Read Genesis 7-8 at Bible Gateway.
Then the LORD said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation.” Gen 7:1
It is a temptation to think that because Noah was righteous – he acted rightly and not wrongly in living his life – God invited him to come into the ark — that his righteousness was the cause of his salvation. But the Torah does not teach this. Rather, in the previous chapter:
But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. Gen 6:8
In the New Testament we are exhorted, if we have found grace, then we ought to walk or act in the right manner (Eph 4:17-24). Grace precedes righteousness, and righteousness becomes the evidence of previously received grace, in Noah’s case, and consistently through Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation.
For further study: In Gen chapters 6-8, three words occur over and over again: “all,” “every,” and “only.” They are not there by accident, but God placed them there intentionally. Repetition is a teaching tool that God has embedded in His Word! Find all their occurrences and write them out. Based on what you find, was Noah careless in his obedience to God’s commands? What if he had been? Regardless of what man teaches, does the Scripture teach that the Flood was a local event? Were some outside the ark able to escape its effects another way? Knowing that a major purpose of Torah is to teach us of Messiah, why is this important?
Finding Messiah: Scripture teaches a consistent and unchanging gospel of salvation from Genesis to Revelation:
“Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive.” Gen 7:23
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Joh 14:6
“Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Act 4:12
For further reading:
Answers about the Flood
<– 5-6 genesis 9-10 –>
genesis index ::: ::: ::: one year reading schedule
Leave a Reply