Metaphysical Bible Interpretation of Genesis Chapter 9
Metaphysically Interpreting Genesis 9:1-29
9:1And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. 9:2And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the heavens; With all wherewith the ground teemeth, and all the fishes of the sea, into your hand are they delivered. 9:3Every moving thing that liveth shall be food for you; As the green herb have I given you all. 9:4But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. 9:5And surely your blood, the blood of your lives, will I require; At the hand of every beast will I require it. And at the hand of man, even at the hand of every man's brother, will I require the life of man. 9:6Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: For in the image of God made he man. 9:7And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; Bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein.
9:8And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, 9:9And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; 9:10and 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. 9:11And 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.
9:12And 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: 9:13I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. 9:14And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud, 9:15and 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. 9:16And 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. 9:17And 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.
9:18And the sons of Noah, that went forth from the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan. 9:19These three were the sons of Noah: and of these was the whole earth overspread.
9:20And Noah began to be a husbandman, and planted a vineyard: 9:21and he drank of the wine, and was drunken. And he was uncovered within his tent.9:22And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. 9:23And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father. And their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness.
9:24And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his youngest son had done unto him. 9:25And he said, Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. 9:26And he said, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant. 9:27God enlarge Japheth, And let him dwell in the tents of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant.
9:28And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. 9:29And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: And he died.
June 3, 1917: Genesis 9:8-17
9:8And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, -- Noah (the consciousness), together with “his sons” (states of mind), after his purification (the flood), is very closely related to God.
9:9And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; -- God covenants or agrees to bless the purified consciousness and its realm of ideas (seed).
9:10and 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. -- Every idea (living creature) which is illumined of the Spirit, even those ideas related to the earth (body consciousness), is blessed, when man knows the creative law and cooperates with it.
9:11And 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. -- Once the consciousness has been cleansed and man has awakened to his spiritual nature he is saved through obedience to Divine Law, and is no longer subject to dissolution through negative means.
9:12And 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: -- This covenant is to those who give their minds and bodies into the keeping of Divine Law, and is eternal.
9:13I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. -- The “bow” symbolizes the orderly arrangement of ideas in Mind and their perfect manifestation.
9:14And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud, -- One who is poised in Truth rests in the consciousness of God's presence in the midst of error (the cloud).
9:15and 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. -- When man is obedient to the guidance of God, he will never be flooded by negative conditions.
9:16And 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. 9:17And 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. -- The rainbow is a sign in the heavens symbolizing the perfect blending of the race into one harmonious Christ Principle, the endless circle of natural perfection coming out of obedience to Divine Law.
May 2, 1926: Genesis 9:8-17
In the chapters immediately preceding this lesson is given an account of the flood which destroyed all living creatures on the face of the earth, except those preserved in Noah’s ark. What does Noah represent, and what is the metaphysical meaning of the destruction on the one hand and the preservation on the other? The word “Noah” means the rest of the soul, which comes after the soul has worked out certain states of consciousness, both good and bad. The ideal man, Jehovah, recognizes the good only, and instructs man, Noah, to take into his inner consciousness only good thoughts, and, by the waters of denial, to cleanse his consciousness of evil.
What is the meaning of the covenant between God and Noah? A covenant is an agreement. The covenant between God and Noah was in the form of a promise by God to Noah and his sons that flesh should not be cut off from the earth and that there should never more be a flood to destroy the earth.
What type of mind does Noah represent? Noah represents the type of mind that rests its whole thought in God as the source of being. Noah was obedient to the divine law and he built up a consciousness, or ark, into which were dawn the elemental life forces necessary to perpetuate his existence during a period of error erasement in outer realms of consciousness.
In what respect is the rainbow used as an evidence of the covenant between God and those who are obedient to his law? The rainbow is formed of many drops of water, each of which is a prism, receiving and obediently reflecting the sunlight. Our men of science are measuring nearly everything in terms of light. The light from the sun shining upon the drops of water measures their capacity to reflect the seven natural prismatic colors, which blend into a beautiful bow of promise. God is light and those who recognize Christ as the light of the world are being formed into a congress of people, who will incorporate and reflect into the natural world its seven creative principles.
