Genesis 9

God blesses mankind

1 And 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 will be on every animal of the earth, and on every bird of the air, on all that moves on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea; they are delivered into your hand. 3 Every moving thing that lives will be your food; just as the green herb I have given you all things. 4 Only do not eat flesh with its life, its blood.

• God is the LORD, the absolute authority in the universe.
• He pronounced happiness over Noah and his sons.
• Not only were they to fill the earth with their offspring but God put the fear and dread of man on all the animals, fish, and birds.
• The word ‘replenish’ means to fill, to glut to saturation.
• God can feed large populations. He sends scarcity to jolt man out of idolatry that leads to eternal death.
• God added animals to man’s diet at this time. But they had to drain the blood out first because blood was the sign of the everlasting covenant showing God’s infinite love poured out to save us (Hebrews 9:14).
   

God established capital punishment for murder

5 And surely I will require your lifeblood; at the hand of every animal I will require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother I will require the life of man. 6 Whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood is to be shed: for he made man in the image of God.

• It is a sacred honor that man was made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27).
• Noah and his family had just come through a historical era of great violence.
• In Genesis 4 God had allowed Cain, the world’s first murderer, to live so that he could return to God.
• God showed that this doesn’t work and He changed the rule.
• Exodus 20 and 21 explain this to speak of premeditated murder but not accidental killing.
• For accidental killing, a city was provided where the killer could flee and be safe from the brother or nearest relative of the dead person.
• However, vehicular homicide due to intoxication or drugs is not an accident because we have prior knowledge that it is dangerous.

7 And you, be fruitful and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth and multiply in it. 8 And God spoke to Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, 9 And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; 10 And with every living creature that is with you of the birds, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. 11 And I will establish my covenant with you; and never again cut off all flesh by the waters of a flood or destroy the earth by the waters of a flood.

• A covenant is a divine legal contract with our Creator.

• Psalm 89:34 I will not break my covenant or alter the thing that has gone out of my lips.

• Isaiah 55:3 Incline your ear, and come to me: hear, and your soul will live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you…

• John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have everlasting life.

God gave the rainbow as the sign of His promise

12 And God said, This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations. 13 I set my bow in the cloud. And it will be a sign of a covenant between me and the earth. 14 And it will happen, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud: 15 And I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters will no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 And the bow will be in the cloud; and I will look on it and 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 that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.

• When Ezekiel saw visions of God he saw a sapphire throne and on that throne the likeness of a man of fiery amber flashing forth rainbows (Ezekiel 1:26-28).
• Our first covenant with God is salvation by faith in God’s promised Savior. 7,000 promises follow this first covenant of faith.

18 And the sons of Noah that went out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth: Ham is the father of Canaan. 19 These are the three sons of Noah: and by them the whole earth was overspread.

• God began a new civilization with these three men. Every person on planet earth today has come from one of these three sons of Noah.

20 And Noah began farming, and he planted a vineyard: 21 And he drank of the wine and was drunk; and he was uncovered within his tent. 22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. 23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it on both their shoulders, and went backward and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward so they did not see their father's nakedness. 24 And Noah woke up from his wine and realized what his younger son had done to him. 25 And he said, Cursed be Canaan; he will be a servant of servants to his brothers. 26 And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan will be his servant. 27 God will enlarge Japheth, and he will dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan will be his servant. 28 And Noah lived 350 years after the flood. 29 And all the days of Noah were 950 years: and he died.

• These actions of Noah’s three sons have had great impact on the world.
• Noah pronounced divine goodness, protection, and blessing on Shem and Japheth.
• Japheth fathered the races of large populations while Shem’s line carried the spiritual heritage of the covenants and words of Almighty God.

• History confirms the result of these blessings and curses.
•  Ham’s dishonorable behavior showed a weakness that a curse of servitude would help to correct.
• Discipline is an act of love. It is hard but necessary.

• Hebrews 12:6 The Lord disciplines those he loves, and scourges every son whom he receives. 7 If you endure discipline, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father does not discipline. 8 If you are without discipline of which all are partakers, then are you bastards and not sons. 9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh that corrected us, and we gave them reverence: should we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits, and live?

