Genesis 9:8-17

To show through the promise of God concerning the rainbow that we can have great assurance of all of the promises of God.

Rainbow in Beholder’s Eyes

Despite the fact that each raindrop can produce a whole spectrum of colors, at any given moment each individual raindrop is contributing just one color to the rainbow. Raindrops near the top contribute to the red band; those near the bottom are shining blue.

As a drop falls, its angle to your eyes changes and so does the color of its light that is reaching your eye. The drop, once shining red at the top of the rainbow, will now shine violet as it falls to the bottom, with a graduation of colors in between. Since no two people can be in exactly the same viewing position, everybody sees a different rainbow. Your rainbow might be coming from drops right next to or above or below the ones of your neighbor. Therefore, each rainbow is unique and is one’s very own. The rainbow is a symbol of God’s promises. *

The rainbow is a thing of beauty and we never see it without a sense of awe. But greater than the beauty of the rainbow, is the purpose and message behind it. In Genesis 9 we have God’s promise given; “Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy al life.”

Because of the assurances provided, we can know that God is true to His word.

• The basis of His promise
  • His own word (Genesis 9:9)
    • God obligated Himself to the promise given
  • His very nature
    • “When God made His promise to Abraham since there was no one greater for Him to swear by, He swore by Himself,” Hebrews 6:13
    • “God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.” Hebrews 6:18
• The boundary of His promise
  • To all creatures (Genesis 9:10)
  • For all time (Genesis 9:12b)
• The benefit of His promise
  • It is a visual reminder of the promise
    • To God (Genesis 9:13)
    • To man (Genesis 9:15)
  • Assurance (Genesis 9:16)

Therefore, today you and I can be assured of the promise of God. It is sealed in the rainbow. But this also gives us a greater confidence because the God who made this promise has given others. There are approximately 8,810 promises in the entire Bible. In the Old Testament there are 7,706 and in the New Testament there are 1,104 wonderful promises. Deuteronomy 28 has 133 promises, which is more than any other chapter in the Bible.

*written by Paul Lee Tan in Encyclopedia of 15,000 illustrations: Signs of the times