Albert Barnes Commentary Genesis 9:8-17

"And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you. Of all that go out of the ark, even every beast of the earth. And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of the flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud, and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth." — Genesis 9:8-17 (ASV)

1. קשׁת qeshet — “bow; related: be bent.”
2. ענן ‛ānan — “cover, cast over; noun: cloud.”

The covenant made with Noah (Genesis 6:18) is now formally confirmed. The purpose conceived in the heart (Genesis 8:21) now receives significant expression. Not only is a new blessing bestowed, but a new covenant is also formed with Noah. For he who has offered an acceptable sacrifice is not only at peace with God but is also renewed in mind after the image of God. He is therefore a fit subject for entering into a covenant.

Regarding Genesis 9:8-11: Unto Noah and to his sons. God addresses the sons of Noah as the progenitors of the future race. I establish. He not merely makes (כרת kārat) but ratifies his covenant with them. My covenant. The covenant which was previously mentioned to Noah in the directions concerning the making of the ark, and which was really, though tacitly, formed with Adam in the garden.

In Genesis 9:9-10, the party with whom God now enters into covenant is fully described: You and your seed after you, and every breathing living thing; the latter merely on account of the former. The animals are specially mentioned because they share in the special benefit of preservation from a flood, which is guaranteed in this covenant.

A remarkable expression is employed here: From all that come out of the ark, to every beast of the land. This seems to imply that the beast of the land, or the wild beast, was not among those that came out of the ark and, therefore, not among those that went in. This coincides with the view we have given of the inmates of the ark.

The benefits conferred by this form of God’s covenant are specified in Genesis 9:11. First, all flesh shall no more be cut off by a flood; secondly, the land shall no more be destroyed by this means.

The Lord has been true to his promise in saving Noah and his family from the flood of waters. He now perpetuates his promise by assuring him that the land would not again be overwhelmed with water. This is the new and present blessing of the covenant.

Its former blessings are not abrogated, but only confirmed and augmented by the present one. Other and higher benefits will flow from this to those who rightly receive it, even throughout the ages of eternity. The present benefit is shared by the whole race descended from Noah.

The token of the covenant is now pointed out (Genesis 9:12–16), which is For perpetual ages. This stability of sea and land is to last during the remainder of the human period. What is to happen when the human race is completed is not the question at present.

The token is My bow. Just as God’s covenant is the well-known and still remembered compact formed with humanity when the command was issued in the Garden of Eden, so God’s bow is the primeval arch, coexistent with the rays of light and the drops of rain.

It is caused by the rays of the sun reflected from the falling raindrops at a particular angle to the eye of the spectator. A beautiful arch of reflected and refracted light is thus formed for every eye. The rainbow is thus an index that the sky is not wholly overcast, since the sun is shining through the shower, thereby demonstrating its partial extent.

There could not, therefore, be a more beautiful or fitting token that there shall be no more a flood to sweep away all flesh and destroy the land.

It comes with its mild radiance only when the cloud condenses into a shower. It consists of heavenly light, variegated in hue, and mellowed in luster, filling the beholder with an involuntary pleasure. It forms a perfect arch, extends as far as the shower extends, connects heaven and earth, and spans the horizon.

In these respects it is a beautiful emblem of mercy rejoicing against judgment, of light from heaven irradiating and beatifying the soul, of grace always sufficient for the need of the reunion of earth and heaven, and of the universality of the offer of salvation.

Have I given. The rainbow has existed as long as the present laws of light and air. But it is now mentioned for the first time because it now becomes the fitting sign of security from another universal deluge, which is the special blessing of the covenant in its present form. It appears in the cloud. When a shower-cloud is spread over the sky, the bow appears if the sun, the cloud, and the spectator are in the proper relation to one another.

As God says in Genesis 9:16, And I will look upon it to remember. Scripture is most unhesitating and frank in ascribing to God all the attributes and exercises of personal freedom.

While humanity looks on the bow to recall the promise of God, God himself looks on it to remember and perform this promise. Here freedom and immutability of purpose meet.

The covenant here ostensibly refers to the single point of the absence, for all time to come, of any danger to the human race from a deluge. However, it presupposes and supplements the covenant with humanity subsisting from the very beginning.

It is clearly of grace, for the Lord in the very terms affirms the fact that the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth (Genesis 8:21), while at the same time the original transgression belonged to the whole race.

The condition by which any person becomes a participant in it is not expressed but is easily understood from the nature of a covenant, a promise, and a sign—all of which require of us consenting faith in the party who covenants, promises, and gives the sign. The meritorious condition of the covenant of grace is dimly shadowed forth in the burnt offerings which Noah presented on coming out of the ark.

One thing, however, was surely and clearly revealed to the early saints: namely, the mercy of God. Assured of this, they were prepared humbly to believe that all would redound to the glory of his holiness, justice, and truth, as well as of his mercy, grace, and love, though they might not yet fully understand how this would be accomplished.

In Genesis 9:17, God seems to direct Noah’s attention to a rainbow actually existing at that time in the sky, presenting to the patriarch the assurance of the promise with all the impressiveness of reality.