• Exodus 34:6,7… the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth. 7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the children’s children to the third and to the fourth generation.

                                         Genesis 10

1 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and sons were born to them after the flood. 2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 3 And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. 4 And the sons of Javan; Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5 By these were the coastlands of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.

• The word ‘generations’ means birth histories.
• Three family trees branch off from Noah to fill the whole world until the end of time.
• Isaiah 41:4Who has worked and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.
   

6 And the sons of Ham; Cush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan. 7 And the sons of Cush; Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabtecha: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan. 8 And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth.

All life is before God

9 (Nimrod) He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: so it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD. 10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.

• Proverbs 15:3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place beholding the evil and the good.
   

11 And from that land he went into Assyria and built Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth and Calah, 12 And Resen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city. 13 And Mizraim begat Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, 14 Pathrusim, Casluhim, (out of whom came Philistim (Philistines), and Caphtorim.15 And Canaan begat Sidon his firstborn, Heth, 16 And the Jebusite, the Amorite, the Girgasite, 17 the Hivite, the Arkite, and the Sinite, 18 the Arvadite, the Zemarite, and the Hamathite: and afterward the families of the Canaanites were spread abroad. 19 And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as you come to Gerar, to Gaza; as you go to Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboim, even to Lasha. 20 These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations.

• Jeremiah 10:10the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth will tremble, the nations will not be able to abide his indignation.

21 Unto Shem also, the brother of Japheth the elder, the father of all the children of Eber, children were born to him. 22 The children of Shem; Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram. 23 And the children of Aram; Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. 24 And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber. 25 And two sons were born to Eber: the name of one was Peleg for in his day the earth was divided; and his brother's name was Joktan.

• Eber is the origin of the word Hebrew.
• In the time of Peleg (BC 2247) God divided the landmass into continents.
• Plate tectonics or continental drift is confirmed here. Peleg was given his name because of this event.
• The landmasses split at God’s direction and separated the human race so that God’s purpose for mankind could be fulfilled. God wants man to seek Him.

• Acts 17:24-28God that made the world and all things in it, since he is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; 25 Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, since he gives to all life, and breath, and all things; 26 And made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined the times before appointed, and the boundaries of their habitation; 27 That they seek the Lord, if perhaps they might feel after him, and find him, though he is not far from every one of us: 28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being…

26 And Joktan begat Almodad, Sheleph, Hazar-maveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan. 30 Their dwelling was from Mesha, as you go to Sephar, a mount of the east. 31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations. 32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these the nations were divided in the earth after the flood.

• The birth of the Savior of the world, the One promised in Genesis 3:15 is traced into humanity through the line of Shem.

• Deuteronomy 32:8When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the boundaries of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.

                                          Genesis 11

1 And the whole earth was one language and one speech. 2 And it happened as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they lived there. 3 And they said to one another, Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and they had bitumen for morter. 4 And they said, Come, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach to heaven; and let us make a name for ourselves, so that we will not be scattered abroad on the face of the whole earth.

• God had told them to fill the whole earth, to spread abroad. ‘that we not be scattered abroad’ was disobedience to God.
• “The purpose in this tower was to cast out God as ruler of mankind and institute a government of man” (John Hagee).
• Archaeologists have found many cone-shaped ziggurats in Shinar.
• One of the largest has the zodiac signs etched in the stonework at its peak.
• This was the high place for their false religious system.
• Seeking to make a name for ourselves comes from pride.
• In Genesis 12 God promised Abraham many things including, “I will make your name great.”
• Man didn’t create the universe; man doesn’t sustain all life. Man hasn’t done great things compared to God.

• Jeremiah 9:23-24 The LORD says this, do not let the wise man boast in his wisdom, or let the mighty man boast in his strength, do not let the rich man glory in his riches: 24 But let him that boasts glory in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who exercises loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth: for I delight in these things, says the LORD.

• 1 Corinthians 1:319 it is written, He that glories, let him glory in the Lord.

