Never Again: An Old Testament Devotion for the Anxious Covenant Child’s Heart
And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.“
When I was little, my brothers and I would search my grandparents’ backyard for sticks. But we didn’t choose just any stick. We had to find the right sticks, the kind that were somewhat bent, but not too much. Then we would carefully take our pocket knives (or sometimes, my Papa would do it for us) and carve the smallest slit into each end of the stick. Then my grandmother would give us some sort of string, and we’d slip that string between each slit and knot the string so the string was stretched tightly between the ends of the stick. After all of this was done, we would go in search of straight sticks we could catapult away using that tight string.
That’s how we would make play bows and arrows.
I think all children love bows and arrows. I know a lot of adults love them, too. It’s amazing to think of how tribes in the Americas would use bows and arrows to bring down large prey on the prairies or in forests. Likewise, people all over the world used bows and arrows for both hunting and war.
Did you know that God used the symbol of a bow in his promise to Noah that He would never flood the whole earth again?
Remember, God sent the great flood because humans had grown so incredibly wicked that they were not only hurting and mistreating one another, but they were ignoring God as well. So God decided the earth would be a better place if He simply started over again. He punished the wicked people for their sins. As a warrior strikes an enemy with a bow and arrows, God sent an unstoppable flood.
And yet, even in the judgment of that flood, God had mercy and saved Noah and his family. Instead of wiping away all of mankind, for even Noah was sinful, God remembered His promise to send a Savior to save His people from their sin, and He gave Noah a new, godly heart. Then He spared Noah and his family from the flood.
And when that flood was done, God gave Noah and his family yet another gift. God made Noah a new covenant—a new sacred promise. Then He placed a sign of that promise in the sky—a sign that promised He would never make war on man by flooding the whole earth again.
That sign was the rainbow.
We often think of a rainbow as just a pretty thing that happens when we use a prism or water to break apart white light. One of my children’s favorite things to do with a garden hose is to try to make a rainbow with the water spray. But the rainbow itself was a gift of God as a sign of His promise.
If you look carefully, the shape of the rainbow in the sky looks very much like an archer’s bow. But the archer’s bow isn’t down in the archer’s hand, ready to be used for war. No, God put the rainbow in the sky so that it looks as though it’s hung on the wall–the way a warrior might hang a bow he’s done using.
God hung up His bow, so to speak, because He was going to fulfill His covenant to Adam and Eve to send a Savior to destroy sin. In God’s great mercy, He made it very clear that He wasn’t going to destroy all of humanity the way it deserved. And that mercy—through Jesus Christ—would extend to people through all eternity.
Just as Noah and his family looked upon that rainbow with relief, so you can, too. Every time you see a rainbow in the sky, think of God’s love, His mercy, and His promises. The promises that He kept. The promises that sent you, dear child of God, a Savior to destroy your sin and bring you home to Heaven.
Because those promises are for you as well. For you, beloved child, are loved.
Discussion Questions
1. When was the last time you saw a rainbow in the sky?
2. Why is it special that the bow lies on its side, instead of being up and down?
3. How can God’s covenant in the rainbow comfort us? How can it motivate us to obey Him?
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