Read with Me
Genesis 9:1-6 (HCSB)
God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. The fear and terror of you will be in every living creature on the earth, every bird of the sky, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are placed under your authority. Every living creature will be food for you; as I gave the green plants, I have given you everything. However, you must not eat meat with its lifeblood in it. I will require the life of every animal and every man for your life and your blood. I will require the life of each man’s brother for a man’s life.
Whoever sheds man’s blood,
his blood will be shed by man,
for God made man in His image.
Listen with Me
After Noah’s sacrifice, God promised never again to destroy all life on earth with a cataclysmic flood. Now He gave them all the commandment to reproduce themselves abundantly and fill the earth with people. God didn’t have to command the animals to reproduce – they would do so automatically. But people might be reluctant to bring new human beings into an uncertain world, so God gave them this command.
It was going to take some time for food to begin to grow in sufficient amounts to provide all the needed nourishment for those who had come out of the ark. For this reason, God made some changes. The first was that humans could now eat meat instead of just plants. That would allow for a source of dense protein that would enable them to grow well, stay healthy, and reproduce abundantly.
The second change was that God would make all the animals afraid of people. He did this for two reasons. The first was that at that moment the animals that came off the ark were very trusting of people, having been fed and cared for by them for more than a year. That meant that with the new permission to consume meat, it would be easy for people to completely wipe out all those animals who lived near them. The second reason was that too much meat would not be good for the health of the people. They were going to need a balanced diet to maintain their health and strength.
The final change that God made was in recognition that before the flood, evil had run rampant in the world, and even the lives of people were held far too casually. Murder was common, with the strong oppressing and killing those who were weaker. But with the issuing of this new covenant between God’s and mankind came a reminder that people are God’s special creation, made in His own image and likeness. Because of that, the blood of a person could not be spilled without severe consequences. Even though exceptions would later be made for war, for self defense, and for executing righteous judgment, anyone who willfully takes the life of a human being must forfeit their own life in exchange – it is the only punishment that fits that crime.
Pray with Me
Father, this is an important reminder that needs to be reinforced from time to time. Evil only increases when people can take the life of another human being and have only light consequences as a result. It then becomes a situation where, instead of killing being absolutely taboo, it is a thing where the consequences are weighed to see if they are worth it. That seems strange to even write as I look at it. You created human beings special, special to You, so that every other person should be special to us as well. And if we are lax in enforcing this commandment and these consequences, You tell us here that You Yourself will hold us accountable. Thank You, Lord, for holding us, all of us, in such high esteem. Amen.