This would be an accurate description of a nuclear type destruction during the coming Judgment of God at the end times.

7:20-23

Now we are told that all the mountains were covered by at least 15 cubits (this is approximately 23+ feet) of water. This will eliminate any idea that maybe some survived by going up on a very high mountain. (21. – 23.) All flesh died that moved upon the earth. This means, fowl, birds, beasts, domestic animals, every creeping thing, and all men; everything that had the breath of life in it, all died. All living substance, this means all the plants and plant life of every kind, all died. Only Noah, and those on the ark with him, remained alive, everything else died. Notice the emphasis on all died. Reminds us of the emphasis in Chapter 5: …and he died. Reminding us that we all will someday die.

7:24

The water prevailed mightily upon the earth 150 days. This would be five months of unbelievable violent upheaval. Remember how quickly Mt. St. Helens exploded and caused a tremendous amount of damage and destruction. Can you imagine five months of cataclysmic type earth movement, volcanic action, water erosion, crashing waves, and convulsive activity beneath the surface of the waters? It would have been thousands of times worse than Mt. St. Helens! Remember that II Peter tells us: “the earth that then was, was destroyed!”

Challenge: This is an important Truth to remember, “destroyed” in this sense means the earth, as it existed, no longer existed with the same geography, or climate, or functioned in the same manner. The perfect world God created was so badly damaged, or ‘destroyed’, that it no longer existed. We are told, in the New Testament, that the earth will again be “destroyed” by fire. For more information and understanding on this, be prepared to do your own research and study.

The Days of Noah

6:1-2

The term, ‘sons of God’ has always referred to God’s created angels. It would appear that somehow these ‘fallen angels’ had chosen, or taken, the ‘daughters of men’ as wives. It sounds like the girls had no choice. This is an area that is filled with speculation as to the exact meaning and what transpired in the ancient world.

6:3

Now God prophesies that His Spirit will not forever dwell and strive with man, and that man’s days are limited to 120 years. This situation of the sons of God taking daughters of men and causing genetically deviate beings, has somehow caused increased evil in the world. It also appears that God is foretelling that there is only 120 years left before He will remove His Spirit from mankind. Some commentators believe that God is stating that the lifetime of men will be shortened to 120 years. Yet, long after this statement, men continue to live long lives, far beyond the 120 years.

6:4

There were giants, or mighty ones, also known as Nephilim (meaning “the fallen ones”) presumably referring to the fallen angels. ‘Nephal’; means to fall, to be cast down, to fall away, to desert. Certainly, the fallen angels were ‘cast down’, having chosen to fall away and desert their calling to serve God. Interestingly the term geneges (Giants) in the Greek is the same work for Titans. The Titans were creatures emerging from the Greek mythology of interbreeding of the Greek gods with human beings. Our English word for genes and genetics come from the same root word. Was this Greek mythology somehow related to what happened in Genesis, chapter 6? Note what Jude 6 and 7 reveals to us: “And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.” There are a number of references to these strange giants, or deviate ones, in the Bible. Remember David slew a ‘giant’ called Goliath, who was over 10 foot tall. When the Israelites were spying out the land they came upon giants, also identified as Nephilim. In comparison, the Israelite men were as ‘grasshoppers’. See Numbers 13:28, 32, 33. We see references to these Nephilim giants again in 2 Samuel 21:16-22. These giants are living among the Philistines and are very large, strong, vicious men. Some have six fingers and six toes on each hand and foot. This portion of scripture tells us four of these Nephilim were killed by David and his men. Again, see 2 Chronicles 20:4-8, referencing the giants and their great stature, some of whom had 24 fingers and toes. Search out Deut. 2, Joshua 12, 13, 15, 17 and 18. There is yet another clue in 2 Peter 2; 4,5: “For God did not spare the angels who sinned;.. He put them in gloomy dungeons lower than Sheol (Hell), or Tartarus, to be held for judgment. God did not spare the ancient world .. He preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, and brought the Flood upon a world of ungodly people.” It is interesting that the Greek Mythology states that the Titans were part human and part celestial. They rebelled against their ‘father’. After a long battle they were defeated by Zeus and condemned into Tartarus. The ancient legends from Persia, Assyria, Greece, Egypt, India, Incas, Mayan, Bolivia, South Sea Islands and American Indians all talk of a time when there were giants in their land, who were eventually destroyed by a great flood.

Now, the really strange thing is the prophecy given to Daniel, the Prophet in Daniel 2:43 “ And as you saw iron mixed with miry and earthen clay, so they shall mingle themselves in the seed of men (in marriage bonds) but they will not hold together…” Who is this ‘they’ spoken of in this prophecy? This prophecy is still future to us! Now, read the warning given by Jesus in Matthew 24: 36-39 “… As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man…” So exactly what kind of ‘deviate beings’ will emerge in the last days? You are encouraged to do your own research.

