Noah was identified as one who “walked with God,” as did Adam and Enoch. He was declared righteous on that basis. As we read in Hebrews, all that Noah did was based on “faith.” He believed in God and trusted God in a world that had become corrupt in that they rejected God. But Noah had a relationship with God. In many of the ancient tales of the Mesopotamian region, the gods would keep their plans secret and never share them with mankind. But in the story of Noah, God spoke to him “directly seven times.” In Genesis 6:13, God speaks to him, “And God said to Noah, ‘I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.’” From Cain bludgeoning his brother to death and Lamech’s murder we see the deterioration of humanity as they moved further and further from their walk with God. Once they reject God, they bring upon themselves that which is inevitable. “The idea is that humankind cannot undermine the moral basis of society without endangering the very existence of its civilization. In fact, through its corruption, society sets in motion the process of inevitable self-destruction.”[1] So, it could be said, “For what God decreed was to be destroyed had already in truth destroyed itself.”[2]

Several times in the Gospels, Jesus compares the final days as being the same as they were in the days of Noah. Matthew 24:37 is clear. “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” It’s not just that life was going on as usual. It was that the characteristics of the culture at the time of Noah would be found in the last days as well. When we read the Genesis account of human beings up to the flood’s coming, we see two themes repeated: sex and violence. Courson makes a comparison of Noah’s day with our days. He writes, “Violence was celebrated, exalted, and practiced in Noah’s day, just as it is in our own. By the time they graduate from junior high, young people in our country have seen an average of more than 35,000 murders on TV. Add to that the 1.2 million couples who use guns, knives, or other lethal weapons on each other, and it is evident that the home has become a battleground in much of our society.”

Courson wrote that in 2005. Today, 2022, we’ve seen random acts of violence increase to the point there is a mass shooting almost every day in our country. People are beaten for no reason. It’s not safe to ride public transportation. Property is destroyed, and theft is up more than ever before. Despite all of this, there is still a movement to disband the police forces in major cities. Courson continues his comments, “Wise is the woman, wise the man who has the understanding and discernment to see a world of exploding population, sexual perversion, evil imagination, and rampant violence—and is able to draw the parallel with Noah’s day. Wise are all who, knowing the Lord’s coming is at hand, say to everyone they can, ‘Come on board the Good Ship Salvation because we’re sailing to heaven.’”[3]

[1] Sarna, Nahum M. 1989. Genesis. The JPS Torah Commentary. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society.

[2] Atkinson, David. 1990. The Message of Genesis 1–11: The Dawn of Creation. Edited by J. A. Motyer and Derek Tidball. The Bible Speaks Today. England: Inter-Varsity Press.

[3] Courson, Jon. 2005. Jon Courson’s Application Commentary: Volume One: Genesis–Job. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.