Genesis8

God remembered Noah and all living things in the ark, causing a wind to pass over the earth and the floodwaters to recede. The ark rested on the mountains of Ararat, and Noah sent out a raven and then doves to ascertain the earth's dryness, with the second dove returning with an olive leaf. Upon God's command, Noah, his family, and all the animals exited the ark onto the dry ground. Noah then built an altar and offered burnt offerings, prompting God to promise never again to curse the ground or destroy all living creatures by a flood, ensuring the continuation of seasons.
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God Causes the Waters to Recede

1
And God remembered Noah, and all the beasts, and all the cattle that were with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged; ​
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 a hundred and fifty days the waters decreased.
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.

Noah Sends Out the Birds

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, and it went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. ​
8
And he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground;
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but the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him to the ark; for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: and he put forth his hand, and took her, and brought 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 at eventide; and, lo, in her mouth an olive-leaf plucked 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; and she returned not again unto him any more.

The Earth Dries Completely

13
And it came to pass in the six hundred 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 dried. ​
14
And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dry.

God Commands the Family to Exit

15
And God spake unto Noah, saying,
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Go forth from 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 birds, and cattle, and 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 bird, whatsoever moveth upon the earth, after their families, went forth out of the ark.

Noah Sacrifices; God's Promise

20
And Noah builded an altar unto Jehovah, and took of every clean beast, and of every clean bird, and offered burnt-offerings on the altar. ​
21
And Jehovah smelled the sweet savor; and Jehovah said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake, for that the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more everything 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. ​

Study Notes for Genesis 8

Verse 1

The phrase 'God remembered Noah' is a theological term meaning God actively turned his attention to act on behalf of his covenant partner. The wind is the primary mechanism God uses to dry the earth, reversing the deluge caused by the 'fountains of the deep' (v. 2).

Verse 4

The ark rested on the 'mountains of Ararat,' a range located in modern-day Eastern Turkey. This marks the end of the 150 days during which the waters prevailed over the earth.

Verse 7

The raven is an unclean bird that sustains itself on carrion; its failure to return merely confirms that some dry surfaces were exposed where it could find sustenance, but not that the earth was habitable.

Verse 11

The olive leaf is a powerful symbol of renewal, life, and the return of vegetation. It confirms to Noah that the judgment had passed and the possibility of a fruitful future had returned to the earth.

Verse 13

Noah waited for God’s explicit command to exit (v. 15), even though he could see the ground was dry. The full duration of their confinement, from the start of the Flood (7:11) to this date, was slightly over a year.

Verse 17

God’s command to multiply and be fruitful echoes the original creation mandate (Gen 1:28). This signals the fresh start for humanity and creation, tasked with repopulating the earth.

Verse 20

Noah’s first act upon leaving the ark is worship, establishing the crucial role of sacrifice and devotion in the post-Flood world. He uses 'clean' animals, suggesting this distinction existed prior to the Mosaic Law.

Verse 21

The recognition that human nature remains inherently corrupt ('evil from his youth') leads God not to destroy humanity again, but to establish a covenant of divine restraint. God accepts the sacrifice as a 'sweet savour,' indicating divine acceptance.

Verse 22

This verse establishes the divine guarantee of cosmic stability, assuring Noah that the reliable cycles of nature (seasons, day/night) will continue. This covenant promise ensures the conditions necessary for human life and agriculture.

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