Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth.
God directed Noah to bring the fowls of the air by sevens, male and female, and he did according to all that was commanded in order to keep seed alive upon the earth so their kinds would survive the Flood and continue. The clean birds coming by sevens shows the clean and unclean distinction was known at the Flood long before any Jew existed, resting on nature and habits rather than an arbitrary rule, so that what is unclean by nature remains unfit for food. They came of themselves with no human hand driving them, led by angels under God's invisible leadership in great numbers over seven days after food was taken in and before Noah and his family were shut in. This was done amid a corrupt earth filled with violence and continual evil, where Noah preached righteousness for one hundred and twenty years while the pleasure-loving inhabitants mocked and only eight persons were saved alive when the Lord shut them in and the waters prevailed. As the Flood came and took them all away, so shall the coming of the Son of man be, with increasing wickedness and calamities now warning of another general destruction from which the ark of safety is entered by accepting salvation through Christ and obeying all His commandments.
Birds Kept Alive by Sevens
God directed that fowls of the air be brought by sevens, male and female, and Noah did according to all that was commanded. The birds were brought into the ark in groups of seven, male and female, so that seed could be preserved and their kind kept alive across the earth after the Flood. Their preservation was to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth, so that their kinds would survive the Flood and continue on earth. The dumb animals quietly entered two and two, male and female, under the invisible leadership of God to keep seed alive, and the animals were housed inside to keep seed alive upon the earth. Noah went into the ark with his sons and his wife and his sons' wives because of the waters of the flood, and the Lord shut him in. In the six hundredth year of his life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the fountains of the great deep were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened, and rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights and prevailed a hundred and fifty days until all outside perished.
The clean birds also came by sevens. The distinction between clean and unclean was recognized at the Flood, long before any Jew existed. The distinction was established upon the nature and habits made in the creatures, and its sanction as law in the days of Moses was not an arbitrary rule for sixteen centuries but a recognition that the forbidden creatures were in themselves unclean and unfit for man to use as food. Swine is therefore unclean by nature, and the prohibition against eating it remains binding upon Christians.
The birds God had created were preserved in the ark by pairs of male and female so their kinds would continue after the Flood, while created species survived and species resulting from amalgamation did not. The same preserving purpose is seen in Noah saving seeds and carrying them in the ark, while some trees and shrubs were miraculously kept alive by God for future generations.
The fowls of the air and all other living creatures came of themselves with no human hand driving them and without a visible leader, led by angels under the invisible leadership of God. They came two by two, the birds from the sky to the ark and from the forests, in such great numbers that they darkened the heavens. Their coming to find a place of refuge was obedience to God, in contrast to men who were disobedient and unbelieving and would not believe for their salvation though they saw this wonderful sight. Food for man and beast had been taken in, and the entering took place over seven days before Noah and his family were bidden to enter and be shut in. Once the cattle, fowls, and all other living creatures were housed inside in pairs to keep seed alive, the believers were shut in by an invisible hand.
Wicked Generation Warned and Judged
Before the Flood the earth was corrupt before God and filled with violence, for God saw that the wickedness of man was great and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Men had transgressed the commandments given as the rule of life with open and daring sin, justice was trampled in the dust, and the cries of the oppressed reached unto heaven. Iniquity had become so common, with eating and drinking and marrying going on as usual, that it no longer shocked the senses, while fraudulent transactions, murders and crimes of every kind multiplied daily. The continual breaking of His law brought the Flood upon the earth, yet Noah and his family were preserved in the ark for their right-doing, for all were tested by the truth Noah preached and those who believed and turned from unrighteousness were saved, though only eight persons were saved.
Noah fulfilled the will of God as a preacher of righteousness, bearing the message of warning for one hundred and twenty years of probation to the impenitent, pleasure-loving, corrupt inhabitants. With helpers he was constantly at work preparing the immense boat on dry land, while he preached all the more earnestly in proportion to the universal scorn heaped upon God's law, seeking to turn the disobedient to obedience and to distinguish the obedient from the disobedient by the standard of God's law. Many helped build the ark yet did not believe the startling message, did not cleanse themselves from wrong principles, and did not overcome temptation to do and say things contrary to the mind and will of God. They would not believe, called him insane and a fanatic, reasoned by science and philosophy that he was wrong, and laughed and mocked and scoffed, yet their unbelief did not make the message of none effect. Only his own family accepted the warning, so only eight persons of that vast population fled for refuge into the ark and were saved alive.
