New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Genesis 8
1
But God showed concern for Noah. He also showed concern for all of the wild animals and livestock that were with Noah in the ark. So God sent a wind over the earth. And the waters began to go down.
Reference
Creation
Exodus 14:21
Parallel theme
1 Samuel 1:19
Psalm 136:23
Psalm 106:4
Amos 8:7
Psalm 132:1
References God
Genesis 19:29
Genesis 30:22
Exodus 2:24
Nehemiah 13:22
2
The springs at the bottom of the oceans had been closed. The windows of the skies had been closed. And the rain had stopped falling from the sky.
Reference
3
The water continued to go down from the earth. At the end of the 150 days the water had gone down.
Reference
Parallel theme
Genesis 7:24
4
On the 17th day of the seventh month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat.
Reference
📍 Ararat
5
The waters continued to go down until the tenth month. On the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains could be seen.
6
After 40 days Noah opened the window he had made in the ark.
Reference
Parallel theme
Genesis 6:16
7
He sent a raven out. It kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth.
8
Then Noah sent a dove out. He wanted to see if the water had gone down from the surface of the ground.
Reference
9
But the dove couldn't find any place to put its feet down. There was still water over the whole surface of the earth. So the dove returned to Noah in the ark. Noah reached out his hand and took the dove in. He brought it back to himself in the ark.
Reference
11
In the evening the dove returned to him. There in its beak was a freshly picked olive leaf! So Noah knew that the water on the earth had gone down.
Reference
Parallel theme
Nehemiah 8:15
12
He waited seven more days. Then he sent the dove out again. But that time it didn't return to him.
Reference
13
It was the first day of the first month of Noah's 601st year. The water had dried up from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering from the ark. He saw that the surface of the ground was dry.
Reference
Parallel theme
Genesis 7:11
14
By the 27th day of the second month the earth was completely dry.
15
Then God said to Noah,
17
"Bring out every kind of living thing that is with you. Bring the birds, the animals, and all of the creatures that move along the ground. Then they can multiply on the earth. They can have little ones and increase their numbers."
Reference
18
So Noah came out of the ark. His sons and his wife and his sons' wives were with him.
19
All of the animals came out of the ark. The creatures that move along the ground also came out. So did all of the birds. Everything that moves on the earth came out of the ark. One kind after another came out.
20
Then Noah built an altar to honor the Lord. He took some of all of the "clean" animals and birds. He sacrificed burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar.
Reference
Parallel theme
1 Peter 2:9
Genesis 7:2
Sacrifice
Romans 12:1
Genesis 22:9
Hebrews 13:10
Exodus 10:25
Genesis 13:4
Genesis 13:18
Genesis 26:25
Genesis 35:7
21
Their smell was pleasant to the Lord. He said to himself, "I will never put a curse on the ground again because of man. I will not do it even though his heart is always directed toward what is evil. His thoughts are evil from the time he is young. I will never destroy all living things again, as I have just done.
Reference
Curse
Genesis 3:17
Evil
Jeremiah 17:9
Genesis 6:5
Matthew 15:19
Parallel theme
2 Corinthians 2:15
Ephesians 5:2
Philippians 4:18
Ezekiel 20:41
Romans 3:23
References Lord
Leviticus 1:13
Chapter Summary
Genesis 8:1 is a good place to start understanding how the narrative is picking up speed after a hundred and fifty days of the flood.
The first verse has a very important message about God remembering Noah. It is not that he forgot about him and the animals that were with him in the ark. It's a sign that God is going to do something mighty for Noah to help him get through this difficult time. God even remembers the animals that were with Noah in the boat. In addition to this, God sends a wind to dry the earth. At the same time, the springs of the deep and the windows of the heaven are also closed.
There is a very interesting description of what happens after the flood. The waters began to recede gently after being so violent for about five months. It's amazing how calm it all was, considering how turbulent it had been. All throughout the earth, the waters were flowing down, uncovering rocks and stones. It happened on the seventeenth day of the seventh month when the ark arrived at the mountains of Ararat. It's ironic how Noah and his family would have been so happy to finally be on land after all that time, although it wasn't solid ground.
In the following days, the water continued to drain away, exposing the rocks. By the tenth month, the tops of the mountains were visible. Noah waited patiently for forty more days and then opened the window of the ark and sent out a raven. The bird flew back and forth searching for a landing site, but the water had not yet dried. He waited a little longer and sent out a dove. It flew around, looking for a place to land, but there was still water. Noah welcomed the dove back into the boat, showing a little compassion to the creature, not knowing that it would soon deliver good news.