6:5

God sees, and knows, that only evil is being continually done on earth. Note that the evil begins in the heart of man; in the imagination of one’s mind, heart and thoughts. All evil begins in our heart with our thought process. The Bible tells us that the heart is the center of our thought process. This means that out of the heart comes good thoughts or evil thoughts. Note that we respond to God and praise God with our hearts; Psalm 7:9 “Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just; for the righteous God tests the hearts and minds.” Psalm 9:1 “ I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart..” Psalm 10:17 “O Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will prepare their heart;..” Psalm 13:5 “But I have trusted in Your mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.” Psalm 14:1 “The fool has said in his heart, ‘there is no God.’ they are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good.” Psalm 15:2 “He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart;” Psalm 16:9 “Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will rest in hope.” Psalm 17:3 “You have tested my heart; You have visited me in the night; You have tried me and have found nothing; I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.” Psalm 19:8 “the statues of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;..” Psalm 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth and the mediation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.” Psalm 24:4 “He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully.” Psalm 26:2 “Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my mind and my heart.” Psalm 27:8 “When You said, ‘Seek My face,’ my heart said to You, ‘Your face, Lord, I will seek.” Psalm 27:14 “ Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart;..” Psalm 33:11 “The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.” Psalm 34:18 “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart,…”, Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 40:8 “I delight to do Your will, O my God, and Your law is within my heart.” Psalm 44:21 “Would not God search this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.” Psalm 51:10 “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 62:8 “Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us.” Psalm 86:11-12 “Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name. I will praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart, and I will glorify Your name forevermore.:” Psalm 119:2 “Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart!” Psalm 119:10-11 “With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” Psalm 139:23 “Search me, O God, and know my heart;..” Proverbs 2:2 “Incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding;” Proverbs 4:23 “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” Proverbs 14:30 “A sound heart is life to the body,…” Proverbs 16:21 “The wise in heart will be called prudent…”

There are hundreds of scriptures pertaining to the heart being the center of our soul, character and being. We can chose to follow God with our whole heart and soul and know that we will eventually become like Jesus… or we can turn away and foolishly ‘follow our own heart’ meaning we will reject God’s wisdom and truth and turn away to lies and evil. This little saying of ‘follow your heart’ really is the world’s way of saying “do you own thing” or “do it your way”, not God’s way. See the deceitful way the world tries to deceive us into doing evil rather than trusting and following God’s perfect way? The choice is ours. Yet, in order to follow God with all our heart and soul, we desperately need the power, wisdom and strength of the Holy Spirit; we cannot do it on our own. No wonder God continually warns us about ‘guarding our hearts and minds’ against evil. Be encouraged to do your own search on how your heart influences your entire life, and determines who you ARE. Remember, we’ve already learned that no one can be successful without God’s blessings; and God will bless those who follow Him with their whole heart! Do you realize that God’s Word has just given you the secret of true success in life? You absolutely CAN be successful; but ONLY GOD’S WAY!

6:6

How heartbreaking to read that God was sorry that He had made man. We are told God was grieved in His heart. So since God knew before He made man that mankind would disobey Him and enter into sin; then why do you think He is ‘sorry’? Do we realize that every time we choose sin over obedience to God that we grieve the Creator of the Universe in His heart? Even though God is all powerful and all-knowing; we, as His creation in His image and likeness, can cause Him great pain and sorrow by our sinfulness. Maybe if we think this over very carefully and pray about it, we may have a change of heart on how we view our own sinfulness.

6:7-8

Now the only thing that God can do, and must do, is destroy all the evil that has come forth from mankind’s sinfulness. God had no choice, He had to destroy everything evil. Yet, we are given just a little glimpse of how much grief and sorrow it brought God to have to do this to His perfectly created world that mankind (and Satan) destroyed. (8.) Just as it looks like this will be the end of the world, we are given a ray of hope; for Noah has found grace in the eyes of God. Remember, grace is unmerited favor with God.

6:9

When we are told that Noah is a just man, perfect in his generations, this does not mean that Noah was a perfect man, but that in his genealogy he had not been corrupted by the interbreeding with the fallen angels. Since we are told Noah is ‘just’ we can assume that his heart is right with God. We are also told that Noah walked steadfastly with God. Remember, we have not seen this in God’s word since Enoch, whom God translated (Raptured) into heaven.

6:10

We are again reminded that Noah begot three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth. We are not told if these are his only children. But since the last chapter states that Noah was 500 years old before he had these three sons, it would probably mean that Noah had other children. We just don’t know.

6:11-12

Since the entire earth was ‘corrupt and filled with violence’, we must assume that the sinfulness of mankind has somehow caused the animal kingdom to also become ‘corrupted’. This is further made evident by verse 12. which states that all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. This would mean all living things had somehow become ‘corrupted’. The term ‘corrupted’ means that the original intent had been defiled and spoiled. Living things had become evil, rotten, depraved, perverted, vicious, infected, tainted contaminated, etc.

6:13

Now we are given the exact words that God speaks to Noah, telling Noah that the end of all flesh had to come. Notice that evil brings violence and death. God had to destroy all that evil. God tells Noah that He will destroy all flesh with the earth. Note that this pronouncement from God is a Prophecy which will be fulfilled.

6:14-17

Now it is revealed to us God’s plan of having Noah build an ark of a particular wood that would be strong enough and resist water enough to withstand the coming flood. Some commentators believe that this ‘gopherwood’ was actually teak, which is still used today in marine vessels, because of its durability to withstand water. As we read the structural plans and instructions, keep in mind that Noah probably had never even seen any type of water vessel. The necessity of covering it inside and out with pitch was to make certain it would withstand the fierce waves and wind that would come with the flood. It is estimated that the tides and waves were hundreds of feet high! Note that God warns Noah and foretells (Prophecy) that this flood will destroy every living thing on earth. Today, a group of Christians have built an ark the exact size (as near as can be determined) of the one given here in Genesis as a witness to the world. As they faithfully worked on this project, anti-Christians did everything possible to try to stop them! Why? Because this life sized replica of the ark shows and proves that the Ark was able to hold all the animals in each of the decks described. It also shows that the ark was able to withstand the flood waters, and that God did judge and destroy evil in His world. Since, we as Christians, teach that Jesus will return and that God will again destroy the evil world through fire, evil wicked men do not want to hear that truth, nor be reminded that their own doom is coming. If God gives you the opportunity, try to visit the Ark yourself. Both Gene and I have been blessed by being able to tour the Ark!

