In God's Word: A Clean Slate

May 2, 2018 - In Genesis, Chapter 6 we see the recounting of the flood which destroyed all life that lived on the earth other than the people and animals which God had to enter into the ark for protection.

The Bible says this about the man and his family, Noah, whom God saved to re-populate the earth after the flood would subside.

Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. And Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (Genesis 6:9-10) 

God saw Noah as a righteous man, a man, whom God counted as being blameless, without fault. A man whom the Bible also says “Walked with God”. 

There are very few biblical accounts of humans being considered blameless by God or having been said that they walked with God, making Noah a very special person in God’s eyes.

Not so for the earth and the rest of mankind at that point in time.

Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence.” (Genesis 6:11)

And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” (Genesis 6:13) 

God then tells Noah how to build a boat, an ark, that he is to build this large boat and in it he is to put two, 1 male and 1 female, of every specie of animal, bird, and creeping thing that dwells on the earth. Along with the animals and their feed Noah puts his own family, his three sons and their wives and his own wife.

Note here that the Bible does not mention the fishes. Since the fishes lived in a separate environment man could not touch them, man could not corrupt them so the fishes were spared by the Lord God.

God tells Noah that he is going to flood the earth to over 20 feet above the highest mountain. Why, we ask, would God wipe out all flesh on earth?

The Bible shows us two reasons. First, the earth had been corrupted by the evilness of man and everything that man had touched God considered must be wiped out to cleanse the earth of its corruption. Secondly, God sees only violence in mankind and God hates violence.

The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” (Genesis 6:5)

And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.” (Genesis 6:12) 

God hates both corruption and violence and so he destroyed all living things on the earth for these two offenses.

When God speaks to Isaiah about the future of Israel and describes later times God says this about the nation of Israel concerning violence.

Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.” (Isaiah 60:18) 

And so God wiped the slate clean and started over with the birds and animals from the ark and with Noah and his family, and from these few the population of the world exists today.

Man is evil and corrupt and someday, a day unknown to us, the Lord who is also just, will once again destroy the earth and all who dwell upon it.

So I beg you today, prepare yourself for this coming day. Make your relationship with God complete, ask God to wipe your slate clean as you start a new path in your life…