God stopped mans plan so that God’s plan would continue

5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the children of men built. 6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people are united, and they all have one language; and they begin to do this: now nothing will be restrained from them that they have imagined to do. 7 Come, let us go down there and confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another's speech. 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from there on the face of all the earth: and they stopped building the city. 9 So the name of it was called Babel/confusion; because the LORD confused the language of all the earth: and from there the LORD scattered them abroad on the face of all the earth.

• The false religious system that began in Genesis 11 with Nimrod continues throughout history until it receives final judgment from God in Revelation 18 as Babylon, the great whore.
• Whoredom against God is worshipping anything other than God Almighty, our Creator. It leads to eternal death.
• By this gentle judgment God’s purpose for man continued.
• One day in the future God will reverse his confusing of the languages.

• Zephaniah 3:9 For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call on the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent.

• Acts 17:24-28 God that made the world and all things in it, since that he is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; 25 Neither is worshipped with men's hands as though he needed any thing, since he gives to all life, and breath, and all things; 26 And has made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined the times before appointed, and the boundaries of their habitation; 27 That they would seek the Lord, if perhaps they might feel after him, and find him, though he is not far from every one of us: 28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being…

10 These are the generations of Shem: Shem was 100 years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood: 11 And Shem lived 500 years after he begat Arphaxad, and begat sons and daughters. 12 And Arphaxad lived 35 years, and begat Salah: 13 And Arphaxad lived 403 years after he begat Salah, and begat sons and daughters. 14 And Salah lived 30, and begat Eber: 15 And Salah lived 403 years after he begat Eber, and begat sons and daughters. 16 And Eber lived 34 years, and begat Peleg: 17 And Eber lived 430 years after he begat Peleg, and begat sons and daughters.18 And Peleg lived 30 years, and begat Reu: 19 And Peleg lived 209 years after he begat Reu, and begat sons and daughters. 20 And Reu lived 32 years, and begat Serug: 21 And Reu lived 207 years after he begat Serug, and begat sons and daughters.

• God is the ultimate Father.
• He designed each person in His image.
• He attends each of us from birth to death.
• He strives with us and guides us.
• God calls forth the generations.
• And He brings those who overcome by faith Him to sit with Him on His eternal throne forever.

• Revelation 3:21 To him that overcomes I will grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

• Isaiah 41:4 Who has worked and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.

22 And Serug lived 30 years, and begat Nahor: 23 And Serug lived 200 years after he begat Nahor, and begat sons and daughters. 24 And Nahor lived 29 years, and begat Terah: 25And Nahor lived after he begat Terah 119 years, and begat sons and daughters.

• God loves people.
• There are many lists of names of people in His Word.
• We will know many of these people in heaven because of God’s grace poured out through His Son’s death on the cross for our sins.
• This list is also the countdown of generations that lead to the birth the Savior.

• Deuteronomy 32:9 the Lord’s portion is His people.

26 And Terah lived 70 years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27 Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot. 28 And Haran died before his sire Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29 And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the sire of Milcah, and the sire of Iscah. 30 But Sarai was barren; she had no child.

• Terah means delay, snoring.
• Joshua 24 tells us that Terah worshipped false gods.
• God uses our troubles to build our faith and bring us into His promised land for us.
• The problem of Sarai’s barrenness taught both Abram and Sarai to walk by faith, trusting in God alone.

• Joshua 24:2 And Joshua said to all the people, the LORD God of Israel says this, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the river in ancient time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nahor: and they served other gods.

31 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went out together from Ur of the Chaldees, to go to the land of Canaan; and they came to Haran, and lived there. 32 And the days of Terah were 205 years: and Terah died in Haran.

• Genesis 12:1 tells why they left their homeland in Ur of the Chaldees.
• It was an act of faith.

• Genesis 12:1 Now the LORD had said to Abram, Get out of your country, and from your kindred, and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you:

• Hebrews 11:9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: 10 For he looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

• 1Corinthians 2:9 Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man, the things that God has prepared for those that love him.

• Psalm 90:1O LORD, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.

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SUMMARY: Genesis 9-11

• God blesses mankind
• He established capital punishment for murder
• He gave the rainbow of the sign of His promise
• He calls forth the generations
• He stopped man's plan to unite against Him