GOD’S WORD OF COVENANT BLESSINGS

“So GOD BLESSED Noah and his sons, and said to them: “BE FRUITFUL and MULTIPLY, and fill the earth” – Genesis 9:1

GOD re-enacted with Noah in the new world, HIS WORD of COVENANT BLESSINGS: “So GOD BLESSED Noah and his sons, and said to them: “BE FRUITFUL and MULTIPLY, and fill the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood“ (Gen.9:1-4). After the flood, the life and goal of every creature on the earth had to be re-established; hence these fresh commands given to man sound very similar to those given at the beginning of time. The human race now had Noah as its father.

God re-affirmed His blessings of fruitfulness, multiplication, and value addition to the earth (v.3). He also set requirements for justice among humans and for the protection of all creatures (vv.4-6). In response to Noah’s act of blessing the Lord by building Him an altar and offering pleasing sacrifices, God blessed Noah, and resolved never again to destroy humanity. He affirmed: “seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease" (Gen.8:22). God bound Himself to this covenant with Noah, his descendants, the earth, and all humankind, and gave the rainbow as its sign (vv.8,17). By this Noahic covenant, God provided Noah protection from the animals of the earth, approved the eating of meat as long as there’s no blood in it, and blessed Noah with Dominion over the earth and everything in it.

The three parts to this covenant are: Menu, Government, and Mercy.

Menu: “But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.” (v.4) Meat is on the menu, but the blood is not to be consumed. It’s to be separated from the meat out of mercy to the animal, that the animal will not be consumed while still alive, and in recognition of its purpose in sacrifice. Later when the law was given, the sacrifice of animals atoned for the sins of the Jews. Now that the blood of God’s Son has been shed, we can have eternal life, as long as we choose to receive Him.

Government: “Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man’s brother I will require the life of man (v.5). This declaration was the foundation of government – accountability! God demands that “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man” (v.6). Human life is precious in the sight of the Creator; hence He demands the life of any man or animal that takes a human life. The New Testament also acknowledges and endorses God’s stance (Rom.13: 3-4).

Mercy: “I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth” (v.13). This shows God’s mercy in spite of the evil inclination of the human heart (Gen. 8:21). God has kept His promise, that there will never come another flood like this. This longest part of the Noahic Covenant – verses 8 through 17 – covers God’s promise of Mercy. God’s emphasis is on His great mercy! The symbol of the rainbow – the bow in the cloud – a shape which in ancient Near East mythologies, was associated with the anger and hostility of deity. Here, the warrior’s bow was hung up, pointed away from the earth. The relaxed bow stretches from earth to heaven, from horizon to horizon. An instrument of war becomes a symbol of peace, a covenant token of reconciliation between God and Man!