# 86 Though the Earth Has Been Washed, Sin Is Still Present

The Book of Genesis Day 85 Ge 9:1 So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. 2 "And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. 3 "Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. 4 "But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. It’s time to start all over again. New earth and some new rules. There are some differences this time, the biggest being that sin has arrived and remains on the scene, and will until our Lord returns! The imagination of man’s heart continues to be evil from his youth, that is, man’s tendency is to do evil, to sin. I’ve always loved the Charlie Daniel’s song. “ Two Out Of Three.” The chorus goes like this:” Oh Jesus how could you love me,” Jesus how could you love me. When I have a choice between good and bad, I pick bad two out of three!” How true! In spite of sin plaguing the world, God passes the original blessing given to Adam and Eve on to Noah and his family. “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth because in spite of sin, there is that sweet aroma of God’s worshiping saints that makes it all worthwhile! Something else is new here. In the original garden, the animals and birds, and other living creatures had no fear of man! That was a wonderful arrangement and we know that one day that kind of relationship will be restored. Isa 11:8 says, “The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den.” (It’s not that we are all going to spend eternity as nursing children, or toddlers, this is just a picture of the childlike innocence that will be ours for eternity! Think back to the pre-flood days, when sin entered the world, this lack of fear must have resulted in many a violent clash between man and animals. This was all part of the violence that filled the earth and prompted God to destroy everything. From this day forward, until Jesus comes again and restores Paradise, birds, and animals will have the fear and dread of man in them. All birds, animals, and fish were now given into the hands of man for all sorts of uses including food. But even with these new rules, God placed a restriction. No flesh was to be eaten with its blood. Why did God lift this restriction against eating flesh? Why did the flesh have to be thoroughly cooked? Perhaps it would serve as a reminder to us of that first act of Noah upon leaving the ark! That soothing aroma of voluntary worship and thanksgiving to God that pleased Him so. Maybe instead of asking why, we should just think about this the next time we are grilling out, and simply whisper a heartfelt prayer of thanksgiving to God! Reflect: Have you ever considered how wicked your heart is, or do you focus on the wickedness of others? Pray: Lord, thank You for the reminder, that it is only by Your mercy and grace that my actions are held in check!