Once the cattle, fowls and all other living creatures were housed inside to keep seed alive, Noah with his sons and his wife and his sons' wives went in because of the waters of the flood, and the Lord shut him in by an invisible hand. The beasts and fowls had come in obedience to God and found refuge, in contrast to disobedient and unbelieving men, entering before Noah and his family were bidden to enter, yet the wonderful sight did not lead the people to believe. Then came a one-week period of testing with no rain, for six days and for one full week no rain fell, which fully revealed the unbelief, mockery and derision of those outside even while the door was closed. Afterward, in the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the fountains of the great deep were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened. The rain fell gently at first and then increased in power for forty days and forty nights, and the waters prevailed upon the earth a hundred and fifty days until every living thing outside the ark perished in sin, while God preserved Noah and his family inside as an example of His protection of the faithful.
Flood Foretells Final Crisis
The Flood is literal history, Noah was a real person, and the days of Noah prefigure the age before Christ appears in the clouds, because human nature without the Spirit of God is the same in both ages.
As the Flood came and took them all away, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. The dumb animals entering to keep seed alive failed to impress the hardened inhabitants, who mocked even during the week after the door was shut when no rain fell, until gentle rain increased in power and destroyed every living thing outside, and so it is today when the wicked do wickedly with very short time left to prepare to escape another general destruction. The animals housed inside to keep seed alive and the believers shut in by an invisible hand closed the 120-year probation and distinguished the obedient from the disobedient by the standard of God's law, and the one-week testing with no rain revealed unbelief before steady rain set in, proving men can exceed the limits of grace. Wickedness is now increasing and repeating the pre-Flood age, with calamities, earthquakes, floods, disasters by land and sea, fraud, murders and crimes daily as the Spirit is withdrawn, and nature convulsed with fire and earthquake. The increasing sins of the present resemble the sins that brought God's judgments in the Flood, many help build yet do not believe the startling message nor cleanse themselves from wrong principles nor overcome temptation contrary to the mind and will of God, and the last call of mercy will soon not be heard.
The Flood declares God's verdict against continual breaking of His law and vindicates His authority when the measure of iniquity was full and the boundaries of mercy were passed. God looked on the old world as He looks on the world today, sent His faithful servant with warning and gave that guilty race one hundred and twenty years constantly at work preparing the immense boat on dry land while preaching all the more earnestly amid universal scorn heaped on God's law, and Noah did not lose reverence and love for that law when tempted by scorn. Noah believed, warned, and sought to turn the impenitent, pleasure-loving, corrupt inhabitants to obedience, but only his family and only eight persons of that vast population accepted the warning, fled for refuge, and were saved alive. The waters declare God's verdict against the wicked as a merciful removal of rebels whose rebellion was leading others astray, while He appeared as protector of the righteous, giving ear in His own time to those who cried to Him with humiliation and fasting for wickedness to end and answering by terrible things in righteousness. The message with its resulting Flood condemned the rejecting world and is the pattern for the last message of mercy now to be given to the world and regions beyond with warning voice, for as unbelief prevailed before the Flood so the same unbelief will exist prior to Christ's coming, yet though moral darkness covers the earth the duty remains to lift the voice, show professed children of God their transgressions, and give sufficient light to accept saving truth.
God preserved Noah and his family in the ark while the Flood destroyed the wicked, an example of protecting His faithful from destruction, and the ark is the ark of safety to be entered now. Entering is accepting the great salvation offered through Christ's complete sacrifice, humbling self under God, serving Him alone, obeying all His commandments by self-denial and cross-bearing, and getting ready lest it be everlastingly too late when the hour comes to close and the last call is no longer heard. Remaining outside is neglecting that salvation and fighting against God even without openly opposing truth. The whole world perished and only a few were saved, proving the majority is not safe to follow and numbers do not decide truth, so those who believe present truth now must not be discouraged because they are few, must not follow the majority if they would see heaven, must not turn aside to fables, but must regard duty and the commandments of God, lift the cross, and warn others. Mothers are accountable for the souls of their children, and a mother who remains outside cannot expect her children to enter.
