Genesis, Chapter 7
1 The Flood1 Then the LORD said to Noah, “Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you alone I have seen to be righteous before Me in thisatime. 2 You shall takebwith you of every clean animalcby sevens, a male and his female; and of the animals that are not clean two, a male and his female; 3 also of the birds of thedsky,eby sevens, male and female, to keepfoffspring alive on the face of all the earth. 4 For after seven more days, I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will blot out from the face of the land every living thing that I have made.” 5 Noah did according to all that the LORD had commanded him. | |
6 Now Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of watergcame upon the earth. 7 Then Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him entered the ark because of the water of the flood. 8 Of clean animals and animals that are not clean and birds and everything that creeps on the ground, 9 there went into the ark to Noahhby twos, male and female, as God had commanded Noah. 10 It came about after the seven days, that the water of the floodicame upon the earth. 11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the same day all the fountains of the great deep burst open, and thejfloodgates of the sky were opened. 12 The rainkfell upon the earth for forty days and forty nights. | |
13 On the very same day Noah and Shem and Ham and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark, 14 they and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle afterltheir kind, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind,mall sorts of birds. 15 So they went into the ark to Noah, by twos of all flesh in which was the breath of life. 16 Those that entered, male and female of all flesh, entered as God had commanded him; and the LORD closed it behind him. | |
17 Then the floodncame upon the earth for forty days, and the water increased and lifted up the ark, so that it rose above the earth. 18 The water prevailed and increased greatly upon the earth, and the arkofloated on thepsurface of the water. 19 The water prevailed more and more upon the earth, so that all the high mountainsqeverywhere under the heavens were covered. 20 The water prevailed fifteenrcubits higher, and the mountains were covered. 21 All flesh thatsmoved on the earth perished, birds and cattle and beasts and every swarming thing that swarms upon the earth, and all mankind; 22 of all that was on the dry land, all in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, died. 23 Thus He blotted outtevery living thing that was upon the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of theusky, and they were blotted out from the earth; and only Noah was left, together with those that were with him in the ark. 24 The water prevailed upon the earth one hundred and fifty days. |
Read more:Genesis, Chapter 8
7 We have in this chapter,
and to bring the creatures that were to be preserved alive, with him, Gen 7:2-3.
in consideration of the deluge at hand, Gen 7:4.
he came with his family into the ark, Gen 7:6-7.
and brought the creatures with him, Gen 7:8-9.
An account of which is repeated, Gen 7:13-16.
to which is added God's tender care to shut him in.
the causes of it, Gen 7:11-12.
the prevalency of it, Gen 7:17-20.
7:1 Here is a gracious invitation of Noah and his family into a place of safety, now the flood of waters was coming. For thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation - Those are righteous indeed that are righteous before God; that have not only the form of godliness by which they appear righteous before men, who may easily be imposed upon; but the power of it, by which they approve themselves to God, who searcheth the heart.
7:2 Here are necessary orders given concerning the brute creatures that they were to be preserved alive with Noah in the ark. He must carefully preserve every species, that no tribe, no, not the least considerable, might entirely perish out of the creation.Observe in this:
7:4 Yet seven days and I will cause it to rain - It shall be seven days yet before I do it, After the 120 years were expired, God grants them a reprieve of seven days longer, both to shew how slow he is to anger, and to give them some farther space for repentance. But all in vain; these seven days were trifled away after all the rest, they continued secure until the day that the flood came. While Noah told them of the judgment at a distance, they were tempted to put off their repentance: but now he is ordered to tell them that it is at the door; that they have but one week more to turn them in, to see if that will now at last awaken them to consider the things that belong to their peace. But it is common for those that have been careless for their souls during the years of their health, when they have looked upon death at a distance, to be as careless during the days, the seven days of their sickness, when they see it approaching, their hearts being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
7:7 And Noah went in with his sons, and his wife, and his sons wives - And the brute creatures readily went in with him. The same hand that atfirst brought them to Adam to be named, now brought them to Noah to be preserved.
7:11 The six hundredth year of Noah's life, was 1656 years from the creation. In the second month, the seventeenth day of the month - Which is reckoned to be about the beginning of November; so that Noahhad had a harvest just before, from which to victual his ark. The same day the fountains of the great deep were broken up - There needed no new creation of waters; God has laid up the deep in store - houses, Psa 33:7, and now he broke up those stores. God had, in the creation, set bars and doors to the waters of the sea, that they might not return to cover the earth, Psa 104:9 Gen 7, Job 38:9-11, and now he only removed these ancient mounds and fences, and the waters of the sea returned to cover the earth, as they had done at first, Gen 1:9.And the windows of heaven were opened - And the waters which were above the firmament were poured out upon the world; those treasures which God has reserved against the time of trouble, the day of battle and war, Job 38:22-23. The rain, which ordinarily descends in drops, then came down in streams. We read, Job 26:8.That God binds up the waters in his thick clouds, and the cloud is not rent under them; but now the bond was loosed, the cloud was rent, and such rains descended as were never known before or since.
7:12 It rained without intermission or abatement, forty days and forty nights - And that upon the whole earth at once.
7:14 And every beast after his kind - According to the phrase used in the history of the creation, Gen 1:21, Gen 1:24-25, to intimate, that just as many species as were created at first were saved now, and no more.
7:20 The mountains were covered - Therefore there were mountains before the flood.
7:21 All flesh died, all in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was on the dry land, every living substance - And why so? Man only had done wickedly, and justly is God's hand against him, but these sheep what have they done? I answer, 1. We are sure God did them no wrong. He is the sovereign Lord of all life, for he is the sole fountain and author of it. He that made them as he pleased, might unmake them when he pleased, and who shall say unto him, What dost thou? 2. God did admirably serve the purposes of his own glory by their destruction, as well as by their creation. Herein his holiness and justice were greatly magnified: by this it appears that he hates sin, and is highly displeased with sinners, when even the inferior creatures, because they are the servants of man, and part of his possession, and because they have been abused to be the servants of sin, are destroyed with him. It was likewise an instance of God's wisdom. As the creatures were made for man when he was made, so they were multiplied for him when he was multiplied; and therefore, now mankind was reduced to so small a number, it was fit that the beasts should proportionable be reduced, otherwise they would have had the dominion, and would have replenished the earth, and the remnant of mankind that was left would have been overpowered by them.