6:18-21

Yet God promises to establish His covenant (this is a legal agreement God is giving to Noah). This covenant will save Noah, his sons and all their wives from certain destruction. As we see God’s direction to Noah to bring two of all the ‘kinds’ of birds, animals and ‘creeping things’ that have the breath of life in them into the ark to keep them alive. This would mean that Noah, and his sons, would need to provide food for all these animals, as well as enough food for himself and his family. No wonder it took Noah a hundred years to build the ark and provide all this food. You and I are probably amazed that Noah doesn’t ask questions, or ask for some kind of clarification about this plan of Gods.

6:22

We are told that Noah completely obeyed God in all that God commanded him to do. No questions appear to be asked, nor does Noah argue with God about His plan, the timing, or anything else. What do you think Noah’s neighbors, family and friends said to him about his building the ark? After all, as big as it was, it couldn’t have been a ‘secret project’. When we obey God, and others think it is foolishness, what happens? I suspect this sort of thing happened to Noah and his family as they prepared the ark, the food, the water, and all the necessary provisions. Noah exhibited great trust and courage and steadfast perseverance in obeying God’s word to him. I believe Noah was smart enough not to share the plans of God with unbelievers. After all, no one had ever seen it rain, so water falling from the sky was unheard of! Waters coming up in great torrents from the earth had also never been seen before. Noah did not quit or become discouraged even though the flood did not come for 100 years!

What about us? Do we give up and quit because we do not see results in a short time? Do we doubt God’s word because the answers are not coming as quickly as we think they should? Everything happens in God’s perfect timing. We must learn patience and to persevere!

Genealogy of Noah

5:1

This opening statement tells us that this is the Genealogy (History) of Adam and follows the line of the Promised Redeemer of mankind. This Redeemer, also known as the Messiah, will be Prophesied throughout the entire Bible. Remember, the Bible is written about our Savior and Lord Jesus, the Christ, which is, the Messiah. We are looking for our Savior and Lord Jesus to return to Earth. When you see “Christ” it is a Title given to the Redeemer, meaning Messiah. Messiah is described as the Seed of the woman, the Promised Seed, Star of Jacob, Lion of Tribe of Judah, Son of David, Prophet, Priest after Melchizedek’s order, King of David’s line, Son of God, Son of Man, Immanuel, Branch, Headstone, Cornerstone, Servant, Most High, Bread of Life, Light of the World, Door, Good Shepherd, Way, Truth, Life, True Vine, etc. You are encouraged to do your own search and add to this list as God opens your mind and heart to consider the powerful meaning behind each Title. Be prepared for God’s Blessings as you act upon this challenge!

5:2-3

We see a very brief summary of the creation of mankind, and the fact that God Blessed us from the very beginning. (3.) We already know that Adam had many sons and daughters; thus this lineage we are being given is the lineage following the Promised Seed of the Savior of mankind. Pay very close attention to the number of years given for Adam’s age and the birth of Seth. If you have a chart listing these individuals, and the age of Adam, Seth, etc., you will begin to see the crucial importance of paying close attention to why God is giving us the name, date of birth and number of years each person lives. If you do not have an Age Chart, begin to construct your own. Remember, God never gives us information in the Bible unless it has some very crucial importance to us.

5:4-5

Now most people would be shocked to learn how long Adam lived. We should be both shocked and amazed at the length of his life. Note that to alleviate any misunderstanding, God gives us the years Adam lived after Seth was born and then God tells us the total number of years he lived, then he died. I firmly believe God did this just so we would not believe those who challenge God’s Word and say: “well, this just means he lived a long time; it is obviously and exaggeration, because we know better.” These doubters are the ones who think they know more than God. How foolish! Whom do we believe, God, or some person? Notice that we are told “he died”. This simple statement is profound, as it reminds us that God’s Word is fulfilled: “If you eat of the fruit, you will die”. Now stop and think for just a moment; how many children, grandchildren, great- grandchildren, etc., could Adam have had? Millions! Yes, remember, Adam was instructed to ‘fill the earth’ with people, so God would have given him the capability of doing just that! Not only that, but think how much Adam could have accomplished in his life. The possibilities seem endless.

5:6-8

Hopefully you have the Age (Genealogy) Chart to reflect back to the date of Seth’s birth, birth of the ‘Seed’ of the Messiah, and the total number of years Seth lived. Notice that each time we are told all the crucial facts, including the fact that Seth had sons and daughters. How many children could a healthy man have, who lives hundreds and hundreds of years?

5:9-11

Again, note that time frame on your chart and the fact that we are told Enosh (whose name means (mortal, or miserable) also lived hundreds of years and had sons and daughters. Why do you think God keeps telling us the exact dates of each birth, lifetime, and that Enosh then died? We, tend to forget things unless they are drilled into our brains. Pay close attention because there are very good reasons for this information to be verified by God’s Word.

5:12-14

Cainan also has only one son that we are given the name of, and for which we are given the lineage. Even though we are told Cainan had sons and daughters, only one son’s name is given, Mahalalel (meaning blessed or praised and El, the name for God). This is so we will not be confused, we will know what son is of the Promised Seed. Can you imagine what each Dad and Mom were hoping? ‘Is our son going to be the Promised Seed to redeem us?’ Also note that all the men lived more than 900 years. Cainan dies at what age?

