Welcome to EBible Fellowship’s Bible study in the Book of Genesis. This is study #6 of Genesis, chapter 8 and we are going to read Genesis 8:6-12:

And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made: And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground; But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark. And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark; And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth. And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more.

I will stop reading there. As we have been going, verse by verse, through the Genesis account of the historical record of the flood, we have come to the point when the waters had begun to decrease. They had reached their “high water mark” of 15 cubits above the highest mountain at 150 days and then the waters were “pacified,” indicating that the wrath of God was appeased and, at that point, they began to abate.

We saw in Genesis 8:5:

And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.

We saw how the tops of the mountains being seen relates to the “beginnings” of the kingdoms, as the waters are a type and figure of the Word of God and the Word of God is that which brings judgment. We see that in the actual judgment that began on May 21, 2011. Was there a physical earthquake or has there been any physical destruction of the world? No, there has not, so how can the people of God know that judgment is occurring? It is through the declarations of the Bible and what we learn from the Bible. God has revealed Christ “coming in the clouds,” and “clouds” also represent the Bible or God’s commandments, according to Numbers, chapter 9. The Bible refers to “rain” that falls from the clouds as doctrine or the Word of God.

So the rain kept falling and the waters of God’s wrath covered the earth. The earth was under the deluge of the flood of the Word of God that had declared that the wrath of God was upon the inhabitants of the earth. It is Judgment Day. This is what the Bible has been teaching for quite some time and it will continue to teach it until the end of all things.

The “waters” that covered the whole earth indicates that God’s wrath has destroyed the sinners and now the waters are going down and the tops of the mountains or the beginnings of the kingdom of God are being revealed, the new heavens and new earth. As the waters continue to abate, they will gradually reveal more and more of the “earth” that all the occupants of the ark will one day be able to experience as they come out of the ark onto dry ground and they will inhabit the earth, but it is a completely new world. All the wicked people are dead and gone. Every animal outside the ark with the breath of life is gone. Only those that come out of the ark have the “breath of life” and they will be the only inhabitants of this new earth as this earth that has been cleansed and purified, in a sense, through the wrath of God. That is exactly the picture of the new heaven and new earth. In order for the people of God to inherit the earth, the earth must first be changed. Again, in Romans, chapter 8 it is striking how God speaks of the creation and how it is “waiting” for the manifestation of the sons of God, as it says in verse 19. Then it says in Romans 8:21-23:

Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit…

The creation is to be “delivered,” in a sense. It is language of salvation. If you did not know any better, you would think that when God speaks of “groaning” and desiring to be delivered, it is referring to one of His elect, but it is referring to the creation. This is because God has a plan to transform it, just as He transformed a sinner that was one of His elect. He first transformed the soul by giving them a new born again soul and then He will transform the body in the resurrection of the last day. Likewise, God plans to transform this earth, which in this case means He is going to destroy it, but the Bible looks at it as if this earth is going through a transformation process to become a “new earth.” That is the amazing picture God is painting in Genesis, chapter 8 as the whole world had been covered by the “waters” of the wrath of God, but now the waters are abating and a “new earth” is beginning to take shape. The people on the ark and the creatures on the ark that represent the creation are waiting to disembark and to step out into a new world, but they must go through the process. The earth is going through a process wherein God is slowly giving the people in the ark a look at what is to come, piece by piece. Again, they first saw the tops of the mountains.

Then it goes on to say in Genesis 8:6:

And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made:

Of course, that would be how the people in the ark would see the tops of the mountains – there was a window. A window can be closed and, yet, you can still see out and the Bible does speak of windows in that way. We see certain individuals looking out a window, like Michal (King David’s wife) looked through a window and saw him dancing and playing before the Lord and she thought he was making a fool of himself. There is an ability to see out windows that you cannot do with doors, generally. Today we have doors with windows, but that would not have been the case in ancient times. A door would have been fully sealed and you would not have been able to look out, but you can look out a window. I am sure that Noah, his sons and their wives would have often gone to the window and looked out to see what they could see in regard to what was happening to the world in the flood. For some time, they would look out and only see the waters for the first 150 days. But then it says that on “the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.” For some time, water was everywhere, but then they could see the tops of the mountains and that told them the water was beginning to decrease.

Now they waited 40 days: “And it came to pass at the end of forty days…” We wonder where this 40-day period fit into the timeline of the flood and I think we have to understand it as being from “the first day of the tenth month,” because that is what is said in the previous verse. From that point, they waited 40 days. It cannot be a reference to the forty days mentioned in Genesis, chapter 7 when it rained for forty days and forty nights when the flood was upon the earth forty days. This particular 40-day period was a different period of time and it would make no sense for Noah to open the window while the rain was coming down “in buckets.” It would not have been smart to open the window during the time the waters continued to rise for five months. This fits in with the previous verse when they saw the tops of the mountains and then they realized the waters were decreasing, but they were careful and they waited for another 40-day period.

