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NASB | Genesis 8:7 and he sent out a raven, and it flew here and there until the water was dried up from the earth. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Genesis 8:7 and he sent out a raven, which flew here and there until the waters were dried up from the earth. |
Bible Question: Ok so back in the early part of Gen, God lays out an herbivore diet (1:29-30) and outside of the addition of dirt to the serpent’s diet in his curse He doesn’t change this until next chapter (9:3-4)… so when Noah sends out the raven and it doesn’t really return are we to presume its newly become a scavenger due to the likely near fast aboard the arc and the desperation of hunger or was it already carni/omnivore preflood and just chose to eat what it could find floating? If it's a postflood attribute is it symbolic of the desperation of giving up hope/not having faith that life will return and food will be provided/that God will provide; as in the raven's not returning meant there was an option (as the tree of knowledge was an option) but Noah held on to his faith that he could trust God and didn't need to take drastic action to solve the problem himself as the raven did? Was this to contrast this new beginning with the previous way of life where evil prevailed or perhaps even with Adam/Eve? |
Bible Answer: Hi Xina, As you've pointed out, God didn't change the dietary formula until after Noah leaves the ark (except for the serpent - good catch! I've never saw this as a dietary change, but there it is!), so when the raven didn't return, I would not expect it was for because it had become a meat eater, although I wouldn't be dogmatic about that. As I look at the passage, it seems that the difference between the dove and the raven is that, while the raven "went to and fro until the waters were dried up", the dove "found no rest for the sole of her foot". It would seem to me that the dove needed a perch which it didn't find, and so it returned to the ark, while the raven was ok just flying around. As far as a symbolic significance to this I don't know what it would be. Birds carry various meanings in Scripture. While birds (of whatever kind) symbolize wickedness or the wicked one in certain parables, ravens brought food to Elijah, we're to be "gentle as doves", and doves or pigeons are the "poor man's" sacrificial offering. This may have simply been a matter of Noah releasing a raven, then realizing that it didn't tell him what he wanted to know, as it was just flying around, so he released a dove, knowing it was a weaker bird, and would need a perch, and would return if it didn't find one. The raven was an unclean bird, and it didn't help Noah. The dove is nearly always spoken of well in Scripture, although Hosea says doves can be silly. The dove helped Noah, and returned with the olive twig before flying away for good. I don't know how much further I can go with this, that is specifically supported by the text. I sure enjoy that you are trying to understand everything from Scripture that you can. There is, though, an interesting passage in Job in relation to your post: Job 38:41 "Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat." Love in Christ, Mark |