New Beginnings and Nations

Welcome to The Glory Team Bible Reading plan. Today we reading Genesis Chapters 8-10 about God’s Covenant and Humanity’s Spread. These chapters of the Bible cover a variety of topics, God making a covenant with mankind to never flood the earth, God's covenant with Noah, and Noah's family repopulating the Earth:

Genesis 8: God's faithfulness to his promises, his mercy, and his graciousness towards his creation. It also suggests that sacrificial practices will be part of the harmony between humanity and God.

Genesis 9: Shows how God is faithful to his promises and how he deals with human sin and grace.

Genesis 10: (Also known as the table of nations) Describes the descendants of Noah's three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and the nations that came from them and introduces Nimrod, a mighty hunter and ruler who built the first empire in Mesopotamia. The chapter shows how God fulfilled his promise to Noah to multiply his offspring and fill the earth. It also sets the stage for the next chapter, where God confuses the languages of humanity at the Tower of Babel. 

God's Covenant and Humanity's Spread

The purpose of the book of Genesis are to record God's creation of the world and His desire to have a people set apart to worship Him. The author of the Book of Genesis is Moses. There is plenty of evidence that leads to this conclusion:

• The Talmud (The Hebrew Bible, the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law and Jewish theology.) attributes this book to Moses.

• Citations from Genesis show that the Old Testament is part of the Law of Moses (Deuteronomy 1:8; 2 Kings 13:23; 1 Chronicles 1:1)

• Jesus and the New Testament writers attribute Moses as the author of as an essential part of Scripture (Matthew 19:8; Luke 16:29; 24:27)

The original audience of the book of Genesis are the people of Israel and it was written in the wilderness during Israel's wanderings. The setting is primarily the region presently known as the Middle East.

The Key People we will learn about are Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Joseph.

What is God's Name in these Chapters?

In this portion of our journey we want to dive deep into the character of God described in His name. By identifying who God is, we can further relate to Him personally and build a stronger relationship and connection with Our Father.

Names are important. They give significance to places, people, and things. We identify with so much based off what it's name is. This is considerably notable when it comes to the names of God.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God, including His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. 

Elohim - God, The Strong Creator

Jehovah - Lord, The Self-Existing One

In these chapters, we still see God as Jehovah Elohim.

In Genesis Chapter 8, Jehovah is portrayed as merciful, faithful to his promises, and a provider of new beginnings; despite the destruction caused by the flood, He remembers Noah and his family, allowing them to repopulate the earth and establishing a covenant with them, symbolized by the rainbow, signifying His commitment to never again destroy the world through a flood.

In Genesis Chapter 9, Jehovah is portrayed as merciful, covenant-keeping, protective, and a provider, as He establishes a new covenant with Noah and his descendants after the flood, promising to never again destroy the earth with water and using the rainbow as a sign of this promise; highlighting His faithfulness and care for creation while also emphasizing the sanctity of human life by instructing Noah to not shed blood and to be stewards of the earth. 

In Genesis Chapter 10, Jehovah's character is portrayed as sovereign, provident, and meticulous, as He has a detailed plan for the dispersal of nations across the earth through the descendants of Noah, demonstrating His control over all people and their destinies, even as they spread out and populate different regions; essentially highlighting His role as the "God of all nations".

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Christ in Every Book of the Bible

Christ is the theme throughout the Bible. From Genesis to Revelation, God reveals His Son, Jesus Christ.

Christ is the Seed of the woman Genesis 3:14 , He is the Passover Lamb Exodus 12:3, The Atoning Sacrifice Leviticus 17:11, The Smitten Rock Numbers 20:8, 11, The Faithful Prophet Deuteronomy 18:18, Christ is the Captain of the Lord's Host Joshua 5:15, The Divine Deliverer Judges 2:18, The Kinsman Redeemer Ruth 3:12, Christ is the anticipated as the Anointed One,1 Samuel 2:10, The Son of David 2 Samuel 7:14, The Coming King 1 & 2 Kings, Builder of the Temple 1 & 2 Chronicles (1 Chronicles 28:20), Ezra represents Christ as the Restorer of the Nation Ezra 6:14, 15, Nehemiah shows Him as the Restorer of the Temple Nehemiah 6:15, and Esther portrays Him as the Preserver of the Nation Ester 4:14, Christ is seen as the Living Redeemer Job 19:25, The Praise of Israel Psalm 150:6, The Wisdom of God Proverbs 8:22, 23, The Great Teacher Ecclesiastics 12:11, The Fairest of Ten Thousand Song of Solomon 5:10. Christ is the Suffering Servant Isaiah 53:11, The Maker of the New Covenant Jeremiah 31:31, The Man of Sorrows Lamentations 3:28-30, The Glory of God Ezekiel 43:2, The coming Messiah Daniel 9:25, The Lover of the Unfaithful Hosea 3:1, The Hope of Israel Joel 3:16, The Husbandman Amos 9:13, the Savior Obadiah 21, the Resurrected One Jonah 2:10, the Ruler in Israel Micah 5:2, the Avenger Nahum 2:1, the Holy God Habakkuk 1:13, the King of Israel Zephaniah 3:15, the Desire of Nations Haggai 2:7, the Righteous Branch Zechariah 3:8, and the Sun of Righteousness Malachi 4:2.

The King of the Jews Matthew 2:2, the Servant of the Lord Mark 10:45, the Son of Man Luke 19:10, and the Son of God John 1:1. Christ is the Ascended Lord Acts 1:10, the believer's Righteousness Romans 1:17, Sanctification 1 Corinthians 1:30, Sufficiency 2 Corinthians 12:9, and Liberty Galatians 2:4. He is the Exalted Head of the church Ephesians 1:22, the Christian's Joy Philippians 1:26, and the Fullness of Deity Colossians 2:9. In the Thessalonian epistles Christ is the believer's Comfort 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17 and Glory 2 Thessalonians 1:12. The Christian's Preserver 1 Timothy 4:10, Rewarder 2 Timothy 4:8, Blessed Hope Titus 2:13, and Substitute Philemon 17. He is the High Priest Hebrews 4:15, the Giver of Wisdom James 1:5, the Rock 1 Peter 2:6, and Precious Promise 2 Peter 1:4. John represents Christ as the Life 1 John, the Truth 2 John, and the Way 3 John, Jude portrays Christ as the Advocate and Revelation shows Him as King of Kings and Lord of Lords Revelation 19:16. The whole Bible is literally all about Christ!

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Questions: Let's expand how these chapters expanded your faith and your relationship with God.

What is the overall message of Genesis 8-10 about God's character and relationship with humanity?

What does the story of Noah and the flood teach us about God's character, particularly his justice and mercy?

What are the key themes of human responsibility, choice, and consequences presented in these chapters? 

How does the promise of a new covenant with Noah reflect God's faithfulness and desire for a relationship with humanity? 

What lessons can we learn from Noah's obedience to God's command to build the ark?

Analyze the symbolism of the dove returning with an olive branch in Genesis 8. 

How does the story of Noah's drunkenness in Genesis 9 impact the understanding of the family lineage and the "curse of Ham"? 

Reference Guides:

Life Application Study Guide

A Popular Survey of the Old Testament by Norman L. Geisler

The Power of God's Names by Tony Evans