5:15-21

Mahalalel’s son is Jared, he too had sons and daughters, and lives to what age? This is the first man to live less than 900 years. Then we are told he dies. Notice that Jared is 162 before he has Enoch (meaning commencement, or teaching). He and his wife must have wondered if they were ever going to have the Promised ‘Seed’ child. Notice that Jared lives quite a long life. How long? Now most of us see a name we recognize, Methuselah, the man we recognize as the man who lived to be the oldest man in the Bible.

5:22-24

Suddenly we notice that Enoch did something none of the others did, or were recognized for; Enoch walked with God, after his son Methuselah was born! Then something else is told about Enoch, he was not, for God took him. This means God took him directly into Heaven with Him, without death. Wow! How do we know this is true? Well, the statement “and he died” is NOT given after the number of years of Enoch’s life on Earth is given at 365, thus telling us Enoch did not die; and God’s Word is always True. Enoch evidently chose to Trust God so completely and totally that every aspect of his life was to walk with God so closely, that he did God’s Will for his life. It appears that God simply chose to call him into Eternity with Him. We are told that Enoch was the first person to be ‘translated’ or brought directly into Heaven, without dying. This ‘translation’ appears to be the same as being ‘Raptured’ into Heaven by God. Notice what Jude tells us about Enoch in Jude 14, 15: “Enoch, the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied when he said ‘Behold, the Lord comes with His myriads of holy ones to execute judgment upon all and to convict all the unholy ones of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed, and of all the severe things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.’” How did Jude know this?

5:25

Enoch trusted and believed God and followed God’s Will so closely that somehow God gave Enoch the inspiration to name his son Methuselah, which means “When he dies, judgment comes.” Remember this phrase, as it is a prophecy and a warning.

5:26-27

How many years did Methuselah live? Who nearly lived just as long as he did? Look at your chart to see what happens when Methuselah dies.

5:28-29

Now Lamech, Methuselah’s son, has a son he names Noah. We are told that Lamech gives us a prophecy concerning something about Noah’s destiny. Noah means ‘restful’, or ‘to bring relief, or comfort’. Again, this name, Noah, is one we all will recognize.

5:30-31

How long does Lamech live? What is significant about this number?

5:32

Now we are told how old Noah was when his father died. Look at your chart to see if it is correct. So how old was Noah when he begot Shem, Ham and Japheth?

Proverbs 25:2 “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the glory of kings is to search out a thing.” This is an encouragement to us to diligently search for God’s Truth in His Word. Once a Truth is discovered, we should seek to apply it to our own lives.

Consequences of Sin

4:1-2

Eve recognizes that new life comes from the Lord. Cain is associated with the Hebrew word qana, which means to acquire, or to beget. Cain is the first of human beings to be born. (2.) The time frame between the birth of Cain and his brother Abel is unknown. The information that Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain a tiller of the ground shows us they are both probably now adults. It also reveals that people are choosing their way of life and developing a society.

4:3

Again how much time has passed, we do not know, yet we are told that in the process of time, Cain brings forth the fruit of the ground as an offering to the Lord. Keep in mind that the ground, or earth, was cursed; and that God had sacrificed an animal, shedding its blood, to ‘cover their sin’. Therefore, it would seem reasonable to assume that the sacrificial offering would need to be a perfect animal. Notice that Cain is bringing an offering he has produced from the (cursed) ground, NOT what God had ordained. This offering was evidently NOT the ‘first fruits’ of the field. God says that the ‘tithe’ is to be paid FIRST, not what is left over. An ‘offering’ must be by faith, in the manner God has given. We, as fallen sinful humans, try to ‘appease’ God with our own “offerings” rather than simply obeying God by faith, and confessing our sin and seeking His forgiveness through the shed blood of Jesus. See Leviticus 17:11; “For the life, animal soul, is in the blood, and I have given it for you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls;. For it is the blood that makes atonement , by reason of the life which it represents.” See also Romans 3:24-26. All offerings must be by faith, in the manner God has given. Remember, fig leaves, from the ground, failed to cover Adam and Eve’s sin. Yet, we today, still try to ‘appease’ or ‘negotiate’ with God; how foolish! An innocent animal had to have its blood shed to cover their sin. Refer back to Genesis 3:21.

4:4

Now we are told that Abel also brought his offering which was the First, and perfect, unblemished best from his flock. Then the notation is given that the ‘fat thereof’ was offered. This would mean that the First, perfect unblemished best of Abel’s flock was sacrificed, and the blood shed, as a faith offering just as God had ordained. We know God approved because we are told the Lord had respect and regard for Abel and for his offering. See Hebrews 11:4. “By faith, Abel brought forth a better and more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, because it was testified of Abel that he was righteous (meaning he was upright and in right standing with God) and God bore witness by accepting and acknowledging his offering.” So how did Abel know his offering was acceptable? His parents had probably shared that God had sacrificed an animal to provide ‘coverings’ for them. Somehow he knew he was obeying God. God may have shown acceptance in some other manner, we don’t really know. Yet, as we continue to read this account we are told by God Himself that He accepted Abel’s offering.

4:5

(a.) But; whenever we see this word, ‘But’, we should pay close attention because it usually gives us a very crucial and important warning that we should heed for our own lives. So we are told God has no respect, meaning He disregards Cain’s offering. Cain had decided to give God his own ‘earned’; “look what I produced”, type of offering, rather than what God had required. We must remember that we cannot ‘barter’ with God; have you ever thought, or said: “Oh, God, I promise to be good, or to do such and such, IF you do what I want.” Really? That is a lie from the pit of hell!

