But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you. Genesis 6:18
God blesses Noah and his sons and tells them the same thing He had told Adam: Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth. Increase greatly. Multiply within it.
But God also tells him that something is different now: the fear and dread of humans is now in the animals. They have become wild. So the soil is cursed, to be difficult to reap from it, and now the animals are also cursed. God also adds animals to the menu. Meat had not been mentioned as a source of food before. A certain animosity arises between mankind and the rest of the animal kingdom. Man is top of the food chain, but it is now a battle.
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 all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. . . . 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." Genesis 9:12-17
Here we find the first mention of a covenant with God. The covenant came with a sign, which is probably the second-most-famous thing that Noah is known for: the rainbow. But the bow was only a sign of the covenant, not the covenant itself. The covenant was to spare Noah and his family, and to spare all future generations of humans and animals, from annihilation by water. No more will God destroy every living thing by water. Every living thing with breath had been destroyed by the flood, along with people who were so evil. Their fate was wrapped up in that of their ruler, mankind. So now, they are included in the covenantal promise from God never to destroy all breathing things by a flood of water.
There is more to glean from this covenant with Noah. Any covenant is a solemn agreement, and is strikingly similar to a peace treaty that is signed when a lesser king surrenders to a greater king.
Let me tell what I have heard about how covenants were made in ancient times. There are some written accounts, and they often look like this: When the time has come that the lesser king realizes that he cannot defeat the greater king, he comes in unconditional surrender. The greater king is sitting on his throne and the lesser king enters with his kingly robe in hand. As he enters the throne room, he must pass through some animals (or people) who have been cut in half. One half of the body on the left and the other half on the right. The message is the lesser king saying, “May this be done to me if I betray your confidence in me.” And the message of the greater king is, “This will be done to you if you do not keep your agreement with me.” He presents the train of his robe to the greater king, who accepts it and will add it to his own train. The greater the king, the longer his train, which is made up of all of the kingdoms he has conquered. You might say that the Greatest King of all has conquered every earthly kingdom, and his robe is so long that the train of His robe would fill the temple itself.
...and the train of his robe filled the Temple. Isaiah 6:1
Then the lesser king bows in homage to the greater king. This is no polite bow; it is complete prostration, lying facedown and flat, completely vulnerable and defenseless. He kisses the feet of the greater king, as an ultimate act of extreme submission.
Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Psalms 2:12
He says words similar to these: “Behold your servant. On behalf of my people, I say that we surrender, wholly and without condition. We, my people and I, have been your enemies, but now we plead for your mercy. Our land is yours, and all its people. Do with us as you will.”
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you. James 4:10
The greater king has the option now of accepting or rejecting the lesser king's offer. He could step on the neck of the lesser king, or perhaps run him through with a sword while he lies there defenseless. After all, they had just been at war as all-out sworn enemies. On the other hand, he could choose to restore him and make peace. So the greater king bends down and lifts the head of the lesser king. This is not a time for shame or blame, but of reconciliation.
But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. Psalms 3:3
And the greater king says a speech like this. “Do not tremble or be afraid. I will be your king, and you will be my people. I will care for you and protect you, am fully commit myself to you as your king.
. . . they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. Revelation 21:3
Then the two kings—the greater king and the lesser king—sit down to share in a covenantal meal together. The greater king has had his servants prepare the food, and the lesser king has nothing to contribute. He must trust that his former adversary’s intentions are good, for he has brought no wine taster for protection. The two rulers sit and dine, one as host and one as guest, eating as if they were equals, but in the meal itself proving in a very personal way that the one who gives generously is superior person in the room. This is an intimate exercise in learning to trust one another. The dance of hospitality.
One last important mention about the worship of Noah. It involved passing through water. Dangerously facing death and being led through to the other side. It was a kind of baptism, you might say.
It was not unlike the baptism of Moses and the people of Israel there at the Red Sea. That also might be considered a kind of baptism, passing through dangerous waters and finding life on the other side.
. . . our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, 1 Corinthians 10:1-3
Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan, not because our Lord had sinned and needed to be forgiven in a covenantal washing, but “in order to fulfill all righteousness.”
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he consented. Matthew 3:13-15
For all the people of Israel, John the Immerser was offering a baptism “of repentance.” People were confessing their sins, and then receiving a clean slate with God. The Holy Spirit was not yet given to people at the moment of their baptism under John, but Jesus’ baptism included more than just forgiveness. Thanks to the Spirit, not only was the slate wiped clean, but it became possible to walk in holiness, as the Holy Spirit came to dwell in each believer.
And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John's baptism.” And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying. Acts 19:1-6
And Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38
So, there it is: Noah worshiped God by listening and obeying what He said, faithfully proclaiming to all who would hear about the coming judgment. Noah worshiped by being baptized in obedience to God. And so may we worship in those all those same ways as did Noah.
And then . . . Then, Noah and his sons had a major fall.
Noah began to be a man of the soil, and he planted a vineyard. Genesis 9:20
After all of his righteousness and faith, Noah was not perfect. Noah got drunk. He lay asleep and exposed in his tent. His son, Ham happened to see him in this compromised state, and rather than covering his father’s shame, he told his brothers about it. Maybe it was slander. Maybe it was gossip. Maybe he made a joke out of it. But one thing is apparent: Ham did not honor his father. in turn, Noah cursed Ham’s son and his future descendants. And there it is; we are right back at it again. Evil is back.
Of the aftermath, I will only make two observations about the end of chapter 9. First, there were no Ten Commandments yet, to tell Ham to honor his father and mother, and there were no commandments not to get drunk. But somehow both of those principles were known. At least back as far as Noah, the human conscience and sense of morality are clear.
And let me just note again the significance of the third generation: Noah was compromised, his son Ham disrespected his father, and Ham’s son Canaan is the one who was cursed. Fathers, be aware that you are not just raising a son, but you are influencing the next generation, as well. Be responsible. For their sake. For their children’s sake.