# 8 - Noah & The Promise - In this episode of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein we explore the aftermath of the flood and the significance of God’s covenant with Noah, reflecting on themes of new beginnings, human frailty, and enduring hope. Join us as we delve into the story of Noah’s renewed relationship with God and the promise that reshaped the future of humanity.
Episode 8 of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein is inspired by the Book of Genesis.
Sign up for The Chosen People devotionals at https://www.thechosenpeople.com/sign-up
For more information about Yael Eckstein and IFCJ visit https://www.ifcj.org/
Today's opening prayer is inspired by Romans 12:1, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.”
Listen to some of the greatest Bible stories ever told and make prayer a priority in your life by downloading the Pray.com app.
Show Notes:
(02:10) Intro with Yael Eckstein
(03:41) Noah & The Promise - Cinematic Retelling
(27:02) Reflection with Yael Eckstein
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
00:00:00
Speaker 1: Previously on the Chosen People, mankind was blighted by bloodshed
00:00:07
Speaker 1: and discord. Noah was determined to oppose the culture. Behold,
00:00:15
Speaker 1: I would destroy them with the earth. I would bring
00:00:19
Speaker 1: a flood to wipe this earth clean. I have appointed you, Noah,
00:00:25
Speaker 1: to build an ark. Noah gazed at the Ark, a
00:00:29
Speaker 1: towering mononith against the sky, its shadow stretching over the valley.
00:00:34
Speaker 1: He watched his sons, no longer boys, but men bound
00:00:38
Speaker 1: by duty and the promise of future generations, soar, chop,
00:00:42
Speaker 1: hammer and sand the vessel's final touches.
00:00:46
Speaker 2: This world is sick. These people are plagued by evil.
00:00:54
Speaker 2: I know what they deserve, but I can't bring myself
00:00:57
Speaker 2: to fully accept it. They're all going to die.
00:01:02
Speaker 1: Thousands of creatures, two by two, ran into the Ark,
00:01:06
Speaker 1: their hoons, paws and claws thumping and scratching against the
00:01:10
Speaker 1: ark's floor. Flashes of lightning replaced the sun's light, and
00:01:15
Speaker 1: thunder roared like a predator ready to kill. The voice
00:01:19
Speaker 1: of the Creator spoke through the tempest through the ark.
00:01:23
Speaker 1: Nor underneath the white noise of falling rain and rushing water,
00:01:29
Speaker 1: the screams became audible. Desperate blood curdling screams. Noah ran
00:01:36
Speaker 1: to the door and pounded his fists against it. His
00:01:39
Speaker 1: shouts were surprising to the others.
00:01:42
Speaker 2: What's wrong?
00:01:43
Speaker 1: We made it?
00:01:44
Speaker 2: If you don't weep with this suffering, you'd know better
00:01:48
Speaker 2: than them.
00:01:50
Speaker 1: Outside the skies wept and the earth quivered. God's wrath
00:01:55
Speaker 1: poured forth, but it did not blease him. He sent
00:01:59
Speaker 1: the flood with regret and sorrow. The waters prevailed over
00:02:04
Speaker 1: the earth, and the scene swallowed every creature given the
00:02:07
Speaker 1: breath of life.
00:02:13
Speaker 3: A fresh start doesn't mean we forget the past. It
00:02:16
Speaker 3: means that we learn from it instead of letting it
00:02:19
Speaker 3: hold us back. Shadow my friends from here in the
00:02:22
Speaker 3: Holy Land of Israel, i'm l Extein with the International
00:02:26
Speaker 3: Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and this is the Chosen People,
00:02:30
Speaker 3: join us every day as we explore another dramatic story
00:02:34
Speaker 3: from the Hebrew Bible and discuss some of its themes together.
00:02:39
Speaker 3: If your faith has been kindled by this podcast and
00:02:42
Speaker 3: it has affected your life, we love it. If you
00:02:44
Speaker 3: left her review, we read them and me personally I
00:02:48
Speaker 3: cherish them. As we explore the biblical story of the
00:02:52
Speaker 3: people of Israel, we will discover what it means to
00:02:55
Speaker 3: live a life of purpose and step into the calling
00:02:58
Speaker 3: of God that he really has for each one of us. Today,
00:03:03
Speaker 3: God chose the nation of Israel and Mount Sinai. But
00:03:06
Speaker 3: through their story we will discover one abiding truth that
00:03:11
Speaker 3: we are all chosen for something great. So let's begin.
00:03:16
Speaker 3: Today's tale is about new beginnings, about moving on, about
00:03:21
Speaker 3: starting a new Noah witnessed the tragedy of judgment, but
00:03:26
Speaker 3: now he will experience new birth, the birth of a
00:03:30
Speaker 3: new Earth and a new covenant. Let's not waste any
00:03:34
Speaker 3: more time. Here's episode eight of The Chosen People, Noah
00:03:40
Speaker 3: and the Promise.
00:03:44
Speaker 2: Darkness.
00:03:46
Speaker 1: Noah remained huddled beside the window, the arc rocking to
00:03:50
Speaker 1: the tempest outside. Noah was certain it was midday, but
00:03:55
Speaker 1: there was no way of confirming it. The sun's warmth
00:03:58
Speaker 1: hadn't graced their face in weeks. Noah's countenance was gaunt,
00:04:04
Speaker 1: his eyes unfocussed and glazed over with sorrow. His mind
00:04:08
Speaker 1: swirled like the charcoal clouds above. Noah was tired, but
00:04:13
Speaker 1: couldn't close his eyes. Every time he did, he saw
00:04:17
Speaker 1: the faces of the damned floating atop the waters. Emzara
00:04:21
Speaker 1: stepped lightly through the opening of their room. She held
00:04:25
Speaker 1: the wax candle, the tiny flame twitch to and fro,
00:04:30
Speaker 1: casting shadows against the wooden walls of the ark. The
00:04:34
Speaker 1: faint light revealed her concerned face. Her husband had barely
00:04:38
Speaker 1: spoken since the walls shut.
