Noah and the Ark

Genesis 4 – 6            Review Activities for this Lesson

You probably already know about Noah and the great flood. Do you remember why God sent the flood? Why were Noah and his family saved when the great rains came? How does this fit in with what we know about God?

This week we will talk about the world before the flood. We will also talk about the great ark that Noah built. Noah built the ark as God told him to do so life could begin again on the earth after the flood.

Cain settled in the land of Nod after he left his home with Adam and Eve. There he and his wife had a son whom they named Enoch. Cain built a city there called the city of Enoch, after the name of his son. They had other children, too. Some began to live in tents and keep herds of cattle; some learned how to make music on the harp and pipes and some discovered how to use brass and iron for strong tools.

Adam and Eve had another son whom they named Seth. Eve was glad to have another son. She thought God had given her Seth to take Abel’s place. More sons and daughters were born to them and soon the earth began to be filled with people.

Men lived to be very old in those days. The oldest man we read about was Methusaleh, who lived to be 969 years old. Some of the families still believed in the wisdom and power of God and wanted to follow him.

One man named Enoch was especially good. This Enoch was not the son of Cain but was born into [a different family,] the family of Seth. Methuselah was his son. The Bible tells us that this Enoch walked with God and God took him up. He didn’t let him stay in the world and die like other men.

As time passed, there were more and more people in the world. Soon most began to forget God. Many of the men who had worshipped God married wicked women and their wives influenced them to turn away from God. Fewer and fewer parents taught their children God’s way and the earth became filled with sin. The Lord saw what was happening - - all people thought about was doing things that were wrong. Finally they were so bad that God was sorry He had made man.

The Bible says that God was grieved in His heart and said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beasts, creeping things and birds of the air; for I am sorry that I have made them.”

There was a good man named Noah on the earth who still served God. God knew that Noah was trying to do right. He spoke to Noah and told him that He was going to destroy the earth and its wicked people.

However, God gave Noah a way to be saved. He said to Noah, “Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; make with rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. You shall make a window for the ark…and set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second and third decks…

“I Myself am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life..everything that is on the earth shall die…”

But God made a covenant with Noah about the flood. A covenant is an agreement. God promised to save Noah and his family if they did what he said. He wanted them to all go into the ark - - Noah and his wife, his sons and their wives.

Then God told Noah to bring males and females of every kind of living thing into the ark.
He wanted them kept alive with Noah’s family. Then, after the flood, they could multiply so there would be animals on the earth again.

Since the people and animals would need food, God also told Noah to take some of all food which could be eaten. Then they would not starve during the flood.

The Bible tells us that Noah did all of this, just as God had commanded. Next week we will see that Noah was blessed for obeying God.

TALKING IT OVER

1. Noah is a good example of someone who listened to God instead of doing what everyone else was doing. Do you think the people then understood him?
2. If you do right, there will be times you have to be different from others. Why is this important?
3. How can doing right when it’s hard bring happiness later?

MEMORY VERSE

“By faith Enoch was translated so that he did not see death.” Hebrews 11:5

Enoch was also famous for his faith. What is faith?

Credits
Text by Betty Belue Haynes, originally published in Bible Talk Times. Used here with the kind permission of the author. Users are free to reproduce for use, but not for publication.