(b.) So Cain…; Now, rather than repent and confess his arrogance in trying to choose his own method and show off his own ‘production’, Cain instead becomes exceedingly angry and indignant; meaning he becomes mad at God for not accepting his own way of ‘showing off’ what he can do. Do we ever try to ‘show off’ how ‘holy’ or ‘spiritual’ we are by our ‘works’? We are even told Cain looks sad and depressed. So obviously Cain knows his offering does not please God and did not meet God’s requirement. Do we know when our ‘offerings’ do not meet God’s requirements? How? Remember, we can always go back to God’s Word to see if we are acting in true faith.

4:6

God immediately speaks to Cain, asking him why he is angry, sad, depressed and dejected. Notice how caring God is to let the sinner know He loves him and cares about him and is aware of his feelings. God actually speaks to Cain! Much like God spoke to Adam and Eve; ‘where are you?’ God lets Cain know He sees and knows Cain is angry, sad, depressed and dejected. Notice how this personal question and confrontation, shows God’s personal, caring love for Cain.

4:7

God goes on to say to Cain IF you do well, you will be accepted. If you do not do well (and we know repentance is necessary to do well) than sin crouches at your door (meaning sin will overtake Cain’s soul) Whenever we see an “IF”, we should also pay very close attention, particularly when God is speaking. Because there are almost always severe warnings and/or blessings offered with that IF. God is so caring of Cain that He is giving Cain a personal warning about his sin; and the terrible consequences of NOT dealing with sin by confessing and repenting of sin. The desire of sin is to DESTROY US! God goes on to tell Cain ‘you must master it’. That tells us we choose to give in to sin or to reject it and turn away from sin. See Romans 6:23; ‘the wages (what we earn) of sin is DEATH….’ ‘ yet the gift of God is Eternal Life through Jesus Christ.” We cannot lie about our sin, trying to fix blame on anyone but ourselves with ANY type of excuse, no matter what the circumstances are; we are RESPONSIBLE for our own sin. It must have been possible for Cain to “master” the sin or God would not have told him he must master, or rule over, it. This might be one of those scriptures we might want to copy down and memorize. It’s a good idea to keep God’s warnings and promises in our hearts and mind.

4:8

We see no response to God from Cain. We just are told that Cain now lures his brother, Abel, into the field, where Cain kills him. Instead of confessing his pride, selfishness and arrogance; Cain develops the ‘sin’ God warned him about. Cain was already angry presumably at God, but since Cain could not ‘get back’ at God, he choose to be angry and jealous of Abel. Cain develops increased jealousy and resentment of his brother’s acceptance by God. As these sins progress, they become deep hatred and eventually murderous. These sins are listed as deadly sins for good reason. We are horrified to see such a violent act upon an innocent brother! See 1 John 3:12. “Don’t be like Cain, who took his motivation from the evil one and murdered his brother. Why did he kill him? Because his deeds, works, were wicked and malicious and his brothers were righteous.” Cain allowed envy and jealousy to grow into anger and hatred and eventually revenge and murder were the result of unrepented sin. Remember, the end result of unconfessed and unrepented sin IS Death; for us and others!

4:9-11

Once again we are told that God speaks directly to Cain asking him a question God knows the answer to! Where is your brother? Again, Cain chooses to lie and says he doesn’t know. Then Cain says in effect ‘am I responsible for my brother?’ This refrain, ‘am I my brother’s keeper’, has been used down through the ages to abdicate any responsibility for others. (10.) Now God confronts Cain’s murder of Abel, by asking him “what have you done? Your brother’s blood is crying to Me from the ground!” The ‘life’ is in the blood, and in effect, all righteous souls who are murdered, cry out to God, and He hears them. (11.) Sadly, we see no repentance from Cain. And God now tells him he is cursed from the earth. The earth had received Abel’s blood when Cain killed him. The earth ‘opening its mouth’ to receive blood meant that Abel’s body, and his life blood, were to return to the earth.

4:12-13

God tells Cain, who prided himself in his ability to grow crops, that he would now be ‘cursed’ and the earth would no longer yield crops to him. Cain would now be a fugitive and a degraded outcast, in perpetual exile. God continues to give Cain opportunity after opportunity to repent and confess his sin and seek forgiveness, yet Cain refused. (13.) Instead of yielding to God, and begging for forgiveness, and repenting of his sins, Cain complains that his punishment is too much for him to bear. When we reap the consequences of our own sin, do we complain to God about our inability to ‘bear’ the consequences? I don’t understand why all these horrible things are happening to me! Oh, poor me, we cry. We usually reject any responsibility for our own sufferings. It is true that sometimes God allows trials into our lives to build our character and to teach us valuable lessons; yet many of our sufferings are brought upon ourselves by our own sinful failures. This is a time to pray and seek God’s insight and wisdom into your own present circumstances. Do you need to repent of any sins? God knows everything, so if you cannot remember any sins, ask God, He will tell you the Truth, IF you are willing to receive it.