00:04:41
Speaker 4: Have you eaten?
00:04:43
Speaker 1: Noah shook his head, his stomach nootted, not only from guilt,
00:04:47
Speaker 1: but also from the relentless swaying of the boat. Emzara
00:04:51
Speaker 1: knelt beside him, her fingers gently stroking his matted hair.
00:04:56
Speaker 1: She too felt the weight of survival, though her guilt
00:05:00
Speaker 1: it was different. She did not share Noah's anguish, but
00:05:04
Speaker 1: felt relief that they were spared. Her husband's heart, however,
00:05:08
Speaker 1: was tethered to the creator's sorrow. She reached for his hand,
00:05:13
Speaker 1: placing a barley loaf in his palm, and kissed his forehead.
00:05:17
Speaker 4: Eat or else we will have to witness another death.
00:05:22
Speaker 1: Noah tore a small piece of the loaf and rolled
00:05:25
Speaker 1: it in his fingers, toying with the idea of eating.
00:05:29
Speaker 1: The white noise of rain was a constant murmur, muting
00:05:33
Speaker 1: his low pitched voice.
00:05:34
Speaker 2: Do you think I'm ungrateful?
00:05:37
Speaker 1: Hemzaraside, resting her head against his shoulder.
00:05:42
Speaker 4: I remember you telling our boys the stories of old
00:05:45
Speaker 4: by the fire, the story of the garden and the banishment.
00:05:50
Speaker 4: I remember you repeatedly reminding them that the Creator was
00:05:56
Speaker 4: merciful even in his wrath.
00:06:01
Speaker 1: In his wrath, searching for words that might reach him,
00:06:06
Speaker 1: Noah repeated the words heavy and foreign. In the damp,
00:06:10
Speaker 1: wooden tomb he found himself in, he sighed, allowing the
00:06:14
Speaker 1: small piece of bread to pass his lips, chewing slowly
00:06:18
Speaker 1: each bite to struggle against his sorrow. He laid his
00:06:22
Speaker 1: head on Emzara's chest, her humming a soft lullaby against
00:06:27
Speaker 1: the storm. Slowly and sloppily, Noah began to fall asleep.
00:06:33
Speaker 2: Remember me, remember my family and the animals with me.
00:06:40
Speaker 2: Do not.
00:06:42
Speaker 5: Ash, Do not forsake us, sisters.
00:06:45
Speaker 1: Tool As Noah's breathing finally steadied, the rain stopped for
00:06:52
Speaker 1: forty days. The heavens had wept, but finally, mercifully they ceased,
00:06:58
Speaker 1: Emzara felt a weight release from her chest. She thought
00:07:02
Speaker 1: about waking Noah, but chose not to, instead laying his
00:07:07
Speaker 1: head gently on a bed made of woolen hay. The
00:07:10
Speaker 1: ark rocked gently, the low purrs of wild cats and
00:07:14
Speaker 1: braying of horses filling the space where the reins once sang.
00:07:21
Speaker 1: God hadn't forgotten Noah. The Creator remembered him and all
00:07:26
Speaker 1: the beasts within the Ark. The breath of God the Ruach,
00:07:31
Speaker 1: blew mightily over the waters. The winds churned, spreading the seas.
00:07:36
Speaker 6: In each direction.
00:07:38
Speaker 1: The voice of the Creator tamed the dark and chaotic abyss.
00:07:42
Speaker 1: Noah looked out with his sons. The heavens had closed
00:07:46
Speaker 1: and ceased their churney. A rumbling could be felt from below,
00:07:51
Speaker 1: and the fountains of the deep had closed. Shem peered
00:07:55
Speaker 1: out at the horizon, straining to see any sign of land.
00:08:00
Speaker 1: The wind cut at his cheeks, and his eyes began
00:08:03
Speaker 1: to water.
00:08:04
Speaker 6: I don't see anything yet.
00:08:05
Speaker 2: How long will it take for the waters recede?
00:08:08
Speaker 4: Not sure how much longer I can endure the smell.
00:08:11
Speaker 2: Patience, boys, God has not forgotten us. Listen closely. The
00:08:18
Speaker 2: wind of God is moving on our behalf.
00:08:21
Speaker 1: Do you think there's anything on the horizon.
00:08:23
Speaker 2: There's a way to find out.
00:08:25
Speaker 1: Noah captured a raven from within the ark and brought
00:08:28
Speaker 1: it to the others. He petted its feathers and held
00:08:32
Speaker 1: it up to the window.
00:08:33
Speaker 2: Herds gathered twigs, leaves, and other things for the nests.
00:08:40
Speaker 2: If there's any land, this raven will return with something
00:08:43
Speaker 2: for its mate.
00:08:45
Speaker 4: Maybe it will return a fig for me.
00:08:47
Speaker 3: Nothing but still barleyboves.
00:08:49
Speaker 7: Has my stomach and nons.
00:08:51
Speaker 1: Noah released the raven and watched it recede into the horizon.
00:08:56
Speaker 1: The raven carried Noah's anxiety on its wings. He knew
00:09:00
Speaker 1: better than to put all his hope in the raven,
00:09:02
Speaker 1: but curiosity gripped him. Still days passed into weeks, and
00:09:09
Speaker 1: still the raven hadn't returned. Noah's face twitched with irritation.
00:09:15
Speaker 1: I should have known better than to use a raven.
00:09:18
Speaker 1: Noah had a dove in his hands. He gently stroked
00:09:22
Speaker 1: its white feathers with his thumbs. With a sigh and
00:09:26
Speaker 1: a prayer, he released it into the air.
00:09:29
Speaker 2: Why is a dove better than a raven? Ravens are scavengers.
