Gen 9: Covenant of the Rainbow

csldailydevotion

26 Feb 07

Devotion 13 – Gen 9: Covenant of the Rainbow

1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.

2 "The fear of you and the terror of you will be on every beast of the earth and on every bird of the sky; with everything that creeps on the ground, and all the fish of the sea, into your hand they are given.

3 "Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; I give all to you, as I gave the green plant.

4 "Only you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.

5 "Surely I will require your lifeblood; from every beast I will require it. And from every man, from every man's brother I will require the life of man.

6 "Whoever sheds man's blood,
By man his blood shall be shed,
For in the image of God
He made man.

7 "As for you, be fruitful and multiply;
Populate the earth abundantly and multiply in it."

This is like a replay in the garden of Eden. Man was given the power and role to dominate the earth again. Here we see Noah receiving a commission from God to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth”.

The same condition was also provided for man i.e. other created beings will fear man, meaning man can provide dominance over them. But there is also a condition of limit - do not drink blood/lifeblood. The principle drawn for human is that we must not commit murder.

When we examine these 7 verses, you would see that the commission is repeated in v7. it reveals God’s desire for man to fill and tend the created world by God. Yet so often we desire “closeness” with others > the commission of God.

That is what eventually led to the tower of babel. Be discerning. What is the commission of God in your life? Are you compromising it?


CSL