4:14-15

Cain now blames God for driving him out from the land and being hidden from God’s Face. He says he will be a fugitive and a vagabond and a wanderer on the earth and others will find him and kill him. Remember Cain is related to all the ‘others’. Since it could have been more than 100 years since Adam and Eve began having children, some commentators state it would have been possible for Adam and Eve to have more than 32,000 descendants by this time. (15.) These last recorded words of God to Cain show God’s eternal mercy to even an unrepentant sinner. God states that if anyone kills Cain vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. God sets a mark or sign upon Cain so that no one would kill him. We do not know what this ‘mark’ or ‘sign’ was, other than all who saw Cain would know who he was. Obviously, others would have heard about Cain’s murder of Abel. Adam and Eve knew about Cain’s murder of Abel. See Genesis 4:25. So others in the family would also know about this horrible event.

4:16-17

These are sad words: Cain goes away from the presence of the Lord. God did not drive him away, he chose to remove himself from God’s presence. We are told that Cain dwelt in a land east of Eden, known as Nod, meaning wandering. A ‘wandering’ person is lost, has no goal, no purpose, no direction and no meaning to life. See Psalm 119:10-11. (17.) God is gracious to Cain even after his terrible choices to remove himself from God’s presence. Did Cain ever come to his senses and repent? There are some hints that we can glean as we continue our study of Genesis. We are given a bit of history here, letting us know that Cain found a wife and she bore him a son. Cain’s wife was a descendent of Adam and Eve. It is interesting that the son was named Enoch. That Cain was able to build a city and named it after his son, shows us that God was gracious to Cain. This is NOT the same Enoch that walked with God in Genesis 5:24.

4:18

The genealogy of Cain is interesting, as we see that Irad named his son a name indicating he was from God. The ‘el’ at the end of the names refers to God. We are given the names of six generations from Cain. Why do you think God is giving us this information? Could it be that Cain finally learned that being separated from God was so painful that he repented? We just don’t know.

4:19

We are told Lamech took two wives. Remember, God had said it was to be one man and one woman for a marriage. It is also interesting that the names of each wife is given. Any ideas why?

4:20-21

Now we see that there seems to be a difference in learned and inherited skills and abilities. We are told that Jabal’s descendants had cattle and purchased possessions. This would indicate that people and society had developed and invented ‘possessions’. (21.) The brother, Jubal was the father of those who played the lyre and the pipe. Tools, musical instruments, equipment, technology, etc. are being developed and invented. Remember, these people lived hundreds of years. How much could you learn if you lived 500+ years?

4:22

Now we are told that Tubal-cain developed bronze and iron instruments and equipment. There is some evidence that machines, batteries and other more sophisticated equipment and inventions were developed and used in society. Remember, evolutionists, and anti-Christian people have brainwashed us into believing that prior societies were all ‘cave people’. This is absolutely not true! Even some of the wonders of the world, the pyramids and other structures were engineering marvels that our current engineers do not know how they were able to build and maintain.

4:23-24

Next we are given another chilling confession of Lamech. The translation is somewhat awkward. Some believe that Lamech told of killing someone who just wounded him – or the killing may have caused him to be ‘wounded’. The young man killed to his ‘hurt’ some believe may have been an accidental killing of his own son, which grieved him causing the ‘hurt.’ This confession is given in a poetic type of prose. (24.) Lamech appears to believe that if Cain was to be avenged sevenfold (for killing one man), then because he had killed two men, he himself felt the avenging would be doubled. Although this idea is given, there is no indication that it came from God.

4:25-26

Suddenly we are thrown back in time, presumably; to be told that Adam and Eve have another son, whom she names Seth, which means granted or appointed, because she believed Seth was to be the ‘seed’ God would use instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. So it was known by Adam and Eve, and presumably everyone, that Cain had murdered Abel. Because Adam and Eve had been promised a seed that would redeem them, they were looking for the one God would select. They had no idea that it would be thousands of years before the Redeemer would be born to mankind. (26.) We are given a brief genealogy from Seth to Enosh. Now the translation is not clear in revealing that men did not ‘call’ on the name of the Lord by praying, but instead began to profane the name of the Lord. Some stopped praying in God’s name. Some named idols in God’s name. They even called themselves by God’s name. This seems to be the beginning of idolatry.

This is a sad, discouraging end to this chapter on the consequences of sin. Unconfessed and unrepented sin spirals down into worse evil, pain, and sorrow. Yet, we can take it as a strong and gracious warning from God to us, so we do not make the same kind of mistakes by ignoring our own sins. 1 Corinthians 9:27 “But I discipline my flesh and bring it into subjection, so that after proclaiming the Good News to others, I myself, will not be disqualified.”

Sin Brings Death

3:1

The Serpent is identified as being more subtle and crafty than any living creature of the field. Since an ‘animal’ snake cannot scheme and reason on how to deceive, we know that Satan had entered the snake and spoke to Eve through the serpent. Did animals somehow communicate with man? Wouldn’t Eve be very suspicious of an animal of the field suddenly speaking to her? Obviously Satan must have been communicating with Eve enough to win her trust. Maybe, because all that God created was good; Eve had never experienced anything ‘not good’ and was unaware of the possibility of anything but ‘goodness’. In any case, Satan questions and challenges God’s Words, by saying ‘can it really be..’ or ‘did God say…’ these phrases insert an element of doubt as to what is True. This is why Satan is called ‘The father of lies’ as he introduced lies and doubt about God’s Words being True, into the world. The Hebrew word for the serpent is Nachash; the shining one; root word is “hiss, mutter, whisper, enchanter.”

3:2-3

Eve replies to the serpents doubting question, by stating her interpretation of God’s command. She correctly states they were not to eat of the fruit of the tree; then she adds that they were not to even touch it, or they would die. We must never add to or subtract from what God has spoken. What else could she have done, or said? Remember, we do not have to defend God’s Word to liars; we can simply go to God for His Truth.