00:09:34
Speaker 2: The bird is likely feasting off the carcasses floating atop
00:09:37
Speaker 2: the waters. No, it's too fat to fly back. The
00:09:43
Speaker 2: raven is comfortable with death. It will make it home
00:09:48
Speaker 2: somewhere on the floating carnage and never return. But the
00:09:54
Speaker 2: dove is a clean animal. It won't make its nest
00:09:58
Speaker 2: among death and despair. It will return to us.
00:10:03
Speaker 1: Noah remained at the window for hours, staring earnestly at
00:10:07
Speaker 1: the water. The faint echoes of scream still tortured his mind.
00:10:13
Speaker 1: He wasn't sure he even wanted to go back on
00:10:15
Speaker 1: to dry land. Noah was old and unsure if he
00:10:19
Speaker 1: was capable of a fresh start. Before Noah's mind could
00:10:23
Speaker 1: spiral even further, he heard the faint sound of the
00:10:27
Speaker 1: dove returning. It perched atop his finger. It hadn't found land,
00:10:33
Speaker 1: at least, nothing inhabitable for it to rest its wings.
00:10:37
Speaker 1: Noah petted its feathers and retreated into the ark to
00:10:41
Speaker 1: feed it. Another week passed and it was time again
00:10:46
Speaker 1: for Noah to send the dove out. It flew gracefully
00:10:49
Speaker 1: over the familiar waters, wings shimmering in the light of dawn.
00:10:54
Speaker 1: After hours of waiting, Noah's eyes widened to see the
00:10:58
Speaker 1: dove's return. In its mouth was a freshly plucked olive leaf.
00:11:04
Speaker 1: Noah took the leaf and cradled it in his palm.
00:11:08
Speaker 1: He stroked its smooth green surface. His face quivered with relief.
00:11:14
Speaker 1: The waters were receding. They would walk the earth again.
00:11:21
Speaker 1: The dove was sent out again and hadn't returned. Confident
00:11:25
Speaker 1: that the land was near ready, Noah removed the top
00:11:28
Speaker 1: covering of the ark. It had settled on the mountains
00:11:32
Speaker 1: of Ararat. The sun shined brilliantly, revealing a land reborn.
00:11:39
Speaker 1: Noah's family leaned over, beholding the beautiful landscape teeming with
00:11:44
Speaker 1: vibrant colors. They wafted in the crisp air, smelling the
00:11:49
Speaker 1: damp earth mixed with fruit trees. Emsara squeezed her husband's.
00:11:54
Speaker 4: Arm, look Noah our new home.
00:11:58
Speaker 1: Shen Ham and Jaffer ran to the ark's entrance and
00:12:02
Speaker 1: released the ropes, keeping doors shut. The fresh hair blew
00:12:06
Speaker 1: against their cheery faces. The three brothers held their wives,
00:12:10
Speaker 1: giddy to step out of the Ark and into their future. Still,
00:12:16
Speaker 1: Noah wouldn't permit them to.
00:12:17
Speaker 2: Leave the Ark.
00:12:18
Speaker 1: He stood at the threshold, waiting. His eyes were nervous
00:12:23
Speaker 1: and his hands shook. Noah refused to embark on the adventure.
00:12:29
Speaker 1: He pensively stood frozen to the ark. Nearly a year
00:12:33
Speaker 1: after they entered the Ark, the Creator spoke to Noah,
00:12:37
Speaker 1: prompting him to leave. He could hear his voice deep
00:12:41
Speaker 1: within his heart. His voice was like a steady stream.
00:12:46
Speaker 6: Go out from the ark, Noah, Take your wife, your sons,
00:12:51
Speaker 6: their wives, and every living thing that dwells with you.
00:12:56
Speaker 6: Swarm the earth, Noah, feel it be ruthful and multiply.
00:13:02
Speaker 1: Noah took the first step forward. His family waited with
00:13:07
Speaker 1: bated breath as he slowly, steadily, and somberly descended the ramp.
00:13:13
Speaker 1: A patch of grass was at the bottom. Noah placed
00:13:17
Speaker 1: a bare foot on the wet earth. The chill sent
00:13:21
Speaker 1: a shiver up his spine. A sigh of relief followed.
00:13:26
Speaker 1: He turned to his family and gave them a reassuring smile.
00:13:31
Speaker 1: They ran like children and skipped across the meadow. The
00:13:35
Speaker 1: animals followed, scampering, padding, slithering, and galloping.
00:13:40
Speaker 6: The hills were alive.
00:13:42
Speaker 1: The animals didn't look back. They spread across the earth,
00:13:46
Speaker 1: stretching as far as the eye could see. Noah's eyes
00:13:51
Speaker 1: glistened with tears, tears of relief, joy.
00:13:55
Speaker 2: And sadness.
00:13:57
Speaker 1: He ascended a jagged path that led to an overhand
00:14:00
Speaker 1: looking out at the ark. There he made an altar
00:14:04
Speaker 1: of wet stones and sacrificed towards God. The offering burnt
00:14:10
Speaker 1: bright a beacon, signaling a new beginning. The smoke billowed upward,
00:14:16
Speaker 1: mixing with the clouds. The Creator breathed in the offering
00:14:20
Speaker 1: like a leasing aroma. Noah watched the light play off
00:14:25
Speaker 1: the mist. Across the sky. Brilliant lights began to form.
00:14:30
Speaker 1: Everyone watched in awe as the colors arched against the
00:14:34
Speaker 1: blue backdrop. Noah's heart swelled within. He could sense the
00:14:40
Speaker 1: heart of God.
00:14:41
Speaker 6: I will never again curse the ground because of man,
00:14:45
Speaker 6: for I know his heart is corrupt from his youth.
00:14:49
Speaker 6: Neither will I strike down these creatures again. The long
00:14:53
Speaker 6: winter is over, while the earth remains seed, dire and harvest,
00:14:58
Speaker 6: cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall
00:15:06
Speaker 6: not cease.
