GOSPEL
DOCTRINE OLD TESTAMENT
Supplements by Daniel Rona
Lesson #6 - "Noah . . . Prepared an Ark to the Saving of His House"
"Noachide Laws, seven laws which were supposed by the rabbis to have been binding on all mankind even before the revelation at Sinai. They are referred to as "Noachide" because of their universality, since the whole human race was supposed to be descended from the three sons of Noah, who alone survived the flood. Exegetically derived from statements made by God to Adam and to Noah, six of them are negative: not to 1) worship idols; 2) blaspheme the name of God; 3) kill; 4) commit adultery; 5) rob; 6) eat flesh that had been cut from a living animal. One is positive: to establish courts of justice. These seven laws are binding on all non-Jews even today. Whoever observes them is considered to be among the "Righteous Gentiles." (Encyclopedia Judaica Jr.)
There are several accounts in the Bible that have to do with an ‘ark,’ a ‘ship’ or a ‘boat.’ In each account, those in the crafts were "saved" or "lifted up."
"And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth." (Genesis 7:17)
"So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.
Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows.
Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights." (Jonah 1:15-17)
"And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.
And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.
And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.
And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. (Matthew 8:23-26)
"Wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly lest they should be drowned in the sea; nevertheless they did not loose me." (1 Nephi 18:13)
"And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did guide the ship, that we sailed again towards the promised land." (1 Nephi 18:22)
The name of the ‘Tower of Babel,’ the unfinished tower, was called Babel, because God mixed up (Hebrew balal) man's language. They "babbled."
"According to some modern commentators, the building of the tower was an example of man's extreme pride in his own ability. The building became such an obsession that, according to the Midrash, when a builder fell off the tower to his death, the other builders paid no attention, but when a brick fell, they would cry: "When shall another come in its place?" According to this interpretation, every generation has its own Tower of Babel, when it begins to idolize its technology. The moral of the story is thus as applicable today as it was thousands of years ago." (Encyclopedia Judaica Jr.)
The tower people wanted to ‘make a name’ for themselves rather than take the ‘name of God’ upon themselves. In Hebrew, the name of God, "Jehovah" (English spelling) is unmentionable. It means "I AM." That conjugation is not even used in modern Hebrew. One can say "he is," or "she is," but the first-person conjugation is always referred to as "on" or "towards" or "away" from me. Moses asked the Lord’s name.
"And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?
And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." (Exodus 3:13-14)
To date, only twice has the ‘tetragrammation’ (spelling) of the name Jehovah been found. Both date to 600 B.C. and were found in the Jerusalem area. One was a cave, twenty three miles south and west of Jerusalem in an area called "Lehi." The inscription, according to Dr. Frank Moore Cross Jr., included " . . . I Jehovah, will redeem the cities of Judah and Jerusalem . . . " The other, also dating to 600 B.C. was on a metal plate that had scripture verses on it and was found in a stone box in the Hinnom Valley. The verses include the word "Jehovah" but were translated with the word "Lord" as follows.
"Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,
The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them." (Numbers 6:24-27)
This was a scroll-like metal plate that was worn as an ‘amulet’ around someone’s neck so that the could keep the Lord’s name upon them. Jews use "Tfillin" (Phylacteries - Greek for ‘amulet’), their "Tallith" (prayer shawl or garment) and "Mezuzah" to keep the name of God close to themselves at all times.