The Days of Noah — TDW Kids

As It Was in the Days of Noah

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Long after the flood, Jesus talked about Noah. He said the days before He comes back will be like the days of Noah. What were those days like?

Jesus' words. “But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matthew 24:37). Son of Man is a name Jesus used for Himself.

Ordinary days. “They were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage” (Matthew 24:38). These things are not wrong. Meals and weddings are good gifts from God.

The problem. People were so busy with ordinary life that they did not care about God. They “did not know until the flood came and took them all away” (Matthew 24:39).

Not ready. Noah built the ark for many years. People could see it. But they did not get ready.

What God saw. “Every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5). Under the busy days were hearts that had turned away from God.

A violent world. “The earth was filled with violence” (Genesis 6:11). People hurt one another and did not stop.

Noah was different. In the middle of those busy days, “Noah walked with God” (Genesis 6:9). You can live close to God even when the people around you do not.

Luke says it too. “They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all” (Luke 17:27).

Sudden. The flood came on a day people did not expect. Jesus said His coming will also surprise people who are not ready.

When will it be? Jesus did not give us a date. He told us to be ready all the time.

How to be ready. Being ready means trusting Jesus now, not later. It means living for Him each day, the way Noah lived for God.

Today. The Bible says to encourage one another “daily, while it is called “Today,”” so that sin does not harden our hearts (Hebrews 3:13).

Good news for His friends. For people who love Jesus, His coming is not scary news. It is the day we will see Him face to face.

What we learn. God's warnings are true. The flood came just as God said, and Jesus will come again just as He promised.

What to do. Ask yourself, Am I ready to meet Jesus? If you have not trusted Him yet, talk to a parent or teacher about it this week.

Jesus used the days of Noah to teach about His return. His main point was that the world was not ready when judgment came.

Matthew 24:37-39. “But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.” Jesus treated Noah and the flood as real history and used them to warn His own generation.

Business as usual. “Eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage” are normal, God-given parts of life. The danger was not in the activities but in living as if God would never act.

“Did not know.” The Greek verb ginosko (say: gih-NOH-skoh) means to know or understand. The people had seen the ark, but they did not take God's warning to heart. Knowing about a warning is not the same as heeding it.

Luke 17:26-27. Luke adds the moment the door closed: “until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.” There was a last day to enter.

Beneath the surface. Genesis 6:5 shows what lay under the busy normal life: hearts whose every plan was “only evil continually,” and 6:11 adds a world “filled with violence.”

Corruption and violence. Genesis 6:11-13 uses the word shachat (say: shah-KHAHT), to ruin, three times. The world had ruined itself before God brought judgment.

Like a thief. Jesus also said His coming would be like a thief in the night, at an hour no one expects (Matthew 24:43-44). The point is not to fear but to be ready.

No date-setting. Jesus said that no one knows the day or the hour (Matthew 24:36). He did not give a timetable. Readiness, not calculation, is His command.

Hardened hearts. “Exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin” (Hebrews 3:13). Delay hardens the heart.

Grace in the warning. The same God who warned of the flood provided the ark. The same Jesus who warns of His coming offers salvation now: “he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life” (John 5:24).

Application. Enjoy the good gifts of life, but do not let them crowd out God. Trust Christ today, and live each day ready to meet Him.

A Preacher of Righteousness

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Noah did more than build a boat. The Bible calls him “a preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5). His life and his words told people about God.

Saved with his family. God “did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5).

What righteousness is. Righteousness means being right with God and doing what is right. Noah told people how to be right with God.

Preaching with a hammer. Every board Noah nailed was a message. The ark said, God's warning is true, and there is a way to be saved.

By faith. “By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household” (Hebrews 11:7).

Things not yet seen. Noah had never seen a flood. He believed God anyway and kept building.

Godly fear. Godly fear means deep respect for God. Noah took God at His word.

His household. Noah built the ark “for the saving of his household” (Hebrews 11:7). He cared about his family, and they came into the ark with him.

A family of faith. Shem, Ham and Japheth and their wives went into the ark with Noah (Genesis 6:18). Faith in a home can bless a whole family.

Standing out. By trusting God, Noah “condemned the world” (Hebrews 11:7). His faith showed how wrong the unbelief around him was.

Eight people. In the ark “a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water” (1 Peter 3:20). Noah's message was true even when few believed it.

Let your light shine. Jesus said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

Be ready to answer. Peter wrote, “always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15). Meekness means gentleness.

Still preaching. Thousands of years later, Noah's story still teaches people about God. A life of faith keeps speaking long after it is over.

What we learn. God uses people who trust Him to tell others the truth. Noah's obedience was a sermon the whole world could see.

What to do. Live so that others can see Jesus in you. Ask God for a chance to tell one friend why you trust Him.

Peter calls Noah “a preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5). Noah's words, his life and his years of building were all a message to his world.

Preacher. The Greek keryx (say: KAY-rooks) means a herald, someone who announces a message from a king. Noah announced God's message.

Righteousness. Dikaiosyne (say: dee-kai-oh-SOO-nay) means being right with God and living rightly. Noah both received it (Hebrews 11:7) and announced it.

2 Peter 2:4-9. Peter lists God's judgments, on the angels who sinned, on the ancient world and on Sodom, and in each case shows God rescuing His people. The Lord knows how to deliver the godly (2 Peter 2:9).

“Divinely warned” (Hebrews 11:7). The Greek chrematizo (say: khray-mah-TID-zoh) means to receive a message from God. Noah's faith rested on a word from God, not on what he could see.

Moved with godly fear. Eulabeomai (say: yoo-lah-BEH-oh-my) means to act with reverent care. Noah's fear of God was not panic but respect that led to action.

Condemned the world. Noah's obedience did not save the world, but it showed that faith was possible and unbelief had no excuse. A light makes the darkness easy to see.

Heir of righteousness. Noah “became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith” (Hebrews 11:7). He received righteousness as a gift, just as believers do in Christ.

The household. Noah's faith led his whole household into the ark (Hebrews 11:7). A parent's faith does not save a child, but it can lead a child to the place of safety.

Few believed. “A few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water” (1 Peter 3:20). Faithfulness is not measured by how many people respond.

Witness today. “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). A life of faith is still a sermon.

Not ashamed. Paul wrote that he was not ashamed of the gospel, because it is God's power to save everyone who believes (Romans 1:16). That is why it is worth sharing, even when few listen.

Gentle answers. “Always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15). The Greek word for defense, apologia (say: ah-poh-loh-GEE-ah), means a reasoned answer.

Application. Let your obedience to God be visible, and be ready to explain your hope in Christ with gentleness and respect.

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