The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 219

EXPOSITION. Ver. 8.-And God spake---in continuation antediluvian times (Knobel) ; but cause it of the preceding discourse-unto Noah, and to stand or permanently establish it, so that to his sons with him, saying. it shall no more be in danger of being over- Ver. 9.-And I, behold, I establish-liter- thrown, as it recently has been. The word ally, am causing to rise up or stand; avia- "my" points to a covenant already in r71µ, (LXX. )-my covenant (cf. eh. vi. 18) existence, though not formally mentioned with you, and with your seed after you. until the time of Noah (eh. vi. 18). The I. e. the covenant contemplated all subse- promise of the woman's seed, which Conned quent posterity in its provisions, and, along the substance of the covenant during the with the human family, the entire animal interval from Adam to Noah, was from creation. Noah's time downwards to be enlarged by Ver. 10.-And with every living creature a specific pledge of the stability of the earth -litemlly, every soid (or breathing thing) and the safety of man (c£ eh. viii. 22\. that liveth, a generic designation of which Neither shall all flesh-including the human the particulars are now specified-that is race and the animnl creation. Cf. ;b::i--',:::i, with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth-literally, in fowl, mankind (eh. vi 12'., the lower c;e;tur~s &c. ; i. e. belonging to these classes of (eh. vii. 21)-be cut off any more by the animals (cf. eh. i. 25, 30; vi. 20; viii. 17)- waters of a. flood. Literally, the flood just with you; from all that go out of the ark, passed, which would no more retum. Neither -not necessarily implying(' Speaker's Com- shall there any more be a flood (of any kin cl) mentary,' Murphy), though in all probability to destroy the earth. Re~ons might be it was the case, that there were animals which devastated and tribes of animals and men Jiad never been in the ark; hut simply an swept away, but never again woul,l there idiomatic phrase expressive of the totality of be a universal destruction of the earth or the animal creation (Alford)-to every beast of man. of the earth. I. e. wild beast (eh. i. 25), V_er. 12.-And God said, This is the token the chayyah of the land, which was not -m~ (vida eh. i. 14; iv. 15)-of the cove- included among the animals that entered nant which I make-literally, mn giviTII] the ark (Murphy); or living creature (eh. ii. (cf. eh. xv-ii. 2)-between me and you and 19), refeITing here to the fishes of the sea, every living creature that is with you, for which were not included in the ark (Kalisch). perpetual generations. Le'd6r6th (vide eh. 'fhat the entire brnte creation was designed vi. 9); '6lam (from 'alam, to hide, to conceal), to be embraced in the N oachic covenant pr. that which i,s hidden; hence, specially, seems apparent from the use of the preposi- time of which either the beginning or the tions-:;! describing the classes to which the' end is uncertain or undefined, the duration being usually determined by the nahtro of animals· belong, as in eh. vii. 21 ; )r,> in- the case (vide Gesenins, 'Heb. Lex.,' s1tb dicating one portion of the whole, the ter- voce), Here the meaning is, that so long as minus aquo, nnd? the terminus ad quem- there were circuits or generations of men in their enumeration (vicle Fiirst, 'Hebrew upon the earth, so long would this covenant eudure. "teL,' sub ~. p. 715; cf. Keil in loco). Ver. 13.-I do set. Literally, I hav6 Kalisch thinks the language applies only to given, or placed, an indication that the the animals of Noah's time, and not to those atmospheric phenomenon referred to had of a later age, on the ground that "the o.lready frequently appeared (Syriac, Arabic, destiny of the animals is everywhere con- Aben Ezra, Chrysostom, Calvin, Willet, nected with that of the human race;" but Murphy, Wordsworth, Kalisch, Lange). this is equivalent to their being included in The contrary opinion has been maintained the covena.nt. that it now for the first time appeared (Bush, Ver. 11.-And I will establish my cove- Keil, Delitzsch), or at least that the histori11n nant with you. Not form it for the first thought so (Knobel) ; but unless there had time, ns if no such covenant had existed in been no rain, or the laws of light and the 144 THE BOOK OF GEN'ESIS. [CH. IX. 8-17,