Scripture Reading : Gen 9
Theme : The New World
Government (1–7).
God gave some new rules for life on the cleansed earth. He always guides His redeemed and shows them His will. Noah and his family could now eat animal flesh (Gen. 1:29), but they were forbidden to eat the blood (Lev. 17:11–14). The sanctity of human life was affirmed in the ordaining of human government (Rom. 13). God established government because man is basically a sinner and must be kept under control. Murder is a terrible crime because man is made in the image of God, and to kill a human being is to attack God’s image. All people are not children of God, but all belong to one human family because God made us of one blood (Acts 17:26).
Grace (8–17).
God gave assurance that He would never send another flood to destroy life on the earth. The covenant included not only man but also birds, cattle, and the beasts of the field (Ezek. 1:10; Rev. 4:7). The sign of the covenant was the rainbow, a bridge of beauty that joins heaven and earth. Whether we look at the rainbow or not, God looks upon it and remembers His promises. Noah saw the rainbow after the storm; Ezekiel saw it in the midst of the storm (Ezek. 1:4ff.); and John saw it before
the storm of judgment (Rev. 4:1–3).
Guilt(18–29).
Imagine, a “preacher of righteousness” (2 Pet. 2:5), who was over six hundred years old, getting drunk!(See Gen. 6:5; 8:21; 1 Cor. 10:12.) Ham should have grieved over his father’s sins, not gloated over them (Prov. 14:9). His brothers did what love always does: “covers all sins” (Prov. 10:12; 12:16; 17:9; 1 Pet. 4:8).
Noah’s words must not be interpreted to mean that certain races are inferior and destined to be enslaved. In fact, history shows that some of Canaan’s descendants were mighty nations with great empires. For that matter, even the Jews, the descendants of Shem, have had their share of captivity. His words were a prophecy: the sin of Ham would be visited on his son Canaan, who must have been involved in some way; Shem would have God’s blessing (Rom. 9:1–5); Japheth (the Gentiles) would multiply and would worship the God of Shem. John wrote, “Salvation is of the Jews” (John 4:22). People who trust Christ for salvation are all one in Him (Gal. 3:28; Col. 3:11). [1]
Praying the Scripture
- Good news! We can eat meat, it is biblical! However, animal lovers might think that we are amoral people. Let’s pray that we don’t define our moral standards by their standards and that our love for upholding these standards is not greater than the Word of God. That is pride in itself. That shows that we are arrogant, thinking we know better and that we can set the limit as to what to do and what to eat.
- Although men sinned yet they still have God’s image. So when we look at another human being, we must see the God who created him. Let’s pray that we value every human life.
[1] Warren W. Wiersbe, With the Word Bible Commentary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), Ge 9:1.
经文：创9章
主题：新世界
政府(1–7).
在全新的世界里，神给了我们生活上的一些新条例。祂就是这样的引导祂的选民，并向他们显明自己的旨意。挪亚和家人现在可以吃肉了（创1:29），但他们不得吃带血的肉。（利17:11-14）人生命的神圣在此就被肯定了（罗13）。神建立政府的原因是因为人基本上就是一个罪人，必须受到管辖。谋杀是一个可怕的罪恶，因为人有着神的形象，杀人就等于在攻击神的形象。虽然不是所有的人都是神的儿女，但我们都属人类的大家庭，因为神由一个血脉创造了我们（徒17:26）。
恩典(8–17)
神发誓决不会再以洪水毁灭整个地球上的生命。这约也包括了鸟禽、牛畜和田野里的走兽（结1:10；启4:7）。这约的记号就是彩虹，一道连接天与地美丽的桥梁。无论我们是否看着彩虹，神一直看着它，记住自己的承诺。挪亚在风雨后看见彩虹；以西结在风暴里看见彩虹（结1:4）；约翰更在如暴风雨的判决前也看见它。（启4:1-3）
愧疚(18–29)
试想想，一个“传义道”（彼得后书2:5）、600多岁的人竟然喝醉了！ （见创6:5；8:21；林前10:12）迦南应该为父亲的罪感到悲伤，而不是在那儿幸灾乐祸。（箴14:9）他的兄弟却做了爱应该有的表现: “遮盖”- 因为“爱能遮掩许多的罪” 。（箴10:12 12:16；17:9；彼前4:8）
挪亚的话不能被解释为某些种族不如别族，所以注定要成为奴隶。事实上，历史证明一些迦南的后裔是强大的国家和伟大的帝国。而且闪的后裔，即便是犹太人，也曾经当各奴隶。挪亚的话是在预言迦南的罪将由他的后裔承担；闪却会得到神的祝福（罗9:1-5）；雅弗（外邦人）人数扩大并敬拜闪的神。约翰写道，“救恩是从犹太人出来的”（约4:22）。凡相信基督救恩的，在祂里面都合而为一了。（加3:28；西3:11）
用经文祷告
- 好消息！我们可以吃肉了，这是符合圣经的！然而，动物爱好者可能会认为我们不道德。让我们祷告，我们不以世人的标准来决定我们的生活、我们的爱也能不大于神的话语。这样的想法本身就是骄傲。这表明我们是傲慢的，我们认为自己更加了解并可以决定做什么和吃什么的限制。
- 人虽然犯了罪，但他们仍然有神的形象。所以，当我们在看到另一个人时，我们必须看到创造他的神。让我们祷告让我们珍视每个生命。