00:15:08
Speaker 1: Noah gathered his family and relayed everything he could hear
00:15:12
Speaker 1: from the Creator's heart. God spoke to him, within him
00:15:17
Speaker 1: and about him. Each word was a barn to his
00:15:20
Speaker 1: aching heart.
00:15:22
Speaker 6: Be fruitful and multiply fill the earth, as I have
00:15:27
Speaker 6: commanded since the days of old. Once again you have dominion.
00:15:35
Speaker 6: The beasts of the earth will fear you. The birds
00:15:38
Speaker 6: of the air, and the creatures of the deep will
00:15:41
Speaker 6: flee and dread because of you. Into your hands, I
00:15:46
Speaker 6: give them they shall be food for you, as are
00:15:49
Speaker 6: the plants of the earth. I have given you everything.
00:15:55
Speaker 6: Yet even so my eyes are on the lower creatures.
00:16:00
Speaker 6: You shall not deal with them cruelly, nor shall you
00:16:04
Speaker 6: eat flesh with its life blood. Life is precious, and
00:16:09
Speaker 6: for your lives I will require a reckoning. The life
00:16:14
Speaker 6: of all beasts and men will end. And to those
00:16:19
Speaker 6: who take life on their own, shedding the blood of
00:16:23
Speaker 6: their fellow man, I will require a reckoning. Whoever sheds
00:16:29
Speaker 6: the blood of a man by man, shall his blood
00:16:34
Speaker 6: be shed for God made man in his image. Do
00:16:40
Speaker 6: not take life, Multiply it, cultivate it, increase and roam
00:16:47
Speaker 6: the earth. I have washed it clean for you.
00:16:51
Speaker 1: The lights continue to form in the sky, slowly stretching
00:16:55
Speaker 1: across the clouds. Noah and his sons watched in awe,
00:17:00
Speaker 1: taking in the captivating dance of colors bowing over the
00:17:04
Speaker 1: sky red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple lights held
00:17:09
Speaker 1: together by some unseen thread.
00:17:12
Speaker 6: Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your offspring.
00:17:18
Speaker 6: After you, I make a promise to you and to
00:17:21
Speaker 6: all the creatures from the ark, I shall never again
00:17:24
Speaker 6: flood the earth. As a sign of my covenant with you.
00:17:28
Speaker 6: I have set my bow in the clouds. When I
00:17:32
Speaker 6: bring the clouds over the earth and the sun's light
00:17:35
Speaker 6: mingles with the mist of the sky, you shall see
00:17:38
Speaker 6: the bow and remember my covenant. The waters shall never
00:17:43
Speaker 6: destroy the earth. When the bow is in the clouds,
00:17:47
Speaker 6: I will remember the everlasting covenant I have made with
00:17:51
Speaker 6: every living creature.
00:17:54
Speaker 1: Noah's suns glowed with hope for the future, Andmzara and
00:17:59
Speaker 1: the other wives watched from a distance, their eyes glistening
00:18:03
Speaker 1: with gratitude that the earth was safe. Noah's jaw tightened.
00:18:08
Speaker 1: A rush of gratitude for the Creator came upon him,
00:18:12
Speaker 1: but in the back of his mind, whispers of torment
00:18:15
Speaker 1: plagued him. Noah woke in a panic, sweat dripping down
00:18:22
Speaker 1: his chest and back. His entire body trembled, unable to steady.
00:18:28
Speaker 1: Emzara placed a gentle hand on his back. Noah's eyes
00:18:32
Speaker 1: were wild, haunted another nightmare.
00:18:35
Speaker 2: This time it was Shem drowning outside the ark. He
00:18:38
Speaker 2: screamed for me.
00:18:40
Speaker 5: He begged me to let him in, but I Ah,
00:18:43
Speaker 5: I couldn't do anything. Then the corpses of the Nephelin
00:18:48
Speaker 5: rose and dragged him to the bottom of the abyss.
00:18:51
Speaker 4: It was only a dream. Our sun is safe, no doubt,
00:18:56
Speaker 4: cradling his new child in his arms.
00:19:00
Speaker 2: Of course, it was just a dream. But that doesn't
00:19:03
Speaker 2: make it any less real. In Sarah, these images, I
00:19:08
Speaker 2: see it into my mind. I've been branded by these memories.
00:19:13
Speaker 4: You act as though you're the one to have flooded
00:19:15
Speaker 4: the earth. How long will you hold on to this guilt?
00:19:20
Speaker 2: It isn't guilt that torments me. It's knowing that evil
00:19:25
Speaker 2: still exists out there, in here, in each of us.
00:19:31
Speaker 2: We were spared from the flood, but that doesn't mean
00:19:35
Speaker 2: we're innocent.
00:19:37
Speaker 1: Noah stormed out, flustered and quivering. The moonlight bathed the
00:19:42
Speaker 1: landscape in a pale, ethereal glow as he descended the
00:19:45
Speaker 1: hills to the vineyard he had planted. Beside it were
00:19:49
Speaker 1: cisterns hewn from stone and wood, filled with fermented wine.
00:19:54
Speaker 1: Noah drew some in a bowl. The liquid was a
00:19:57
Speaker 1: deep crimson, perfect to drink. His eyes glazed over with
00:20:02
Speaker 1: desire as he placed the cup to his lips and drank,
00:20:06
Speaker 1: seeking to wash away the sorrow, the hurt, the guilt,
00:20:10
Speaker 1: the fear. The cup was his flood drowning out the
00:20:15
Speaker 1: anguish within him.
00:20:17
Speaker 2: Cup after cup.
00:20:19
Speaker 1: Noah drank away his sorrows, yet it only numbed the pain.
00:20:24
Speaker 1: Wine would never ease what only God could heal. It
00:20:28
Speaker 1: silenced the screams in his head, but gave way to
00:20:31
Speaker 1: different sounds. Drunk and alone, Noah howled at the moon.
