Genesis and Matthew XVIII

Now these are the begettings of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Yefet. Sons were born to them after the Deluge.


As he was saying these things to them, next a high official came and bowed before him, saying, "My daughter has just died, but go and put your hand on her, and she'll live."

After the Flood, humanity began to repopulate the earth. There was an orderliness to it, as each nation that came from Noah's sons had a role to fill in history. Interestingly, the cursed son, Ham, who was supposed to serve the other brothers, became the forbear of such great empires as Egypt and Assyria. Perhaps the point was made even then, that the greatest would be servant to the least!

But inevitably, the spread of humanity would eventually yield to the return of chaos. The first such episode would be Babel, which is just around the corner in our study. God does not want to force us to behave and choose against our own will. But the lesson of the Flood taught several generations to multiply and control the earth, which was God's first and perhaps most important directive in creation. They behaved quite well. Noah's family became very successful.

There's an interesting juxtaposition with the beginning of Christ's ministry. The more ordered society became; in other words, the greater and powerful the world governments, the more in disarray we became, in reality. The Egyptian Empire yielded to the Assyrian, which fell to the Babylonian, and then the Persian, Greek, and finally the Roman, the most terrible of all!!

Rome was the shining moment of the Ancient World, in terms of the expansion of the sons of Noah! How organized and efficient was this nation! It dominated the earth, and even for a time operated as a Republic! It ultimately high-jacked the Church of Christ and sought to make it it's own! How adaptable, how functional, how awesome!  How human!

We have always been very good at the having-dominion-over-the-earth part of God's directives! In the time of Christ, the fleshly part of Noah's legacy was unsurpassed, and completely consummated! But God's flock, His sheep, His children, were scattered, lost, and even fearful.

See how people begin swarming to the Christ! From high Roman officials to poor beggar women, they come. In the midst of a totally disordered and chaotic world (disguised as Roman efficiency) he walks among us, and where he goes, order reigns.