God directed Noah to bring the fowls of the air by sevens, male and female, and he did according to all that was commanded in order to keep seed alive upon the earth so their kinds would survive the Flood and continue. The clean birds coming by sevens shows the clean and unclean distinction was known at the Flood long before any Jew existed, resting on nature and habits rather than an arbitrary rule, so that what is unclean by nature remains unfit for food. They came of themselves with no human hand driving them, led by angels under God's invisible leadership in great numbers over seven days after food was taken in and before Noah and his family were shut in. This was done amid a corrupt earth filled with violence and continual evil, where Noah preached righteousness for one hundred and twenty years while the pleasure-loving inhabitants mocked and only eight persons were saved alive when the Lord shut them in and the waters prevailed. As the Flood came and took them all away, so shall the coming of the Son of man be, with increasing wickedness and calamities now warning of another general destruction from which the ark of safety is entered by accepting salvation through Christ and obeying all His commandments.
Birds Kept Alive by Sevens
God directed that fowls of the air be brought by sevens, male and female, and Noah did according to all that was commanded. The birds were brought into the ark in groups of seven, male and female, so that seed could be preserved and their kind kept alive across the earth after the Flood. Their preservation was to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth, so that their kinds would survive the Flood and continue on earth. The dumb animals quietly entered two and two, male and female, under the invisible leadership of God to keep seed alive, and the animals were housed inside to keep seed alive upon the earth. Noah went into the ark with his sons and his wife and his sons' wives because of the waters of the flood, and the Lord shut him in. In the six hundredth year of his life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the fountains of the great deep were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened, and rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights and prevailed a hundred and fifty days until all outside perished.
The clean birds also came by sevens. The distinction between clean and unclean was recognized at the Flood, long before any Jew existed. The distinction was established upon the nature and habits made in the creatures, and its sanction as law in the days of Moses was not an arbitrary rule for sixteen centuries but a recognition that the forbidden creatures were in themselves unclean and unfit for man to use as food. Swine is therefore unclean by nature, and the prohibition against eating it remains binding upon Christians.
The birds God had created were preserved in the ark by pairs of male and female so their kinds would continue after the Flood, while created species survived and species resulting from amalgamation did not. The same preserving purpose is seen in Noah saving seeds and carrying them in the ark, while some trees and shrubs were miraculously kept alive by God for future generations.
The fowls of the air and all other living creatures came of themselves with no human hand driving them and without a visible leader, led by angels under the invisible leadership of God. They came two by two, the birds from the sky to the ark and from the forests, in such great numbers that they darkened the heavens. Their coming to find a place of refuge was obedience to God, in contrast to men who were disobedient and unbelieving and would not believe for their salvation though they saw this wonderful sight. Food for man and beast had been taken in, and the entering took place over seven days before Noah and his family were bidden to enter and be shut in. Once the cattle, fowls, and all other living creatures were housed inside in pairs to keep seed alive, the believers were shut in by an invisible hand.
Wicked Generation Warned and Judged
Before the Flood the earth was corrupt before God and filled with violence, for God saw that the wickedness of man was great and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Men had transgressed the commandments given as the rule of life with open and daring sin, justice was trampled in the dust, and the cries of the oppressed reached unto heaven. Iniquity had become so common, with eating and drinking and marrying going on as usual, that it no longer shocked the senses, while fraudulent transactions, murders and crimes of every kind multiplied daily. The continual breaking of His law brought the Flood upon the earth, yet Noah and his family were preserved in the ark for their right-doing, for all were tested by the truth Noah preached and those who believed and turned from unrighteousness were saved, though only eight persons were saved.
Noah fulfilled the will of God as a preacher of righteousness, bearing the message of warning for one hundred and twenty years of probation to the impenitent, pleasure-loving, corrupt inhabitants. With helpers he was constantly at work preparing the immense boat on dry land, while he preached all the more earnestly in proportion to the universal scorn heaped upon God's law, seeking to turn the disobedient to obedience and to distinguish the obedient from the disobedient by the standard of God's law. Many helped build the ark yet did not believe the startling message, did not cleanse themselves from wrong principles, and did not overcome temptation to do and say things contrary to the mind and will of God. They would not believe, called him insane and a fanatic, reasoned by science and philosophy that he was wrong, and laughed and mocked and scoffed, yet their unbelief did not make the message of none effect. Only his own family accepted the warning, so only eight persons of that vast population fled for refuge into the ark and were saved alive.