Seven days later, he sent the dove out again. This time, it returned in the evening bringing back an olive leaf, a sign that the water had dried. That is one of the most famous verses in all of Scripture – the dove bringing back the leaf is a picture of hope and encouragement, which has endured long after the flood story. Noah waited another seven days and then sent the dove out a third time. This time, it did not return saying that it had found a place to nest.
By the first day of the first month of Noah's six hundred and first year, the waters had completely dried up. Noah looked out the window of the ark and saw that the earth was completely dry.
He waited until the second month and on the twenty-seventh day, he opened the covers of the ark to see if it was safe for the people and animals to come out. God told Noah to come out of the boat with his family and all the animals. Every person on board came out, and every beast, creeping thing, and bird came out. They were all able to multiply and fill the earth again.
Noah is the first to give thanks to God for his goodness and mercy. He built an altar to the Lord and offered sacrifices with clean animals and birds. God was very pleased with the offerings, and he said to himself that he would never again curse the ground because of mankind. Although God knows that the inclination of the thoughts of men is evil from youth, he promised that he will never destroy them with a flood again.
God ended the chapter by saying that as long as the earth remains, there will be seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night. It was a promise that he would never allow such a catastrophe to happen again.
What is so great about this chapter is the pace at which the story is told. It shows us that God is very patient with us, letting us wait until the right time. We see this in chapter seven with all the waiting for the waters to dry, and then chapter eight is almost a relief after such a long period of destruction. By the time we get to the end of this chapter, we feel like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders since everyone and everything that came off the ark has survived. There is even hope for the animals as Noah offers sacrifices to God on an altar.
The first verse has a very important message about God remembering Noah. It is not that he forgot about him and the animals that were with him in the ark. It's a sign that God is going to do something mighty for Noah to help him get through this difficult time. God even remembers the animals that were with Noah in the boat. In addition to this, God sends a wind to dry the earth. At the same time, the springs of the deep and the windows of the heaven are also closed.
There is a very interesting description of what happens after the flood. The waters began to recede gently after being so violent for about five months. It's amazing how calm it all was, considering how turbulent it had been. All throughout the earth, the waters were flowing down, uncovering rocks and stones. It happened on the seventeenth day of the seventh month when the ark arrived at the mountains of Ararat. It's ironic how Noah and his family would have been so happy to finally be on land after all that time, although it wasn't solid ground.
In the following days, the water continued to drain away, exposing the rocks. By the tenth month, the tops of the mountains were visible. Noah waited patiently for forty more days and then opened the window of the ark and sent out a raven. The bird flew back and forth searching for a landing site, but the water had not yet dried. He waited a little longer and sent out a dove. It flew around, looking for a place to land, but there was still water. Noah welcomed the dove back into the boat, showing a little compassion to the creature, not knowing that it would soon deliver good news.
Seven days later, he sent the dove out again. This time, it returned in the evening bringing back an olive leaf, a sign that the water had dried. That is one of the most famous verses in all of Scripture – the dove bringing back the leaf is a picture of hope and encouragement, which has endured long after the flood story. Noah waited another seven days and then sent the dove out a third time. This time, it did not return saying that it had found a place to nest.
By the first day of the first month of Noah's six hundred and first year, the waters had completely dried up. Noah looked out the window of the ark and saw that the earth was completely dry.
He waited until the second month and on the twenty-seventh day, he opened the covers of the ark to see if it was safe for the people and animals to come out. God told Noah to come out of the boat with his family and all the animals. Every person on board came out, and every beast, creeping thing, and bird came out. They were all able to multiply and fill the earth again.
Noah is the first to give thanks to God for his goodness and mercy. He built an altar to the Lord and offered sacrifices with clean animals and birds. God was very pleased with the offerings, and he said to himself that he would never again curse the ground because of mankind. Although God knows that the inclination of the thoughts of men is evil from youth, he promised that he will never destroy them with a flood again.
God ended the chapter by saying that as long as the earth remains, there will be seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night. It was a promise that he would never allow such a catastrophe to happen again.
What is so great about this chapter is the pace at which the story is told. It shows us that God is very patient with us, letting us wait until the right time. We see this in chapter seven with all the waiting for the waters to dry, and then chapter eight is almost a relief after such a long period of destruction. By the time we get to the end of this chapter, we feel like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders since everyone and everything that came off the ark has survived. There is even hope for the animals as Noah offers sacrifices to God on an altar.