00:20:37
Speaker 1: He thrashed his arms and punched his fists in the air.
00:20:41
Speaker 1: He shouted vulgarities, cried and wailed into the empty night.
00:20:46
Speaker 1: His youngest son hand watched from a distance, Disdain etched
00:20:52
Speaker 1: on his face as he witnessed his father's shameful display.
00:20:57
Speaker 1: Righteous Noah, the one who walks with God. The air
00:21:02
Speaker 1: was humid and thick. Noah removed his clothes and skulked
00:21:07
Speaker 1: through the vineyard. Naked. Noah kicked the dirt and thrashed
00:21:11
Speaker 1: at branches, murmuring and burping his way back to his tent.
00:21:16
Speaker 1: He was a sad and shameful sight. But ham bassed
00:21:20
Speaker 1: in his father's shame.
00:21:24
Speaker 4: The fool can barely stand.
00:21:26
Speaker 1: Anne leaped off the stone he was sitting on and
00:21:29
Speaker 1: gingerly followed his father. Noah swayed to and fro barely
00:21:34
Speaker 1: keeping his naked frame upright.
00:21:37
Speaker 2: Ham danced around him.
00:21:39
Speaker 4: Ah, so this is what it means to walk with God.
00:21:43
Speaker 1: Hey father, what.
00:21:45
Speaker 4: Happened to all that honor.
00:21:46
Speaker 2: You preach to me? Well, there's here, Let me help you.
00:21:52
Speaker 1: Am reached out his arms. Noah fell forward and expecting
00:21:56
Speaker 1: to be caught, but instead Hal moved and Noah fell
00:22:01
Speaker 1: face first into the dirt. Noah groaned and turned on
00:22:05
Speaker 1: his back. The world was spinning. He could feel the
00:22:09
Speaker 1: gravel grinding against his back and buttocks. Ham stood above him,
00:22:14
Speaker 1: face beaming with amusement. Noah, unable to speak, began crawling
00:22:19
Speaker 1: back to his tent. The first signs of dawn crept
00:22:23
Speaker 1: over the horizon. Emzara was already gone, attending to her grandchildren.
00:22:29
Speaker 1: As the sun rose, Ham stood outside his father's tent,
00:22:33
Speaker 1: waiting for his brothers. Shem and Jaffith approached, their tools
00:22:38
Speaker 1: clinking softly in the cool morning air, Ham waved them
00:22:43
Speaker 1: down a theatrical air about him. Brethren, I have a
00:22:48
Speaker 1: rare sight for you to behold.
00:22:50
Speaker 2: What is it now? Ham? I present to you the honorable,
00:22:55
Speaker 2: the stoic, and the righteous. Noah, naked and sleeping in
00:23:01
Speaker 2: his own vomit.
00:23:02
Speaker 1: Ham grabbed the opening flap of the tent to reveal
00:23:05
Speaker 1: his naked father, but the brothers stopped him before they
00:23:09
Speaker 1: could catch a glimpse.
00:23:10
Speaker 2: Ham, you've gone too far.
00:23:14
Speaker 3: What after all the preaching and lecturing that man has
00:23:18
Speaker 3: given me, why not revel a little in his hypocrisy?
00:23:22
Speaker 2: Hem, you've disgraced.
00:23:24
Speaker 1: Our father, you too, Shem. Come on, we've all been
00:23:29
Speaker 1: through a living nightmare.
00:23:30
Speaker 4: Why not have a little fun with him?
00:23:33
Speaker 2: What do you mean fun?
00:23:35
Speaker 1: I don't know, Maybe we could. Ham was interrupted by
00:23:38
Speaker 1: a stirring within the tent. Noah exhaled a befuddled and
00:23:43
Speaker 1: dreamy moon.
00:23:44
Speaker 2: Japeth, go get father's clothes from the vineyard, Hem, I
00:23:49
Speaker 2: suggest you leave. Go jump in the stream. Clearly you
00:23:53
Speaker 2: need to cool off.
00:23:55
Speaker 1: Ham snarled and left, kicking the dirt on his way
00:23:59
Speaker 1: back to his tent. Jaffath returned with the garment. The
00:24:03
Speaker 1: two older brothers walked backward into the tent with the
00:24:06
Speaker 1: garment on their shoulders. When they felt his body on
00:24:09
Speaker 1: their heels, they dropped it and covered him. They didn't
00:24:13
Speaker 1: want to shame him as their brother had. They crept
00:24:17
Speaker 1: out of the tent, pensive and afraid of what would
00:24:20
Speaker 1: happen to Ham when their father woke. Noah slept all day,
00:24:26
Speaker 1: drifting in and out of his wine induced stupor. His
00:24:31
Speaker 1: head throbbed, the world around him a fuzzy blur, but
00:24:35
Speaker 1: he remembered Ham's actions. He recalled the mocking laugh, the
00:24:40
Speaker 1: bruise on his jaw, a painful reminder of his son's betrayal.
00:24:44
Speaker 1: Emerging from his tent, Noah wrapped his garment tightly around
00:24:48
Speaker 1: his body and hobbled to the fire, where his wife
00:24:52
Speaker 1: and son sat. Jaffath and Shem's sons were also by
00:24:56
Speaker 1: the fire. While Ham's son Canaan was on his father's lap.
00:25:01
Speaker 1: Shem and Jeffeth.
00:25:02
Speaker 6: Looked up at him.
00:25:03
Speaker 1: Empathy etched on their faces, but not Ham. A mocking
00:25:08
Speaker 1: smile played on his lips. As Noah stood over the fire,
00:25:12
Speaker 1: the dancing flames illuminating his scowl, his voice, coarse and gravelly,
00:25:19
Speaker 1: broke the tense silence.
00:25:21
Speaker 2: Cursed be Canaan.