Once the cattle, fowls and all other living creatures were housed inside to keep seed alive, Noah with his sons and his wife and his sons' wives went in because of the waters of the flood, and the Lord shut him in by an invisible hand. The beasts and fowls had come in obedience to God and found refuge, in contrast to disobedient and unbelieving men, entering before Noah and his family were bidden to enter, yet the wonderful sight did not lead the people to believe. Then came a one-week period of testing with no rain, for six days and for one full week no rain fell, which fully revealed the unbelief, mockery and derision of those outside even while the door was closed. Afterward, in the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the fountains of the great deep were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened. The rain fell gently at first and then increased in power for forty days and forty nights, and the waters prevailed upon the earth a hundred and fifty days until every living thing outside the ark perished in sin, while God preserved Noah and his family inside as an example of His protection of the faithful.
Flood Foretells Final Crisis
The Flood is literal history, Noah was a real person, and the days of Noah prefigure the age before Christ appears in the clouds, because human nature without the Spirit of God is the same in both ages.
As the Flood came and took them all away, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. The dumb animals entering to keep seed alive failed to impress the hardened inhabitants, who mocked even during the week after the door was shut when no rain fell, until gentle rain increased in power and destroyed every living thing outside, and so it is today when the wicked do wickedly with very short time left to prepare to escape another general destruction. The animals housed inside to keep seed alive and the believers shut in by an invisible hand closed the 120-year probation and distinguished the obedient from the disobedient by the standard of God's law, and the one-week testing with no rain revealed unbelief before steady rain set in, proving men can exceed the limits of grace. Wickedness is now increasing and repeating the pre-Flood age, with calamities, earthquakes, floods, disasters by land and sea, fraud, murders and crimes daily as the Spirit is withdrawn, and nature convulsed with fire and earthquake. The increasing sins of the present resemble the sins that brought God's judgments in the Flood, many help build yet do not believe the startling message nor cleanse themselves from wrong principles nor overcome temptation contrary to the mind and will of God, and the last call of mercy will soon not be heard.
The Flood declares God's verdict against continual breaking of His law and vindicates His authority when the measure of iniquity was full and the boundaries of mercy were passed. God looked on the old world as He looks on the world today, sent His faithful servant with warning and gave that guilty race one hundred and twenty years constantly at work preparing the immense boat on dry land while preaching all the more earnestly amid universal scorn heaped on God's law, and Noah did not lose reverence and love for that law when tempted by scorn. Noah believed, warned, and sought to turn the impenitent, pleasure-loving, corrupt inhabitants to obedience, but only his family and only eight persons of that vast population accepted the warning, fled for refuge, and were saved alive. The waters declare God's verdict against the wicked as a merciful removal of rebels whose rebellion was leading others astray, while He appeared as protector of the righteous, giving ear in His own time to those who cried to Him with humiliation and fasting for wickedness to end and answering by terrible things in righteousness. The message with its resulting Flood condemned the rejecting world and is the pattern for the last message of mercy now to be given to the world and regions beyond with warning voice, for as unbelief prevailed before the Flood so the same unbelief will exist prior to Christ's coming, yet though moral darkness covers the earth the duty remains to lift the voice, show professed children of God their transgressions, and give sufficient light to accept saving truth.
God preserved Noah and his family in the ark while the Flood destroyed the wicked, an example of protecting His faithful from destruction, and the ark is the ark of safety to be entered now. Entering is accepting the great salvation offered through Christ's complete sacrifice, humbling self under God, serving Him alone, obeying all His commandments by self-denial and cross-bearing, and getting ready lest it be everlastingly too late when the hour comes to close and the last call is no longer heard. Remaining outside is neglecting that salvation and fighting against God even without openly opposing truth. The whole world perished and only a few were saved, proving the majority is not safe to follow and numbers do not decide truth, so those who believe present truth now must not be discouraged because they are few, must not follow the majority if they would see heaven, must not turn aside to fables, but must regard duty and the commandments of God, lift the cross, and warn others. Mothers are accountable for the souls of their children, and a mother who remains outside cannot expect her children to enter.