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Genesis 9: God Gives a Rainbow
“And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.” (Genesis 9:12-13)
The storms had stopped. The waters had resided. Noah’s ark rested on a summit of the Ararat mountain range. Thoughts must have raced through Noah’s mind after the ordeal was over: is this going to happen again? What can I do to stop it? However, God made a covenant—a sacred agreement—between He and mankind. “And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.’ God said to Noah, ‘This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth’” (Genesis 9:12-17). When man saw the rainbow, the result of returned sunlight reflecting off water, He would know that, unlike that great flood years before, God stopped the rain. He keeps His word. He remembers His covenant.
God still keeps His covenant with man today—and He still gives us rainbows after difficulties. Little reminders He is with us, He is mindful of us and as a result, He will see us through.
When you come through difficult times, look for God’s rainbow. That’s not to say that we always notice them or if we do, that we appreciate them. But, they are there. Perhaps it is the rainbow of the good times spent with a loved one who has passed away. Or, perhaps the rainbow of a valuable lesson learned after a difficult mistake. It may be a better appreciation for what health we do have after a time of sickness. Or, even with the prospect of death, there is the rainbow of His presence with us (Psalm 23), and certainly the rainbow of a reward in heaven. These rainbows—small and great— remind us the covenant God has made with those who are His.
The apostle Paul knew just how needed these rainbows were in his life, and he tried to relate their need in the lives of Christians. He stated in Romans 8:29, “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Then, he concludes that same inspiring chapter with the following, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:35, 38-39).
He also wrote these words of encouragement in 2 Corinthians 4:16-17, “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). Through these passages and many others, the Christian is to remember he is in a covenant with God, and God keeps His word.
So, remember while going through the various hardships of life that after every storm, God always gives a rainbow.
Let’s apply this to our lives.
