This chapter tells the story of the flood the entire earth and that only 8 people were safe in the ark. (Noah, his wife, their three sons and their wives) Also, a pair of each of the animals were also safe in the ark.
Verses 1-5
God told Noah the flood was going to begin in 7 days and it would rain continually for 40 days and 40 nights.
Verses 6-24
Noah was 600 years old when the earth was flooded.
In verse 9 it says that the animals went in two and two unto Noah. They came to him. He didn’t have to go after the animals. There were animals that normally kill or eat other species and they lived in harmony on the ark.
Once Noah and the animals were on the ark, God shut and sealed the door. Noah knew that he could not save himself and relied on God to save him and his family. John 10:9 in the New Testament says, “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved.” In God’s plan the door always represents Jesus.
The flood represents judgement to all mankind and all living creatures that died in this flood.
The waters remained on the earth for 150 days. This is an explanation of fossils that have been found all over the earth. Fossils are the remains of plants and animals whose bodies were buried in sand and mud under ancient seas, lakes and rivers.
We see in this chapter that God is love in His protection of Noah and his family but He is also a God of justice when it comes to disobedience. Just like any parent would be with their child. But God offers us a way to be saved from our own sin through Jesus Christ.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son; that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish but have everlasting life.
Because of our sin God sent us a way of escaping just like He did Noah and his family through His son on the cross, who paid for all our sin. All these events that we are studying in these books of the Bible will eventually lead to the cross.