Where in the New Testament do we find the words of Jesus confirming the coming of the Son of man on the throne of his dominion? In the 24th chapter of Matthew, Jesus gives in detail conditions that will prevail when the kingdom of Christ is being set up in the earth. A great separation is to take place between the good and the evil, the obedient and the disobedient, the wise and the foolish. “Watch therefore; for ye know not on what day your Lord cometh. . . . Therefore be ye also ready; for in an hour that ye think not the Son of man cometh” (Matt. 24:42,44).
April 25, 1937: Genesis 9:8-17
How is obedience shown in this lesson? Noah's entering into the ark is proof of man's obedience, for it rshows that, when man is at peace within himself, he hears the inner voice of Truth and rejects the voices of the world. Noah’s coming forth from the ark to offer sacrifice is a still higher act of obedience, founded on faith and a higher consciousness of peace (the dove with the olive leaf in her mouth).
Can we prevent the flooding of our world with error a second time? Man's sacrifice of the lower for the higher brings him into harmony with divine law. A sincere act of worship neutralizes the cumulative effect of his adverse faults and prevents the flooding of his earth a second time.
Name one of the rewards of obedience. Obedience is rewarded by a quickened consciousness of the true values of life. The rainbow symbolizes the orderly arrangement of ideas in Divine Mind, and also the perfect unifying of the race in obedience to the Christ principle.
July 26, 1942: Genesis 9:1-16
What does the word “covenant” imply? It implies a twofold relation and a twofold responsibility, a mutual promise.
Because of what human quality were the beasts, birds, and the remainder of the animal creation given into the hands of man under the new covenant? Because of the superior quality of man’s mind he is able to do with the animals what he will, and in this superiority lies his responsibility for the proper care of such of them as come within his sphere.
Why is blood forbidden as food in today’s lesson? To us this means that the law of man’s being is violated, when man appropriates the lower flesh consciousness of animals. The blood of Christ is a term used to introduce into the race mind the spiritual life principle, resting upon pure ideals, as exemplified in Jesus. This is the “blood,” the life principle, that we are to appropriate. “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ye have not life in yourselves.”
“At the hand of every man’s brother, will I require the life of man.” What is the meaning of this warning? That life is the universal gift, a gift that cannot be wasted without a destructive reaction. Death and violence in the earth is the direct or indirect result of the flouting of the law of universal brotherhood and love. That the innocent sometimes seem to suffer, instead of the guilty, only proves that all share the one life and that what affects one affects all, who are in the same consciousness.
Is it always literally true that “whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed”? It is literally true in some cases; but it is always true that he who takes the life of another loses his hold on the spiritual life within himself, which is debased by this act of violence and uncontrolled selfishness against his brother.
The command to man to be “fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein” symbolizes what truth? In order to make of the earth a perfect mold of divine substance man is to increase the manifestation of his spiritual qualities, multiply the powers that give him ascendancy over the animal creation, and bring forth expressions of God-likeness abundantly.
What part had Noah in the new covenant? Noah (rest) is a type of the obedience that comes as the result of communing with God. “Noah found favor in the eyes of Jehovah” (Divine Mind), who assured him, “Thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.” Obedience is a guarantee of man’s performance of the covenant.
To whom is the divine promise of protection extended? To all who give their minds and bodies into the keeping of the divine law.
What does the rainbow signify? It signifies the unfailing goodness of the Father and the unfailing devotion and obedience of the Son. The sun of righteousness (the wisdom of right ideas and right living) strikes the ideas in Divine Mind as exemplified in the race of men (drops of water). The resulting refraction breaks up the white light into its primal colors (aspects).
July 8, 1945: Genesis 9:12-16
Of what is the bow in the cloud a symbol? Of the covenant between man and God. When man is obedient to the guidance of God, he will never be “flooded” by negative conditions.
How comprehensive is the covenant that is “tokened” by the rainbow? It includes not only man but “all flesh that is upon the earth,” and it is a pledge that destructive methods will not displace the constructive in dealing with sense consciousness or negation in general.
Transcribed by Lloyd Kinder on 12-05-2013
