Genesis Chapter 8 Notes

God remembered that Noah, his family, and the other animals were still in the boat. So he sent a wind to blow so that the land can eventually dry up. After 150 days  (5 months after the flood started) the boat rested on the mountains of Ararat. About two and a half months later, the water started to go down, and other mountains became visible. Then another 40 days later, Noah opened an window and sent a bird out to check and see if the water had dried up from off the earth. That bird flew back and forth. He also sent out a dove, but when that dove could not find any dry land it flew back into the boat. 7 days later, Noah sent the dove out a second time. The dove returned a second time with an fresh olive leaf in his beak. Then Noah waited another seven days and sent the dove out a 3rd time but the Dove did not return.

I want to take a moment and say that numbers are important in scriptures. 7 days Noah sent the dove out a second time to see if the land was try. It was also the 7th day that God rested from all the work that he had made. 40 days the storm lasted, 40 days Moses was in the mountain fasting and talking to God. The number 40 in the Bible is symbolic of a period of testing. Noah's faith was put to the test for 40 days and 40 nights because he had to stay inside the boat. I don't know about you, but I can't imagine just sitting in one place for 40 days. That had to be a test of faith. The Children of Israel was tested in the wilderness for 40 years but of course we will get to that later. Jesus Christ himself fasted for 40 days and was tempted by the devil. Jesus also ascended into heaven 40 days after his resurrection but we will get to that later as well. In my opinion the number 40 represent a process. The number 3 have a very significant meaning as well. Three represent the will of God. God sent 3 messengers to Abraham to tell Sarah that she would conceive in her old age. Saul had to face 3 years of famine. Elijah stretched forth his body over a dead child three times and the child came to life again. Three men were sent to the furnace of fire because they would not worship the King's god. Jonah was trapped in a big fish for 3 days and 3 nights because he was disobedient to God. Paul was blind for 3 days after his encounter with Jesus Christ. The Godhead is one in 3 persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God rose Jesus Christ up on the 3rd day. 3 times Peter denied Jesus Christ. 3 times Paul prayed to the Lord and the Lord responded that my Grace is sufficient. Also, when 2 or 3 are gathered, the Lord is there in the midst.

Now back on track. I almost got too deep with those numbers, lol. So in 2 more months the earth was completely dried. I imagine that God raised up the Son up during the day to dry the earth because there was probably no sewage system like there is in today's time. Then God told Noah that he, his family and the animals can now leave the boat. I imagine that Noah, his wife, their sons, and then their sons wives left the boat by two's. Then Noah (having authority over the animals) had them leave the boat single filed in pairs of twos. Right after they left the boat, Noah built an altar to the Lord and killed an animal, burned it and offered it as a sacrifice to the Lord.  The Lord was so pleased with Noah and Noah's offering that He said that He would never curse the ground again because He actually understands that human beings have a wicked heart that was created in them from birth. He also promised not to destroy all living things. He also said that as long as the earth will remain, there will be seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night. We can definitely see proof of that in the weather, gardens, and the time. For an example, when a gardener plants a seed in the garden, waters it, and the Lord gives it energy from the sunlight. It is then that the seed go from a seed to a plant with fruits and vegetables depending on what type of seed is planted. There is always summertime and winter time. I know we have four seasons, fall, winter, spring, and summer. However, fall weather is pretty much the beginning season of winter. Spring weather, is the beginning seasons of summer. In the fall, the leaves are falling down, the weather is getting cold, many of the birds fly soul, and one good thing about it the misquotes, and other annoying bugs seems to start disappearing. In the winter, everything dies. The bears hibernate, the snow falls on the ground depending on where you live it. The season itself is cold and people have to go out in their big warm coats, boots, gloves, hats, and scarfs. It's so cold that people have to turn on their heat in their homes and cars. The spring time, everything starts to grow. In the Spring, you see the caterpillar turning into the butterflies, the sun makes its way out, the leaves on the trees grow back, the snow mets, the bees and annoying misquotes and flies come back. In the spring time the beautiful birds starts singing their songs and wakes you up in the morning. The air seems fresh and the butterflies fly all over. The weather is warm and pleasant. The Summertime is hot! It's so hot that you have to wear shorts, capris, and sun dresses. People go swimming in the summer and turn on their central air or air conditioner to keep cool. People also have to either ride with their windows down or let the window up and turn on the air conditioner in their cars because thats how hot it is. The sun is beautiful in the summer but the energy from it is too hot sometimes, lol.  

My point for saying all this is that summer and winter is still here and comes around every year. Seedtime and harvest doesn't just apply to the seasons but it also applies to us as individuals. We can sow good seeds and reap good harvest. Let's ask God to show us what seeds He wants us to sow so that we can grow and reap an harvest in every area of our lives. 

Genesis 8:1-22

1 And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged;

2 The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained; 

3 And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated.

4 And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat.

5 And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.

6 And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made:

7 And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth.

8 Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground;

9 But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark.

10 And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; 

11 And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth. 

12 And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more.

13 And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry. 

14 And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried.

15 And God spake unto Noah, saying, 

16 Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee.

17 Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth.

18 And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him:

19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.

20 And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

21 And the Lord smelled a sweet savour; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

22 While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.