3:4-5

Now the serpent immediately says “You shall not surely die.” This is an outright lie designed to cause Eve to disbelieve and distrust God. Satan is calling God a liar! (5.) The serpent continues his deception by trying to make the eating of the forbidden fruit seem to be a good thing, rather than evil; by stating that her eyes would be opened, meaning she would gain additional knowledge and understanding, and she would be as God, knowing the difference between good and evil and blessings and calamity. Satan’s lies were designed to make it sound like God was withholding some valuable and important knowledge and understanding from Eve that would make her like God. What was Satan appealing to with Eve? Something possibly attractive? Now what should Eve have done? Does Satan do this to us? What seemingly attractive idea or thing has the evil one dangled before your eyes, or spoken into your thoughts? We fall prey to the same type of lie from the evil one. Why not? … fill in the blank … even when we suspect the ‘why not’ might not be a good idea, why do we still do the wrong thing? Did self pride have anything to do with the first sin of mankind? Does pride have anything to do with our sins? Try to name a sin that does NOT have anything to do with your self pride? Any ideas on how to avoid these types of mistakes which then lead to sin? Is it time for some deep soul searching?

3:6

Now, rather than consult Adam, or better yet, God; Eve looks at the tree with her eyes and sees that it appears good for food and was delightful to look at, and then she assumes it would make her wise and she desires what she assumes God was withholding from her. We see self pride welling up inside Eve as she begins to desire things she wants now and thinks she can get without God. See the progression of looking at forbidden fruit, then making fleshly assumptions – it appeared good for food and was attractive to look at; then the final failure, believing the lie that it would make her wise like God. She eats the fruit on her own; then she gives some to her husband and he eats. Where was Adam when she first ate the fruit? Notice that we are told she took the fruit to Adam for him to eat. Why did he eat? The Bible clearly tells us that Adam was not deceived as Eve was. See 1 Timothy 2:14.

3:7

By the phrase ‘the eyes of both of them were opened’ means they now realized they had disobeyed God’s command. They had experienced evil in their lives by willingly disobeying God. Their spiritual covering was gone as was their spiritual bond to God. They now saw themselves as naked and exposed before each other, and worse, before God. They immediately tried to cover themselves to hide their disobedience. Down through the ages man tries to ‘cover their own sins’ by using their own methods and ignoring God’s only provision for sin, which is God Himself in the person of Jesus. Oh, what a lesson for us! We must immediately seek God when faced with temptation ~ The LIE ~ and ask for His guidance, protection, wisdom, strength; whatever is needed to avoid sin. Yet, when we do fall into sin, (all of us do), then we must immediately confess and repent of the sin and seek God’s forgiveness through Jesus.

3:8

Upon hearing God calling them, since they knew they had committed evil by disobeying God’s commandment, they tried to ‘hide’ from God among the trees. You are probably thinking, “that’s pretty stupid, you can’t hide from an all knowing, all seeing God!” Yet, how do we try to ‘hide from God’ when we do something we know is wrong? What should Adam and Eve have done? What should we do? How many times do we try to hide our evil sins from God? Sounds pretty foolish, doesn’t it? So why do we do it?

3:9

We know that God knew what had already happened. Still, God called Adam and said “Where are you?” Why did God ask Adam where he was, when God knew where he was? Did he want Adam to come forward and admit and confess what he had done? Was God seeking a lost sinner and trying to get Adam to see, hear and understand that He cared for him, even after he had disobeyed God? Why didn’t God call Eve? Could it be that perhaps the term ‘Adam’ meant both Adam and Eve?

3:10

Now the consequences of sin are shown as reasons for trying to avoid responsibility for the sin. Do we do this? Can we see why it is so important to immediately confess and admit that we caused the suffering and hurt of sin? None of us wants to admit that pain and suffering are the result of our own sin. Yet, we are told repeatedly that ALL pain, suffering and death are the result of sin. Sometimes our sin causes others to suffer as well. We are ashamed and embarrassed to admit what we have done. So were our first parents. Ever hear the phrase we need to ‘swallow our pride’ and admit our wrongdoing? Can you see how the issue of ‘pride’ comes into play with all sin?

3:11-12

God continues to ask questions to get Adam to admit he disobeyed God. After asking who told you you were naked? Adam probably said nothing; so God asked the key question: “Have you disobeyed my command?” (12.) Instead of confessing his responsibility for disobedience and sin, Adam blames Eve; “The woman…”, then Adam blames God, “You gave me…” “She gave me the fruit…” Finally, Adam says, “I ate.” Do we try to blame someone or something for our sins? If only…? Think about it, how often do we try to justify or excuse our own sins?

3:13

Now the Lord God speaks to Eve: “What have you done!” Eve doesn’t learn from Adams pitiful excuses, instead she immediately blames the serpent, saying “he beguiled me, and I ate.” Today, we still blame Satan saying “The devil made me do it!” This is just another lie, Satan cannot make us do anything! Do we see any confession on Eve’s part? Does she take any responsibility for her actions? Does she repent? The horrible consequence of sin is that it always separates us from God. How about you?

3:14

Now we see God’s curse upon the serpent. Crawling on one’s belly forever is the ultimate humiliation. Eating dirt and what it contains sounds more than disgusting. Yet the full meaning of this curse goes beyond the physical into the spiritual realm. We know that this curse pertains to Satan and all the demons who followed him in disobeying and challenging God. We think, How foolish; yet, don’t we do the same thing every time we act outside God’s perfect will? Something to think about, and certainly to pray about. What can we do to avoid falling into this same foolish trap? See Psalm 119:10-11. This is a great verse to memorize and pray into your life.

