Big Authority Shifts (5) Rainbow Covenant

The first sign of spiritual life on earth was Enoch, the first human prophet since Abel (Luke 11:51, Jude 1:14). He began a line of prophets that released the ministry of Noah (Gen 5:29). Noah’s prayers gave God authority to send the flood that would sweep away the evil that had swept through the earth. He was even more important, because the covenant that God established with him became an important tool for dealing with evil.

The Rainbow Covenant gave God permanent authority to bring judgments against serious evil, without needing to get permission from the people on earth. It allows God to act against evil in a season when prophets are absent from the world. The rainbow was not a sign that there would never be another flood. It was actually a promise that God would not need to send another flood, because he would never let conditions get so bad on earth that it needed to be destroyed. God promised to prevent evil from getting so strong that it has potential to destroy the entire earth.

Noah was the father of all who would live on earth after him, so his covenant bound everyone on earth from that time on. Speaking on behalf of his descendants, Noah gave God permission to intervene whenever evil is rampant. This increased God’s authority on earth. He had given authority over the earth to man, so he could not intervene on earth without getting human permission, if evil was taking hold.

The Rainbow Covenant did not give God a free hand on earth. Most of the time, it does not apply, because the situation is not bad enough. However, God gained permission to intervene on earth whenever evil gets strong and destructive. The Rainbow Covenant was a serious crack in the wall built against God. The powers of evil had shut God out of his creation, but Noah opened the door a chink, and let him back in.