Genesis7

The LORD commands Noah, whom He deems righteous, to enter the ark with his family and specific numbers of animals, announcing a forty-day flood to destroy all living substance. Noah obeys, and after seven days, the flood begins, with rain for forty days and nights and the breaking of the great deep. The waters rise, covering the highest mountains, and all living creatures outside the ark perish, leaving only Noah and those with him alive.

God Commands Noah to Enter the Ark

1
Adonai said to Noach, “Come into the ark, you and all your household; for I have seen that you alone in this generation are righteous before me. ​
2
Of every clean animal you are to take seven couples, and of the animals that are not clean, one couple; ​
3
also of the birds in the air take seven couples — in order to preserve their species throughout the earth.
4
For in seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights; I will wipe out every living thing that I have made from the face of the earth.” ​
5
Noach did all that Adonai ordered him to do. ​
6
Noach was 600 years old when the water flooded the earth.
7
Noach went into the ark with his sons, his wife and his sons’ wives, because of the floodwaters.
8
Of clean animals, of animals that are not clean, of birds, and of everything that creeps on the ground,
9
couples, male and female, went in to Noach in the ark, as God had ordered Noach.
10
After seven days the water flooded the earth. ​

The Flood Waters Erupt

11
On the seventeenth day of the second month of the 600th year of Noach’s life all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of the sky were opened. ​
12
It rained on the earth forty days and forty nights. ​
13
On that same day Noach entered the ark with Shem, Ham and Yefet the sons of Noach, Noach’s wife and the three wives of his sons accompanying them;
14
they, and every animal of every species, all the livestock of every species, every animal that creeps on the ground of every species, and every bird of every species — all sorts of winged creatures.
15
They went in to Noach in the ark, couples from every kind of living thing that breathes.
16
Those that entered went in, male and female, from every kind of living being, as God had ordered him; and Adonai shut him inside. ​

The Waters Prevail and Destroy All Life

17
The flood was forty days on the earth; the water grew higher and floated the ark, so that it was lifted up off the earth. ​
18
The water overflowed the earth and grew deeper, until the ark floated on the surface of the water.
19
The water overpowered the earth mightily; all the high mountains under the entire sky were covered; ​
20
the water covered the mountains by more than twenty-two-and-a-half feet. ​
21
All living beings that moved on the earth perished — birds, livestock, other animals, insects, and every human being, ​
22
everything in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life; whatever was on dry land died.
23
He wiped out every living thing on the surface of the ground — not only human beings, but livestock, creeping animals and birds in the air. They were wiped out from the earth; only Noach was left, along with those who were with him in the ark. ​
24
The water held power over the earth for 150 days. ​

Study Notes for Genesis 7

Verse 1

Noah’s righteousness is the basis for his salvation amidst universal judgment. This highlights the doctrine of election; Noah was saved not by his works, but by his faith and moral standing in a wicked generation (Gen 6:9).

Verse 2

The distinction between clean and unclean animals precedes the Mosaic Law, indicating an early understanding of purity. The seven pairs of clean animals were necessary for post-flood sacrifices (Gen 8:20) and for sustaining the renewed world.

Verse 4

The period of forty days and forty nights is a symbolic duration in scripture, representing a time of testing, judgment, or preparation (e.g., Israel in the wilderness, Jesus’ temptation).

Verse 5

This verse emphasizes Noah’s obedience, a recurring theme that contrasts sharply with the disobedience of the rest of humanity described in the preceding chapter.

Verse 10

The completion of the seven-day waiting period initiated by God (v. 4) signals the precise moment the patience of God toward the wicked generation ceased and divine judgment began.

Verse 11

This verse describes the two sources of the catastrophe, demonstrating the flood was not merely local rain: the 'fountains of the great deep' (subterranean waters) and the 'windows of heaven' (atmospheric waters). This describes a global, cataclysmic event.

Verse 12

The forty days of rain served as both the final mechanism of judgment and a clear marker of the initial phase of the rising waters.

Verse 16

The detail that 'the LORD shut him in' is crucial. It signifies that salvation and protection were secured entirely by divine action, and once the door was sealed by God, the time for repentance had passed.

Verse 17

The forty days mark the duration of the rising waters, which lifted the massive ark off the ground, confirming its successful construction and the power of the flood.

Verse 19

The statement that 'all the high hills... were covered' confirms the universal scope of the flood, emphasizing that God's judgment was comprehensive across the entire terrestrial sphere.

Verse 20

Fifteen cubits (approx. 22.5 feet) above the highest mountains indicates a depth sufficient to ensure the ark floated safely above any submerged obstructions or peaks.

Verse 21

This verse stresses the totality of the destruction, encompassing all land-dwelling creatures, and reversing the creation order established in Genesis 1 and 2.

Verse 23

The contrast between the destruction of 'every living substance' and the survival of 'Noah only' highlights the effectiveness of God’s judgment and the singular nature of His grace and covenant with Noah.

Verse 24

The hundred and fifty days marks the full duration that the waters continued to prevail at their maximum height before God remembered Noah and began the process of recession (Gen 8:1).

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