00:25:23
Speaker 1: His tone was sharp and impassive. Ham's expression shifted from
00:25:28
Speaker 1: confusion to rage. He covered his son's ears and raised
00:25:32
Speaker 1: his voice. What did you just say to my son?
00:25:35
Speaker 2: Cursed be Cadin for what his father is done.
00:25:40
Speaker 6: He will be a servant to his brothers.
00:25:43
Speaker 1: Ham stood his chest puffed out in defiance. What do
00:25:47
Speaker 1: you think you're doing?
00:25:48
Speaker 2: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem. Canaan will
00:25:53
Speaker 2: be his servant. Shut up, old man, They God in large,
00:25:58
Speaker 2: jayfithful son. He will dwell in the tents of shame,
00:26:04
Speaker 2: but Canaan will be a slave to them all.
00:26:07
Speaker 1: Shut up.
00:26:08
Speaker 2: First, three your descendence, sam.
00:26:10
Speaker 1: And lungs to strike his father, Shall and Jack have
00:26:14
Speaker 1: got to him first. Ham's screams echoed down the hills.
00:26:18
Speaker 1: The children scurry to their mothers, and Amsara rose to Noah's.
00:26:22
Speaker 2: Side, leave here gladly.
00:26:27
Speaker 1: Thus continued the cycle of blessings and curses, faith and failure.
00:26:33
Speaker 1: The never ending pattern of sin and struggle didn't cease
00:26:37
Speaker 1: with the flood. Men's sins stretched alongside Noah's descendants, but
00:26:43
Speaker 1: God's promises remained. His faithfulness wouldn't waver even in the
00:26:48
Speaker 1: face of human imperfection. The name Noah means rest His
00:26:54
Speaker 1: name was a foreshadowing, a glimmer of hope that peace
00:26:59
Speaker 1: with God would one day be restored.
00:27:05
Speaker 3: That's a pretty odd ending, isn't it. The first moments
00:27:09
Speaker 3: out of the arc are euphoric for Noah and his
00:27:12
Speaker 3: family accompanied by a rainbow, a promise and a new
00:27:16
Speaker 3: lease on life, but it ends with shame and a curse.
00:27:21
Speaker 3: We ended the story of Noah asking many of the
00:27:24
Speaker 3: same questions we had when we began. Are human beings
00:27:27
Speaker 3: doomed to repeat their mistakes? How will humanity press on?
00:27:33
Speaker 3: And the worst of all, will evil win? The Bible
00:27:37
Speaker 3: tells us in Genesis eight twenty one. Never again will
00:27:41
Speaker 3: I curse the ground because of humans, even though every
00:27:44
Speaker 3: inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And
00:27:48
Speaker 3: never again will I destroy all living creatures as I
00:27:50
Speaker 3: have done, even though the human heart persists in its evil.
00:27:55
Speaker 3: God has promised to endure with us. Noah wasn't a
00:27:59
Speaker 3: perfect man. Yes, he made mistakes, and his sons would
00:28:03
Speaker 3: make even more. But God has determined to abide with
00:28:07
Speaker 3: his chosen people with patients, slowly guiding each individual and
00:28:13
Speaker 3: each generation to their potential. Be encouraged by this, My friends,
00:28:19
Speaker 3: I know I am because God knows you aren't perfect.
00:28:22
Speaker 3: He doesn't expect you to be perfect. He's eager to
00:28:26
Speaker 3: forgive and guide you towards new beginnings. Let's explore some
00:28:31
Speaker 3: key events and moments in this story. The first verse
00:28:35
Speaker 3: of Genesis eight reads like this, But God remembered Noah
00:28:39
Speaker 3: and all the wild animals and the livestock that were
00:28:42
Speaker 3: with him in the ark, and he sent a wind
00:28:44
Speaker 3: over the earth, and the waters receded. Russia Shanna, the
00:28:48
Speaker 3: Jewish New Year, is a time for solemn prayer. But interestingly,
00:28:54
Speaker 3: the Russia Shana prayer service invokes Noah and this very verse.
00:29:00
Speaker 3: Think about it. On Russia Shana, the Jewish New Year
00:29:03
Speaker 3: during the high holidays, this is what we say to God.
00:29:07
Speaker 3: You lovingly remembered Noah, and you recalled him with words
00:29:11
Speaker 3: of salvation when you brought the waters of the flood.
00:29:15
Speaker 3: And let's think about it. Isn't that what we all
00:29:19
Speaker 3: pray every day, that all of the raging waters of
00:29:22
Speaker 3: the world, the war, the poverty, the illness, the pain,
00:29:27
Speaker 3: that they should recede. Yes, indeed, with Noah there was destruction,
00:29:32
Speaker 3: vast destruction. But in the end, the waters receded and
00:29:35
Speaker 3: Noah was left to create a covenant with God for
00:29:39
Speaker 3: all of humanity. As we think about Noah, this is
00:29:43
Speaker 3: what we all pray for. Now, let's talk about the
00:29:46
Speaker 3: wind in this verse, the wind that God sent over
00:29:49
Speaker 3: the earth. This is the very same wind hovering over
00:29:53
Speaker 3: the waters in Genesis one. Do you remember that, As
00:29:57
Speaker 3: it says in Hebrew verruach mirachrefes al ne hamaim and
00:30:03
Speaker 3: the spirit or the wind of God, the rua was
00:30:09
Speaker 3: present when the earth was covered in untained dark waters.