Again, if we are correct in our understanding that they counted months in 30-day increments, then from the first day of the tenth month, if you add 40 days, then it would be eleventh day of the eleventh month. The flood had begun in the seventeenth day of the second month, so it was approaching nine months of elapsed time since the flood started. Thus far, we know there was the 150 days, followed by 74 days and followed by 40 days, for a total of 264 days. Apparently, it was at the end of this 40-day mark when they opened the window. The number “264” breaks down to “2 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 11.” Again, we see the number “2” because all the wicked of the earth are dead and God’s focus is on the living, the elect. He is focused on the people inside the ark, representing the caretakers of the Word of God. The number “3” represents the purpose of God and the number “11” identifies with the first coming of Christ and, in that sense, with the atonement. We had understood that it had rained forty days and forty nights and it was not only a judgment, but a trial of faith. Now there is a reference to another 40-day period and the Lord is helping us to understand that the period of “trial” would not end after the initial 40-day period, but it is continuing and it will continue for the entire duration of the prolonged judgment period. It was certainly a trial for the people inside the ark, historically, and it is definitely a trial for the people of God living on the earth in the Day of Judgment – we are being tried and tested. So, we see that additional 40-day period. Again, God says, “And it came to pass at the end of forty days,” and that is a time clue as God gives us information concerning the stages of the flood. It is now the eleventh day of the eleventh month, after this 40-day period and, again, it says in Genesis 8:6-8:

And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made: And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground;

Now, for the first time, the ark has an opening. It had been completely sealed up. The door had been shut and the window was shut and there were no other portals on the ark. It was just this window and the door. Noah did not open the door, but he did open the window. Some people have wondered and speculated and jumped to a wrong conclusion when they say, “Now there is the opening of the window,” and they try to make it like the opening of the door to another salvation program, or they say, “God is still saving because Noah opened the window.” We have to get a better understanding of what that window represents, but I can say right now that the window does identify with the Lord Jesus Christ, just as the door did. We know there is that statement in John, chapter 10, where Christ said, “I am the door.” We will not find that kind of statement in regard to the window, but when we spend some time searching out the meaning of the word “window,” we will find that it does have identification with Christ, so if the window identifies with Christ, then maybe there is some credence to this idea that maybe there is still hope of salvation for people since it is after the five months. Personally, I would like nothing better than for there to be some hope or possibility of salvation or some later time or season wherein God intends to save people again, even it if was just for a little while. It would be wonderful and, yet, that is not in view here. We have to allow the Bible to teach us and we have to follow what the Bible says. If there were even a little bit of salvation going on, we would have to harmonize all kinds of verses that do not allow for it. They are very absolute statements like, “they will seek death, and shall not find it,” or “the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,” and so forth. There are all kinds of declarations the Bible makes during the time of judgment that indicate there is no more salvation. We will not find the voice of the bridegroom or the voice of the bride and the light of the candle is out. We can just go on and on with numerous statements that indicate the door is shut during this period of Judgment Day. When people start crying, “Lord, Lord, open the door,” there is no opening.

Yes, here in Genesis, chapter 8 Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made and the window does have identification with Christ, but notice the window is not opened so people can come into the ark through the window. There was not even some bird out there because there were no birds alive or any other animal or people that made it in through the window once it was opened. The only activity in or out of that window was the raven and the dove that had been protected throughout the flood because they were inside the ark. Now that the window is open, Noah sends them forth. So the raven went out of the ark and then the dove went out of the ark and, again, if you see reference to another bird or animal or anything living that goes in the window and finds some kind of refuge in the ark, then maybe we could think that God might have some sort of salvation program for the time after the Tribulation, but there is no creature that comes into the ark through the window. As a matter of fact, remember what the Bible says about accessing the kingdom of heaven, as represented by the ark, by going through a window? It says in Joel 2:9:

They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.

This goes along with what it says in John 10:1:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.

That is exactly how it is in the world. When people go to bed, they lock their doors, but when a robber comes to their house they might still find an open window and they quietly lift the window and sneak in by the window because the door is locked. They do not belong in that house. They came in “like a thief.” When we understand what the Bible says concerning entry into the kingdom of heaven or the sheepfold, you have to enter in by “the door.” Everyone on the ark entered through the door. All the animals, Noah, his wife, his sons and his sons’ wives all entered by way of the door and then the door was shut.

So even if there was something living outside the ark at this point (and there was not) and it came to the ark and tried to enter the ark through the window that would be how thieves and robbers enter in. You see, this open window of the ark is not indicating salvation in any way. No one did enter through the window and if anyone were to have entered through the window, the Bible does not speak well of it. Only thieves and robbers enter in through windows. I know that out of desperation, people sometimes hope in this area because they have family members and loved ones (or anyone) for whom they desire salvation, but we cannot make the Bible say something it does not say. And the Bible is not saying there is salvation through Noah’s action of opening the window