““This is like the days of Noah to me: as I swore that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you, and will not rebuke you.” Isaiah 54:9 ESV
Reflection: what was God’s purpose with the flood during the days of Noah?
The flood was real.
It is not just a cute Bible story, about Noah and his family, a boat, and lots of animals. This actually happened, and there is significant archaeological evidence of such an event. If you ever have a chance, it is well worth taking a trip to Kentucky to have the “Ark Encounter” where a real life Ark has been built to biblical specifications, allowing you to walk through and experience what that was all about. It connects the results of man’s sin with God’s purpose and provision, and His eternal plan for salvation through Jesus. It makes the whole connected story very real as you walk through this Ark replica.
And in Isaiah 54, we are introduced to the eternal oath, the eternal covenant of peace, that the Lord is announcing, as a result of the faithful servant of the Lord, Jesus Christ, that we read about in the previous chapter. Let’s read a few select verses from chapter 54. ““Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called. For the Lord has called you like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit, like a wife of youth when she is cast off, says your God. For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer. “This is like the days of Noah to me: as I swore that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you, and will not rebuke you. For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you.”” Isaiah 54:4-10 ESV
Notice that we are again reminded of this story of Noah, by the Lord God Himself, starting with the words “This is like the days of Noah to me:” Isaiah 54:9a ESV. For some reason, I just really like that the Lord here is saying “to me”. It is so endearing, so personal, as if He is telling a story that is important to Him. Now, He wants to draw our attention to first what happened with the flood, where pretty much all flesh had to be destroyed due to corruption (there is a lot here to study about what sort of corruption was going on, if interested and you have some time. Read Genesis 5-9). Anyway, as the Lord made an oath never to flood the earth again, we see Him make a new, similar oath here, “as I swore that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you, and will not rebuke you.” Isaiah 54:9b ESV. Keep this in mind for a bit. Because I want us to look at a third reference to Noah and the flood, for a moment.
Let’s read Jesus’ words, from the book of Matthew “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Matthew 24:37-44 ESV
It is so interesting that Jesus invokes the same imagery of the days of Noah here again, talking about the end times and His return. Now, is there a connection between these three times this story has been used? Perhaps multiple. In the first reference, Genesis 6, we see the destruction of man’s corruption (ultimately sin), and a rescue of God’s children and creation. The second reference, Isaiah 54, we see the Lord announcing his eternal plan, making a covenant of peace, which clearly will be fully fulfilled when all sin has been permanently removed, which will be in the heavenly Jerusalem. And the third reference, Matthew 24, we see Jesus describing when and how the fulfillment of that promise will happen.
It is amazing to see the “thread” through the word of God, how He communicates His will and His works. We can see the outlines of the same story in each of these examples, of sin and grace, of the need to ultimately destroy sin and evil, to fully usher in the covenant of peace. And, how close are we to the last event, of the coming of the Son of Man?