3:15

Now God gives the Prophecy that pertains to all mankind for all Eternity. This is the central theme of the entire Bible ~ God’s Eternal Plan of Salvation for all mankind and the destruction of all evil. God’s plan for Redemption of mankind and ultimate destruction of Satan is partly revealed in this passage. God actually speaks a declaration of war to the enemy of mankind, Satan; and also gives a promise of victory. See Romans 5:18, 19. So, here we see the first glimpse of the promise of the Messiah, the Savior of mankind to redeem us from the punishment, power and presence of sin. God Himself puts enmity between Satan and the woman, between Satan’s seed (who or what are Satan’s seed?) and her seed. This seems strange, as the ‘seed’ of reproduction comes from the man, not the woman. So what is meant here? Declaration of war between Satan and the only seed of the woman; Mary’s child Jesus, the Messiah. This seed shall bruise Satan’s head, meaning a death blow; and Satan shall bruise his heel. See Revelation 12:1-10.

3:16

We are given a hint that Eve must be displaying great sorrow at what she had done. We are not told she was crying, but I can imagine she was probably sobbing uncontrollably. Notice that God said He will multiply her sorrow. He also proclaims that her husband shall now rule over her. We women like to think we are ‘in charge’. Yet, when the Truth is revealed, we need our husbands to ‘take charge’ in marriage matters. This does not mean that the husband makes all the decisions without consulting his wife and considering her needs and opinions. Notice that throughout the Bible the husband is given the responsibility of caring for his wife, loving his wife, treating her with tenderness and gentleness. In fact, it even states he should ‘die’ for her. See Ephesians 6:22-33. Is it possible that Adam believed that was what he was doing for Eve? Did he choose to join her in sin and die with her? Some commentators think this is a possibility.

3:17-19

Now we are given information about more of the terrible consequences of sin. Adam also is told he will eat of the ground all the days of his life. He must now eat the herbs and vegetation, not just the wonderful fruit from the trees. Notice that God said the ground is cursed for Adams sake. What is meant by this? Why would the ground need to be cursed to benefit Adam? All creation is now subjected to the curse of sin. The spiritual and physical are ‘fractured’ and Entropy begins. Redemption will be needed for all the universe. All of Creation is groaning for the final Redemption. In Revelation we are told there will be a New Heaven and a New Earth. We assume there were no thorns or thistles until now. Planting and growing crops would be a chore that caused sweat to pour from Adam and Eve. Remember, the tending of the Garden was a pleasant and easy job, bringing great satisfaction and joy. Now, Adam and Eve are faced with sorrow, struggles, pain and eventually physical death. Can you identify?

3:20

God’s Word tells us that Adam also named his wife. Eve meant the mother of all future living humans.

3:21

Only by the shedding of ‘innocent blood’ would Adam and Eve by covered. See Leviticus 17:11. Notice that it is by Faith, rather than by man’s works that we are saved. Man’s first works were the ‘fig leaf covering’ How did that work? Man’s works today don’t work any better than it did in Genesis 3:7. We need to understand the contrasts between ‘works of man’ and God’s perfect work. There were two trees that were significant in the Garden. The Cross is identified as a ‘tree’ See acts 5:30; 1 Peter 2:24. Both trees were in a Garden John 19;41. The curse is linked to the tree. Galatians 3:13, 17. Notice that the cursed were hanged, presumably on a ‘tree’. Genesis 40:19 (The Baker was hanged) Esther 3:23, Haman is hanged. Judas hanged himself. Matthew 27:3-10. The Tree of Life was planted by God in the Garden. The tree upon which Jesus was crucified, was ‘planted’ by man, or placed at Golgotha for the purposes of crucifixion. The Tree in the Garden brought sin and death to mankind. The Tree at Calvary brought Life and Salvation.

3:22-23

Man was turned out of paradise so they would not eat of the tree of life and live forever separated from God. The Tree of Life will again be found in Paradise for all Believers. This was necessary or mankind would never be able to be redeemed. Remember, that the angels live forever. Those angles who chose to disobey God will forever be separated from Him. We humans are all given the opportunity of accepting God’s Mercy and Grace through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the tree (cross).

3:24

Not only does God drive mankind out of the Garden, but He placed the super Angels known as Cherubim, to guard the Tree of Life. Cherubim were guardians of God’s Glory and majesty. See Exodus 9, 10:1-22, Isaiah 6; Revelation 4:6-8; Psalm18:10;81:1;99:1, etc. Remember, Satan was once the Anointed Cherub, see Ezekiel 28:14. What a sorrowful and sad beginning of our fallen world. Yet, if we are truly honest with ourselves, we know, deep down, we also are sinners, in desperate need of our Savior and Lord Jesus. Each day we should begin by seeking God in our lives, confessing our sinfulness, and speaking and praying God’s Words to gain spiritual strength for the battle against evil.

Psalm 119:30 I have chosen the way of Truth and Faithfulness; Your commandments have I set before me. Psalm 119:10-11 With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh let me not wander from your commandments. Your Word I have hidden in my heart that I might NOT sin against You. John 14:15-17 (Jesus speaking) If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray to the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever, the Spirit of Truth whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.

You are encouraged to find other Scriptures that speak to your heart and soul and whatever special need you have. God is faithful, trust Him.