00:30:14
Speaker 3: What we have here, my friends, is a callback, a
00:30:17
Speaker 3: callback to Genesis one, when the world was dark and
00:30:20
Speaker 3: when chaos reigned now here, God's breath and wind the
00:30:25
Speaker 3: rua blew again. Just as God tamed the chaotic seas
00:30:29
Speaker 3: and Genesis wan to fashion the earth, he taged the
00:30:33
Speaker 3: chaotic mess of Genesis eight to create a fresh start,
00:30:37
Speaker 3: a new beginning, new creation in a way. And we
00:30:41
Speaker 3: have to believe He can do this for us. He
00:30:44
Speaker 3: can do this for you, just like he did it
00:30:47
Speaker 3: for them. He can make you new and he can
00:30:50
Speaker 3: give you a fresh start. That's what this Bible verse
00:30:54
Speaker 3: is teaching us. Now, let's go to the vineyard and
00:30:58
Speaker 3: talk about Noah's shit. God gives Noah and his family
00:31:02
Speaker 3: a commission uru uruvou, it says in Hebrew, be fruitful
00:31:07
Speaker 3: and multiply. Does that sound familiar? It was the call
00:31:10
Speaker 3: given to Adam and Eve be fruitful, multiply. That same
00:31:15
Speaker 3: commission echoes in our ears today reminding us of our purpose.
00:31:19
Speaker 3: But what happened to Adam and Eve shortly after that call, Well,
00:31:23
Speaker 3: they partook of a forbidden fruit, leading to their nakedness
00:31:27
Speaker 3: and their shame. Noah ate of a different vine, leading
00:31:33
Speaker 3: to his nakedness and shame. Noah was much like Adam,
00:31:37
Speaker 3: given a similar commission, and he failed similarly. But hope
00:31:43
Speaker 3: doesn't hinge on the faith of one imperfect man. It
00:31:48
Speaker 3: hinges on God, perfect God. Remember, Israel was not God's
00:31:54
Speaker 3: people because they were perfect. We see that over and
00:31:58
Speaker 3: over again in the scriptures, imperfect beings. But despite that,
00:32:04
Speaker 3: God chose them. When God's wrath came, when the winds
00:32:10
Speaker 3: and rains of judgment fell, God established a new covenant.
00:32:14
Speaker 3: Along with the promise to never flood the earth again,
00:32:18
Speaker 3: a rainbow in the sky appeared. The emergence from the ark,
00:32:25
Speaker 3: the promise, and the rainbow. They all have significant meanings
00:32:30
Speaker 3: for Christians and Jews alike. To speak on the rich
00:32:34
Speaker 3: symbolism is our friend, Bishop Paullineer.
00:32:38
Speaker 7: I realize that this is a portion of scripture that's
00:32:42
Speaker 7: filled with miraculous hand of our God. I'm in awe
00:32:46
Speaker 7: of him, but I'm also anguished by some of what
00:32:53
Speaker 7: you and I read in this story as well. For
00:32:56
Speaker 7: three hundred days Noah was on that boat till finally
00:33:02
Speaker 7: they landed, and finally they.
00:33:05
Speaker 2: They left the ship.
00:33:06
Speaker 7: The ark first thing did was to build an altar,
00:33:12
Speaker 7: and that a strange thing that some of those animals
00:33:16
Speaker 7: who had been preserved and protected, just like Noah and
00:33:20
Speaker 7: his family. The first thing that happens when they reach
00:33:24
Speaker 7: salvation is they are sacrificed and surrendered unto the Lord.
00:33:32
Speaker 7: And then this Noah did what we begin finding in
00:33:37
Speaker 7: the Book of Genesis. With Adam and Eve. There was
00:33:39
Speaker 7: a garden, and they messed up, and they touched something
00:33:43
Speaker 7: in the wrong way, and it created havoc eventually for
00:33:47
Speaker 7: three sons. And here we are Noah, who had been
00:33:52
Speaker 7: in that boat for three hundred days, now dug himself,
00:33:58
Speaker 7: planted a garden and had a vineyard, and drunk from it.
00:34:05
Speaker 7: And the Bible says he, too, like Adam, had become naked.
00:34:13
Speaker 7: And what's so tragic. The Bible says his own son
00:34:16
Speaker 7: came and discovered his nakedness, and when he saw it,
00:34:19
Speaker 7: he marked his father's vulnerability, this sin of uncovering. Have
00:34:25
Speaker 7: you ever known someone who loved to go around finding
00:34:29
Speaker 7: people in their failures, just to uncover and to ridicule
00:34:33
Speaker 7: in Mark and to expose. I do know the other
00:34:37
Speaker 7: brothers did come, the other sons, and they covered their
00:34:41
Speaker 7: father in his nakedness. I want to pray in this
00:34:48
Speaker 7: tragic though triumphal moment. I want us to pray now.
00:34:54
Speaker 7: I want to pray for your family. I want to
00:34:57
Speaker 7: pray that God so Oh reveals himself to you in
00:35:02
Speaker 7: the most glorious, powerful way that as you walk in Him,
00:35:06
Speaker 7: your own family most believes in your intimacy, believes in
00:35:11
Speaker 7: your walk with God, and no matter the storms that come,
00:35:17
Speaker 7: you are arked. If you're will, you are kept, you
00:35:20
Speaker 7: are safe. For Christians in the New Testament, we studied
00:35:25
Speaker 7: this and we think of Jesus. Who is that boat,
00:35:29
Speaker 7: who is that ship? Who is that savior? If you
00:35:33
Speaker 7: will that when the storms of life come, Christians believe
00:35:38
Speaker 7: it is Jesus who saves and keeps and restores and revives.
00:35:45
Speaker 7: While I'm praying for all of us who are listening now,
00:35:49
Speaker 7: jew and Christian, and I'm believing that the one God
00:35:52
Speaker 7: of Heaven as we've talked so much about this God
00:35:56
Speaker 7: of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and Sarah and Rebecca
00:36:00
Speaker 7: and Leah and Rachel, that God would reach into your
00:36:04
Speaker 7: life and assure you that He's gotten you, that you
00:36:09
Speaker 7: belong to him and you are as sure as the
00:36:13
Speaker 7: promises of Heaven.
