Genesis 8:16-17

Back to Genesis 8

16 Go forth from the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee. 17 Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee of all flesh, both birds, and cattle, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth.

Classification

The Command and Principle

This passage contains a positive command, directed toward Noah and his family: "Go forth from the ark... Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee". In this passage, God also explains his reason for requiring that Noah bring with him all the animals: "that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth", a reference to the command issued to those animals in Genesis 1:22.

Categories

This command is limited in scope, being only directly applicable to Noah. However, the explanation God gives for why Noah should release the animals gives us insight into the Spirit of the Law. For that reason, this verse is being added to the Principles and Definitions. The reason given is to enable the animals to obey God's command in Genesis 1:22, to be fruitful and multiply. This affects our understanding of Stewardship, because, as stewards of God's earth, having dominion over God's property, it's our responsibility to treat God's property in a way which would meet with his approval.

Fulfillment

Noah fulfilled the command in Genesis 8:18-19 by being obedient to it. Our status as God's stewards is abiding.

Topics

This command and principle has direct relevance to an understanding of the following topics:

• Stewardship