DANGER IN PLENTY | NOAH

0. Introduction

a) "When you have eaten and are full - then beware, lest you forget the Lord" (Deuteronomy 6:11-12). It is often most difficult to follow God when life is easy - we can fall prey to temptation and fall away from God.

b) Here is a notable example of this truth.

1. Noah

a) Noah and his family had survived the flood and the whole world was theirs. They were prosperous, and life was easy. Noah shamed himself by becoming drunk and cursed his son Ham.

i) God's promises to Noah
(Text: Genesis 9:1-29)

@1. ¹So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. ² 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. ³ Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. ⁴ But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. ⁵ 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.

⁶ “Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man.  And as for you, be fruitful and multiply; Bring forth abundantly in the earth And multiply in it.” ⁸ Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: ⁹ “And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, ¹⁰ and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. ¹¹ Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

¹² And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: ¹³ I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. ¹⁴ It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; ¹⁵ and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. ¹⁶ The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” ¹⁷ And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

¹⁸ Now the sons of Noah who went out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And Ham was the father of Canaan. ¹⁹ These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the whole earth was populated. ²⁰ And Noah began to be a farmer, and he planted a vineyard. ²¹ Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent. ²² And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. ²³ But Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and went backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s nakedness.

²⁴ So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done to him. ²⁵ Then he said:

“Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brethren.” ²⁶ And he said: “Blessed be the Lord, The God of Shem, And may Canaan be his servant. ²⁷ May God enlarge Japheth, And may he dwell in the tents of Shem; And may Canaan be his servant.” ²⁸ And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. ²⁹ So all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years; and he died. (Genesis 9:1-29 NKJV)

2. What is the text all about?

a) To "demand a reckoning" means that God will require each person to account for his or her actions. We cannot harm or kill another human being without answering to God. A penalty must be paid. Justice will be served.

b) Here God explains why murder is so wrong. To kill a person is to kill one made in God's image. Because all human beings are made in God's image, all people possess the qualities that distinguish them from animals: morally, reason, creativity, and self-worth. When we interact with others, we are interacting with beings made by God, beings to whom God offers eternal life. God wants us to recognize his image in all people.

c)Noah stepped out of the ark onto an earth devoid of human life. But God gave him a reassuring promise. This covenant had three parts:

@1. never again will a flood do such destruction;

@2. as long as the earth remains, the seasons will always come as expected;

@3. a rainbow will be visible when it rains as a sign to all that God will keep his promise.

d) The earth's order and seasons are still preserved, and rainbows still remind us of God's faithfulness to his Word.

e) Noah, the great hero of faith, got drunk - a poor example of godliness to his sons. Perhaps this story is included to show us that even godly people can sin and that their bad influence affects their families. Although the wicked people had all been killed, the possibility of evil still existed in the hearts of Noah and his family. Ham's mocking attitude revealed a severe lack of respect for his father and for God.

f) This verse (Genesis 9:25) has been wrongfully used to support racial prejudice and even slavery. Noah's curse, however, wasn't directed toward any particular race, but rather at the Canaanite nation - a nation God knew would become wicked. This curse was fulfilled when the Israelites entered the Promised Land and drove the Canaanites out.