Quarantine and the Ark - Amazing Parallels

I've never been able to commit to a one-year reading plan as some days I read 1 chapter, other days 3 and then there are others where we've read together as a family and I miss my personal reading.  All that to say, the goal is to keep reading through the Bible as many times as possible. whether it takes a year or three.  I don't know how many times I've done this, but I find it interesting that I just finished Revelation during the pandemic and then started up Genesis, also during the pandemic.

Revelation was a wake-up call as I read it with new eyes.  For the first time I was reading it thinking, "We might actually be as close to the end times as we've ever been!"  Then reading the timeline of the final days, even though I don't understand much of it, was also like reading it for the first time as I really wanted to know the details.  I was reading it thinking this could happen sooner than we think!  It made me think that it should be required reading for all unbelievers right now so that they know what is coming and for all believers so that they would know why they should be telling everyone they know who doesn't know!  Even if we all get scooped up in the rapture, (and there are arguments that say we will go through the tribulation?)  whoever is left behind is going to go through some very awful times.  "People gnawed their tongues in anguish and cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores." (16:10)

I eventually finished it a few days ago, which was also neat timing as Easter was last weekend.  It was neat to be in Revelation knowing it was truly the story of Easter.  It was just telling the final chapters.  As I went into Genesis, at first whenever I start the Bible over there's always this feeling that it'll feel old as I've read the creation story so many times and all the familiar stories at the beginning, but not this time.  As I read it this time there was a sense of newness for me as I saw how the world was perfect, then sin entered in, then how God saw Noah and decided to erase all the people on the world who had become so corrupt.....kind of like now.....

As I read the story of Noah, I couldn't believe the parallels.  God "saw the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." (6:5)  Doesn't that describe our current world situation?  Yet God had promised to never flood the world again.  Well, technically the virus isn't a flood, but instead a flood of disease?  Is God doing a sweep of the world right now?  I've heard that literally the world is getting cleaned up as there is less pollution, less cars, even less crime. 

I read this week that the word "quarantine" is from the latin word for "forty".   Hmmmm....the flood was also forty days and forty nights of rain.  My favourite verse in the story of Noah is in chapter 7.  After God tells Noah how to build the ark and why he is building it "for all the earth was filled with violence...and it was corrupt", he told Noah, "Go into the ark, you and your household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation."  And then, get ready for it, it says, "And then the Lord shut him in."  That's right.  Noah was quarantined for forty days and forty nights, with his family and a whole bunch of animals.  Hey!  That's kind of like us!  I'm surrounded by my family AND I have at least 49 chicks, 5 cats, some fish, and a tarantula and all the food they need to survive.  Even when the time of rain was over, they still had to stay on the ark for 150 days after for the land to dry out.  That might happen after the 40 day quarantine period is over here, too.  We won't go back to normal living for a long time, I'm sure.  It'll take at least 150 days to sort things out.

So what is the true parallel?....the secret is in Hebrews.  Noah is mentioned in Hebrews 11 for his faith.  It says, "By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household.  By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith." (11:7)  I think this is the whole point of quarantine and why I see such a parallel between the flood and the pandemic.  The flood was the time Noah was supposed to save "his household".  This is what we are supposed to be doing now.  We are supposed to use this time to save our household!  God has shut us all in.  The government will make you think it was their idea, but I think it was God's.  This is a time to renew our families, our times of family worship, our prayer times together, our times of family discussions, our finances, our physical structures, our emotional structures, our spiritual structures.  At some point the door will be opened and we'll have to go out of this time of safety, which quite honestly, I'd rather stay on the ark, but even Noah had to get off.  But we can get out of our arks stronger, brighter, ready to hit the new world if we use this time intentionally.  I know I know everyone is saying "Enough with being productive!  I just want to survive the pandemic!"  That's not what I'm saying.  It isn't about learning how to do sourdough bread during this time, I'm talking about rescuing our families from disaster.  In our house, everyone was starting to never be home, never have full together family time like we used to.  I know that isn't unusual and it is "normal" as they grow up and leave the nest, but at the same time, it isn't good to be so scattered where no one talks or communicates because they're just too busy.  And busy doing what?  Nothing?  Just stuff?  That's not good.  I'm sorry for them that they might be stir crazy, but I'm also so glad.  We are having more family discussions than ever and IT IS GOOD!  God is rescuing us.  God is helping us construct an ark during this crazy time for the "saving of our household". 

I've always loved the number 40.  I studied it like crazy when I turned 40 and couldn't believe the number of instances in the Bible it shows up.  This is just another example, a crazy one, that is so incredibly relevant to me personally again.  I thank God for this flood/pandemic.  It's actually really neat to be alive during this time in history and makes me appreciate Noah and his experience in a more real way as the whole world is literally going through this together right now.

The irony?  The symbol of the rainbow is now the symbol of hope in all the hospital windows and houses.  It was stolen by the Pride people, but it has been taken back.  God owned it in the first place.