What Belongs to God - Genesis 9

It’s not uncommon for a small child to take something from another child, maybe a toy or a cup, and the parent says, “No, no, that doesn’t belong to you.” We must be taught not to take.

Have you ever picked up something in a store, continued to shop and then accidentally walked out without paying for it? Did you panic when you realized what you had in your hand did not belong to you?

We take ownership seriously. We know what it means for something to belong to someone. We understand the Seventh Commandment, “You shall not steal.”

And yet it is human nature to take from God things that belong to Him alone. We assume ownership of things that are God’s.

But Jesus came into the world to free us from that sinful tendency. And so in Christ, we can surrender to God those things that belong to Him.

But what are these things that belong to God? Genesis 9 describes three things that mankind attempts to take from God as we seek control and glory for ourselves. You can find an outline on page 6 in the WG. Proliferation, preservation, and salvation belong to our God. These belong only to Him alone; we are, at best, stewards or caretakers. And we should make every effort to honor God’s ownership of these things.

Now, Noah and his household emerge from the ark at the end of Genesis 8, and in many ways, these events mirror the creation account of Genesis 1. We see the wind over the waters, the separating of water and land, the return of vegetation, and the inhabiting of the earth by various creatures, the greatest of which is mankind. 

In Genesis 1, God gives to Adam and Eve what we call the “cultural mandate.” “God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over” the creatures of the earth. God then gives them instructions for their food. The flood event is a renewal of creation, and God’s mandate is almost identical.

Verse 1, God blessed them and said “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” The proliferation or increase of human life was still God’s plan even though, as God states at the end of chapter 8, man’s nature is now sinful.

But notice this difference in verse 2, “The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth and upon every bird of the heavens, upon everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea. Into your hand they are delivered.” The dominion of humans is still there, but so much of the harmony among creatures is gone. All the other creatures will be afraid of the humans, partly because God now allows them to be eaten, verse 3. 

I know many of you are thankful for that!

One thing to remember here is that the ancient Israelites, the first people to hear Genesis, were given instructions by God concerning what they ate. There was precedent for that. God gave instructions to Adam and Eve, then to Noah and his family. 

One new thing is introduced in verses 4-6. It is this principle about blood.The men and women are not to eat the blood of a creature. This command comes up later when God gives His law to the Israelites. God says here, and later in that “life is in the blood.” Therefore, if an animal kills a human, that animal must be put to death. 

The same goes for the killing of a person by another person. Notice verse 6, “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for (or, because) God made man in his own image.” Humans can kill animals. Animals are not made in the image of God, but humans are. Mankind is uniquely created in the spiritual and personal likeness of God. Killing that is unjustified by God’s Word is wrong.

So it was God’s will, verse 7, that mankind “increase greatly on the earth.” That they multiply. How can God make these demands and set these boundaries regarding life? It is because life belongs to Him. 

Have you heard of “anti-natalism?” It is a view that it is morally wrong for humans to procreate. Anti-natalists are against human multiplication. The view is actually more popular than you might think, because many people who wouldn’t describe themselves as “anti-natalists” hold some form of this view.

Based on all the suffering in the world, and the harsh realities of life, as well as a belief that mankind could destroy civilization and even the earth itself, the case is made that it is unethical to bring a child into the world. Some even argue that it is not right on the grounds that you do not have the child’s consent!

Of course, consent is not possible. You can’t ask someone if they would like to be born. But this negative view of procreation and proliferation is not uncommon. Many people feel it costs too much or requires too much time and attention to have children. The thinking is: life holds the potential for such tragedy; why bring another person into it? 

Well, certainly life is hard, and child-rearing is not easy. From what I’ve only observed, neither is child-bearing!  But Psalm 127 reminds us that children are an inheritance and a reward from God.  Whether given to you biologically or by adoption, children are a gift from God. Hence, they belong to God, and ultimately they continue to belong to Him. 

Deuteronomy 10, “Behold, to the LORD your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it.” Human life, and all life, belongs to God. And proliferation, the growth of mankind in number, belongs to Him as well.

If you are thinking about trying to have children, let this be an encouragement to you. God has not shut down the proliferation of mankind. In fact, it’s one way the church grows! You can walk by faith and raise children in the instruction and knowledge of God. You can raise them to glorify God and live in light of the gospel in the world. 

To all of you: has the sin in the world diminished your view of human life in some way? Sin can cloud our view of everything, including life. Your life belongs to God; the life of your neighbor belongs to God. 

Now, this next part of Gen. 9 contains the promise of preservation to Noah and the others. God makes a covenant with them and with all the creatures of the earth, verse [11], “I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” 

Divine covenants are found throughout Scripture. We should read and interpret all of Scripture in light of the covenants we see God making. A covenant is more than a promise. Covenants contain promises, but there is an oath. Therefore, there are consequences for breaking a covenant. Divine covenants are always initiated by God to man. 

We will learn more about them in Gen. 12. But always with a divine covenant, God gives a sign or reminder of His covenant word. In this covenant with Noah and all the earth, that sign is the rainbow. It is a visible reminder of an invisible reality. It is a symbol of God’s oath. It signifies what God has bound Himself to do.

Never again would God wipe out mankind. He will preserve the earth as mankind multiplies and His plans are fulfilled. For Noah and the others, perhaps they wondered if God might do this again. Would He send another flood? But not only does God give His word that He will not, He goes further, for their sake, to reassure them of His preservation.