00:36:16
Speaker 3: Before we leave Noah and continue our journey through Genesis,
00:36:19
Speaker 3: I want to leave you with a couple of thoughts
00:36:21
Speaker 3: on rainbows. If you follow me on social media, you've
00:36:24
Speaker 3: no doubt seen that I love rainbows. I often post
00:36:27
Speaker 3: pictures of rainbows in the sky here in Israel, and
00:36:30
Speaker 3: their beauty has amazed me ever since I was a
00:36:33
Speaker 3: little girl. I always feel like it's God speaking to us,
00:36:37
Speaker 3: kind of like he used it to speak to Noah.
00:36:40
Speaker 3: Jewish tradition has a couple of teachings on the rainbow
00:36:43
Speaker 3: at the end of Noah's story that I would like
00:36:45
Speaker 3: to leave you with. First, let's call back to something
00:36:49
Speaker 3: that I said earlier, that the rainbow is a warrior's bow.
00:36:53
Speaker 3: Many have suggested that the rainbow is a backwards bow.
00:36:57
Speaker 3: The shape of the rainbow and the sky is the
00:36:59
Speaker 3: shape of a war warrior's bow directed away from Earth.
00:37:04
Speaker 3: So Yes, whenever a rainbow appears, we remember God's promise
00:37:07
Speaker 3: that he will never again seek to destroy the earth.
00:37:10
Speaker 3: But I'd like to suggest a bold addition to the
00:37:13
Speaker 3: symbol of the rainbow as a warrior's bow. Yes, the
00:37:17
Speaker 3: arrows of the bow are no longer directed to the earth,
00:37:20
Speaker 3: as seen by the shape of the rainbow, but they
00:37:23
Speaker 3: are directed back to Heaven. Maybe the rainbow isn't just
00:37:27
Speaker 3: a reminder to us human beings here on earth. We
00:37:31
Speaker 3: take the bow an arrow and basically send that arrow
00:37:35
Speaker 3: back up to Heaven to God, a reminder of how
00:37:39
Speaker 3: much he loves us and how much compassion he has
00:37:42
Speaker 3: on his children. The nineteenth century Rabbi Samson refile Her
00:37:47
Speaker 3: suggests yet another beautiful interpretation of the rainbow. The rainbow
00:37:51
Speaker 3: is made up of all the colors on the spectrum
00:37:54
Speaker 3: as plain white light is filtered through the prism of
00:37:58
Speaker 3: the rain and he says that this full spectrum of
00:38:01
Speaker 3: colors represents all of humanity and all of the vast
00:38:07
Speaker 3: differences among the people. And that is the new covenant
00:38:12
Speaker 3: that God makes that he is connected to every single
00:38:16
Speaker 3: person in this world. Every single human is created in
00:38:21
Speaker 3: God's image, that he will not destroy this new world,
00:38:26
Speaker 3: but will treat it with his greatest compassion. That God
00:38:31
Speaker 3: loves each of us being unique and through that uniqueness
00:38:36
Speaker 3: connecting to Him, and so following the flood of Noah
00:38:41
Speaker 3: God's creation, his greatest creation, human beings received a fresh start.
00:38:49
Speaker 3: But a fresh start doesn't mean that we forget the past.
00:38:53
Speaker 3: It means that we learn from it instead of letting
00:38:56
Speaker 3: it hold us back. I encourage you to step out
00:39:00
Speaker 3: of your arc your teva today, to learn from your
00:39:06
Speaker 3: past and live out your purpose with boldness, with connection
00:39:11
Speaker 3: to God. To take those hard lessons from your past
00:39:15
Speaker 3: and let it pave a way of faithfulness for your
00:39:19
Speaker 3: future as you venture forth boldly and faithfully. I leave
00:39:24
Speaker 3: you with the biblical blessing from numbers six.
00:39:31
Speaker 1: You can listen to the Chosen People with Isle Exstein
00:39:34
Speaker 1: add free by downloading and subscribing to the Prey dot
00:39:37
Speaker 1: Com app today. This Prey dot Com production is only
00:39:41
Speaker 1: made possible by our dedicated team of creative talents. Steve Katina,
00:39:46
Speaker 1: Max Bard, Zach Shellabaga and Ben Gammon are the executive
00:39:50
Speaker 1: producers of the Chosen People with Yile Eckstein, edited by
00:39:54
Speaker 1: Alberto Avilla, narrated by Paul Coltofianu characters are voiced by
00:39:59
Speaker 1: Jonathan cob, Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan, Stephen Ringwold,
00:40:04
Speaker 1: Sylvia Zaradoc, and the opening prayer is voiced by John Moore.
00:40:08
Speaker 1: Music by Andrew Morgan Smith, written by Bree Rosalie and
00:40:12
Speaker 1: Aaron Salvato. Special thanks to Bishop Paulinier, Robin van Ettin,
00:40:17
Speaker 1: Kayleb Burrows, Jocelyn Fuller, and the team at International Fellowship
00:40:21
Speaker 1: of Christians and Jews. You can hear more Prey dot
00:40:24
Speaker 1: com productions on the Prey dot com app, available on
00:40:28
Speaker 1: the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. If you
00:40:31
Speaker 1: enjoyed The Chosen People with Yeile Eckstein, please rate and
00:40:34
Speaker 1: leave a review,
Related Episodes
The Tragedy of Dinah
# 43 - The Tragedy of Dinah - In this episode of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein we confront the devastating consequences of violence, vengeance, and the pursuit of justice without mercy. This episode delves into one of the Bible's darkest chapters, exploring the complexities of human sin and ...
Jacob & Esau Reunited
# 42 - Jacob & Esau Reunited - In this episode of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein we explore a powerful story of reconciliation, where years of betrayal and fear give way to forgiveness, healing, and restored relationships. This episode reveals timeless lessons on grace, courage, and the t...
Wrestling with God
# 41 - Wrestling with God - In this episode of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein we dive into Jacob's transformative encounter at the Jabbok, where he wrestles not only with a mysterious figure but with his own identity and destiny. Discover profound lessons on struggle, perseverance, and findin...
