Commentary and Reflection:
It is evident in chapter 9 that the episode of the flood was difficult and sad for God. After having preserved them during the universal cataclysm, He blesses His children again and reminds them that they were created in his image, that whoever takes the life of another human being commits a serious offense before Him.“Lest the gathering clouds and falling rain should fill men with constant terror, from fear of another flood, the Lord encouraged the family of Noah by a promise: ‘I will establish My covenant with you…neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth…’” PP 85
The Lord places the precious rainbow in the sky as the sign of the covenant. God is a God of commitment, that’s why he likes to covenant with his children. Through the covenants, He gives his word of protection, blessing, and salvation. The covenants come with a sign to help us remember, such as sacrifices, the circumcision, the Sabbath, the Holy Supper, and the rainbow. The rainbow is a precious symbol of His grace and mercy, it represents the opportunity of a fresh start after the storm. It is a reminder that His promise for difficult times is firm, and His compassion and grace transcend His judgments. From Genesis to Revelation, the rainbow is a visible symbol of the presence and power of God.
The evil of the antediluvians reared its ugly head again, none other than in Noah and his family. Years later, Noah got drunk and, because of his drunkenness, got naked in the middle of his tent. Ham saw him and committed the sin of dishonoring his father by showing others his nakedness. Some speculate that there was something more sinister, but there is no biblical evidence to support it. The arguments to support this theory are that, in Leviticus 18, the expression “to uncover nakedness” refers to a serious act of sexual impurity, and that, an immoral act of Ham with his father, could have been the origin of the homosexual practices of the Canaanites. Whatever it was, we can learn that a son should always take care of his father’s honor and that he should protect it, even if his father has made mistakes. Honoring your father and mother is one of the 10 Commandments in God’s Law.
How badly we need God’s grace! No one is free from erring, we all must be watchful, and we all need His grace.
“The chronological information about Noah’s age makes us realize that Noah serves as a link between the pre-Flood and the post-Flood civilizations. The last two verses of the preceding story (Gen. 9:28, 29) take us back to the last link of the genealogy of Adam (Gen. 5:32). Because Adam died when Lamech, Noah’s father, was 56 years old, Noah must surely have heard stories about Adam, which he could have transmitted to his descendants before and after the Flood. The biblical genealogy has three functions. First, it emphasizes the historical nature of the biblical events, which are related to real people who lived and died and whose days are precisely numbered. Second, it demonstrates the continuity from antiquity to the contemporary time of the writer, establishing a clear link with the past to the “present.” Third, it reminds us of human fragility and of the tragic effect of sin’s curse and its deadly results on all the generations that have followed.” Sabbath School lesson from April 25, 2022.