I think that especially now, we want that reassurance. We want our way of life to be preserved, our freedom, and livelihoods, our health. This is hurricane country. We pray for our homes to be preserved in storms. Where will you look in hope of preservation? Psalm 40, David wrote, “O Yahweh, You will not restrain Your mercy from me; Your steadfast love and Your faithfulness will ever preserve me!”

This morning in our adult Sunday Morning Bible Study we looked at Psalm 27, “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” John Calvin comments on this verse. He says, “Certainly we find that all our fears arise from this source, that we are too anxious about life, while we acknowledge not that God is its preserver. We can have no tranquility, therefore, until we attain the persuasion that our life is sufficiently guarded, because it is protected by His omnipotent power.” Genesis 9 reminds us of God’s sovereignty over all things. Nothing happens outside of His control. Nothing occurs outside the bounds of His decrees.

Where is your ultimate hope for your preservation and the preservation of the ones you love? Preservation belongs to our God. He is actively involved in what is happening on the earth. He is actively engaged in the events of history. The shorter catechism, Q&A 11 says, “What are God's works of providence? God's works of providence are His most holy, wise and powerful preserving and governing all His creatures, and all their actions.” Where is God calling you to trust Him and to rest in Him?

Now in the final verses, life goes on for Noah and the others. Moses reminds us of the names of Noah’s sons, which is important going forward. Notice in verse 18 that Ham was the father of Canaan. The Canaanites are the enemies of the Israelites or Hebrew people, who descend from Shem.

Have you ever seen in a book or a movie or TV show, where you’re taken to a scene in the past which gives you a greater understanding of why things are the way they are in the present? Remember, as always, that Moses wrote Genesis. He wrote it after the Israelites left Egypt, but before they entered the Promised Land, a land that was theirs by God’s covenant with Abraham. The land of Canaan was inhabited by an evil, idolatrous people, known as the Canaanites. They and the Israelites both descended from Noah, as did “the people of the whole earth.” 

But we have this sad event within their family. Noah becomes a farmer, he grows grapes, makes wine, gets drunk and goes to sleep physically exposed. Much has been made of this event; there has been a lot of reading into it. But I want to point out first that Noah is honored throughout the rest of Scripture. Everyone was certainly aware of this mistake. No one is saying that it is ok.

But the point seems to be not what Noah did, but how his sons respond to it. Ham, the father of the Canaanites, behaves in a way that dishonors Noah, whereas Shem and Japheth do the opposite. Notice this: their responses reveal their hearts.

Shem and Japheth cover Noah without even looking at him, doing their best to show Him honor. Noah was not a perfect man. God showed him grace and that resulted in righteousness. But at any rate, this is their father. The fifth commandment says, “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.” God would later take away the Promised Land from Ham who dishonored his father and give that land to Shem, who showed honor. 

Of course, this would take place generations later. Look at verse [25] Noah said, “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.”  He also said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant. May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem, and let Canaan be his servant.” We have watched the unfolding of the re-creation of the earth, parallel to Genesis 1. This is somewhat of a parallel to Genesis 3 and 4: two brothers, same mother and father, but two different directions in life. Two seeds, one of the serpent, and one of the woman. 

This continues the history of the seeds that begins in Genesis 3. From Shem’s line would eventually come Abraham, and from Abraham’s line would eventually come David, and from David eventually Jesus Christ, who would bring salvation for the people of God.

In Rev. 7, among the apostle John’s visions of the Last Day is a vision of a great multitude of people. They are the people of God, those saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. John says, “I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, [10] and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

Do you attempt to take some bit of glory for yourself in salvation? Do you worry that you might lose salvation? It belongs to God; it is given by Him. It is secured by Him for His people, and what God secures can never be lost. Listen to these words from Jesus to His disciples, “...I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also.” …My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”...I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”

Jesus proliferates God’s people and He preserves them because He saves them!

These things are in the hands of God alone! It is our calling to trust in Him.

During the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, Martin Luther and others sought to reform the Roman Catholic church, to bring it back to the right interpretation and application of the Scriptures. Of course, they wound up separating from it. 

You may be familiar with the five statements that were championed in the Reformation: that the final authority in the church was to be Scripture alone, that the source of our salvation is Christ alone, and the salvation we receive is through faith alone, by grace alone, and that for this salvation, we owe glory to God alone. 

The Reformers sacrificed much for what they believed. There was a great personal cost for obedience to God’s calling. For instance, Martin Luther became an enemy of the state and went into hiding for a time. For a long while he was forced into hiding. 

During that time, he prayed and translated the Scriptures into German, and also wrote letters. In one letter, he spoke to a friend about the work of the Reformation, and he wrote this: “Our cause is in the very hands of Him who can say with unutterable pride: “no one shall pluck it out of My hand.” I would not have it in our hands, and it would not be desirable if it were so. I have had many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have been able to place in God’s, I still possess.” 

What is God calling you to surrender to His hands? What have you been trying to take from God that belongs to Him alone? We all stand guilty, but Jesus stands ready to save You.

He trusted fully in God as the owner of life and preservation and salvation. All you must do with your guilty record is admit it and turn from it to Christ Jesus!

Let’s bow in prayer.