LastCall: The Value of a Soul -Bob Caldwell

The Value of a Soul

 9:6 Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man.

A respect for life is one of the key elements God requires of the new society Noah will establish on Earth. Specifically, God points to the fact that we are made in the image of Himself as the basis of showing respect for human life.

What we must take away from this statement is the intrinsic value God places upon all human life. This value is rooted in the fact that though marred by sin, we all still carry the image of God. We are unique among all living things, made for fellowship with God.

Friend or foe, believer or non-believer, regardless of political views or any other issue, basic respect for the worth of a human being must be a part of our value system. This value could go a long way in bringing about healing to the division and hardness we often carry toward others. Respect for life should be much more than a slogan—it must be a guide in our relationships with all people. May we yield to Christ’s life within us as a source to respect all who have been created in the image of God. Christ who dwells within us holds within His being love for the entire world He died for. We can thank God He is ready to express it through us.

Genesis 8:6-9:7

 6 So it came to pass, at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made. 7 Then he sent out a raven, which kept going to and fro until the waters had dried up from the earth. 8 He also sent out from himself a dove, to see if the waters had receded from the face of the ground. 9 But the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot, and she returned into the ark to him, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her, and drew her into the ark to himself. 10 And he waited yet another seven days, and again he sent the dove out from the ark. 11 Then the dove came to him in the evening, and behold, a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth; and Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth. 12 So he waited yet another seven days and sent out the dove, which did not return again to him anymore.

13 And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry. 14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried.

15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 “Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you: birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. 19 Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, according to their families, went out of the ark.

God’s Covenant with Creation

20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And the LORD smelled a soothing aroma. Then the LORD said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.

v. 7 raven – This bird likely found resting places on mountain peaks and food floating in the water.

v. 8 dove – This bird found no rest or landing area since doves only settle on places that are both dry and clean (v. 9).

v. 11 olive leaf – Olive trees will put out leaves even under water, and this leaf was the first token of Earth’s resurrection.

v. 12 seven days These seven day intervals indicate that Noah sent out this dove as a part of his worship on the Sabbath.

did not return – This would assure Noah that the earth was dry enough and was capable of providing food for the released animals.

v. 14 the second month, twenty seventh day – Noah spent a total of one year and ten days in the ark according to a thirty-day month. It would have been one year and five days according to today’s solar year. This number is the result of the calculations in the table below.

Noah Enters a New World (Verses 15-22)

v. 15 go out – Noah is commanded by God to release the animals and allow them to replenish the earth.

v. 20 built an altar – Noah’s first recorded act was to build an altar to worship God. Noah realized that if there was to be any hope for a new world, it must begin in worship of God.

every clean animal – This refers to animals free of blemishes, diseases, or defects of any kind and were safe for man to eat.

Lord said in His heart – God responded to Noah’s worship with grace. Even though fallen humanity inevitably produces sin again, He will not destroy the earth as He just had. God clarifies this promise in Genesis 9:11-17. He promises to never destroy the earth by flood. There will, however, be one final judgment upon the earth at the end of time, after which God will create a new heavens and earth (2 Pet. 3:10-13, Rev. 20:11-15, 21:1).

man’s heart is evil – Until the heart of a person is changed by being born again there is no ultimate solution to the condition of the sinful nature we all inherit from Adam and Eve.

22 “While the earth remains,
Seedtime and harvest,
Cold and heat,
Winter and summer,
And day and night
Shall not cease.”

Genesis 9

1 So 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 shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. 3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. 4 But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. 5 Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man’s brother I will require the life of man.

v. 22 Earth remains – God’s promise that the cycle of life will continue on the earth.

CHAPTER 9 New Relationship among Man and Beast (Verses 1-7)

v. 1 blessed – This means to bestow a gift, a benefit, to extend good will.

be fruitful – Noah receives the order to do what had been originally been given to Adam. In this we see God’s grace to give a new beginning.

v. 2 fear – God makes clear that the relationship between man and beast will change. In the millennial kingdom there will be a restoration of the harmonious relationship between man and beast, as well as among those in the animal kingdom (Isaiah 11:6-9).

v. 3 food – It seems the major changes caused by the flood required man be given the freedom to eat meat as a source of nutrition. Up until this time there is no indication that humans ate meat.

v. 4 blood – Blood provides the transportation of the necessary nutrients and air to the brain and the rest of the body to maintain life. This life-giving force is to be respected (Lev. 17:11).

v. 5 sheds man’s blood – Capital punishment is established as the first responsibility of human government as a necessary response to murder. The need for government to establish a moral framework for society is more completely developed under the Mosaic law. The need for human government is restated in the New Testament in Romans 13:1-5.

image of God – Extreme value is placed upon mankind even after the fall. We are uniquely connected to God because we are made in His image. A high regard for human life is seen in the severe punishment upon those who disregard life, committing murder.

The Time of the Flood

Months

Days

Total Days

Scripture

Flood begins. The rain and subterranean waters break loose.

2

17

 

7:11

Flood continues for 40 days.

 

 

40

7:12

Flood prevails for a total of 150 days.

 

 

150

7:24

Ark settles on Mt. Ararat on the same day the waters begin to recede (150 after the flood began).

7

17

150

8:4

Mountaintops are seen 73 days later.

10

1

223

8:5

Raven sent after 40 days.

 

 

263

8:6

Dove sent after 7 days.

 

 

270

8:8-10

Dove sent after 7 more days and returned with a tree branch.

 

 

277

8:10

Earth's surface is seen to be drying 29 days later.

1

1

313

8:13

Earth's surface is dried 57 days later.

2

27

370

8:14

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