8
But God re mem bered Noah and all the wild an i mals and the live stock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the wa ters re ced ed. 2 Now the springs of the deep and the flood gates of the heav ens had been closed, and the rain had stopped fall ing from the sky.
3
The wa ter re ced ed steadi ly from the earth. At the end of the hun dred and fif ty days the wa ter had gone down, 4 and on the sev en teenth day of the sev enth month the ark came to rest on the moun tains of Ar a rat. 5 The wa ters con tin ued to re cede un til the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the moun tains be came vis i ble.
6
Af ter for ty days Noah opened a win dow he had made in the ark 7 and sent out a ra ven, and it kept fly ing back and forth un til the wa ter had dried up from the earth. 8 Then he sent out a dove to see if the wa ter had re ced ed from the sur face of the ground. 9 But the dove could find no where to perch be cause there was wa ter over all the surface of the earth; so it re turned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to him self in the ark. 10 He wait ed sev en more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. 11 When the dove re turned to him in the eve ning, there in its beak was a fresh ly plucked ol ive leaf! Then Noah knew that the wa ter had re ced ed from the earth. 12 He wait ed sev en more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not re turn to him.
13
By the first day of the first month of No ah’ s six hun dred and first year, the wa ter had dried up from the earth. Noah then re moved the cov ering from the ark and saw that the sur face of the ground was dry. 14 By the twen ty-sev enth day of the sec ond month the earth was com plete ly dry.
15
Then God said to Noah, 16“ Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives. 17 Bring out ev ery kind of liv ing crea ture that is with you— the birds, the an i mals, and all the crea tures that move along the ground— so they can mul ti ply on the earth and be fruit ful and in crease in num ber on it.”
18
So Noah came out, to geth er with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives. 19 All the an i mals and all the crea tures that move along the ground and all the birds— ev ery thing that moves on land— came out of the ark, one kind af ter an oth er.
20
Then Noah built an al tar to the Lord and, tak ing some of all the clean an i mals and clean birds, he sac ri ficed burnt of fer ings on it. 21 The Lord smelled the pleas ing aro ma and said in his heart:“ Nev er again will I curse the ground because of hu mans, even though a ev ery in cli na tion of the hu man heart is evil from child hood. And nev er again will I de stroy all liv ing crea tures, as I have done.
22
“ As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.” a
21 Or humans, for
Genesis 8:22 | 21
8:1 – 14 After the flood has accomplished its purpose( see 7:22 – 23), God begins to restore creation. In contrast to God’ s act of creation in six days, the waters recede and the earth is restored over a period of five months.
8:2 the floodgates of the heavens God is reversing the process from 7:11 – 12. See note on 7:11. See the infographic“ Ancient Hebrew Conception of the Universe” on p. 5. 8:3 hundred and fifty days It is difficult to know how this figure and the one given in 8:4 relate; this is further complicated by difficulties understanding how the calendar in this period of time functioned. See note on 7:11. 8:4 the mountains of Ararat Refers to a mountain range, not necessarily a particular mountain called Ararat. Ararat was the country or region of Urartu. Assyrian records use this place name for a region that corresponds today most closely with Armenia and Turkey. 8:7 sent out a raven No reason for Noah’ s action is given, but the narrative implies that Noah is checking for signs of land and states this explicitly in v. 8 about his choice to send out a dove. 8:13 six hundred and first year The Hebrew text here does not directly state that this figure is in reference to Noah’ s life, but that can be inferred from 7:6 and 7:11. 8:14 completely dry The Hebrew verb used here, yavesh, is related to the noun yabbashah( often translated“ dry land”) used in 1:9 – 10. The words provide a verbal and thematic link between the two narratives, indicating that the restoration of the world after the flood should be understood as an act of divine re-creation.
8:15 – 22 This passage describes the process of disembarking from the ark, which concludes with Noah offering a sacrifice to Yahweh. Yahweh accepts the sacrifice and promises never to destroy all life by a flood again( compare note on 7:21).
8:20 altar The first reference to a sacrificial or worship altar in the Bible. See the infographic“ Ancient Altars” on p. 127; see the table“ Altars in the Old Testament” on p. 249. 8:21 Lord smelled the pleasing aroma This phrase indicates an acceptable offering and appears frequently in the books of Leviticus and Numbers( e. g., Lev 1:9; 2:9; 4:31; Nu 15:3). curse The Hebrew term used here, qalal, is different from that of Ge 3:17( arar), which references the cursing of the ground after the fall. human heart is evil An explicit reference to the language of 6:5. God knows that even the flood will not reverse the corruption of the human will and mind. 8:22 As long as the earth endures This wording resolves the tension between the promise of this verse and subsequent descriptions of a final judgment of the world( 2Pe 3:12 – 13). The final apocalypse will produce a new heaven and new earth. God promises to keep his wrath from humanity until the earth— as it is currently known— is no more( or renewed).