54
From Eternity Past
influence and example resulted in blessings to his family. God saved
all the members of his family with him.
An Angel Shuts the Door
The beasts of the field and the birds of the air had entered the place
of refuge. Noah and his household were within the ark, “and the Lord
shut him in.” The massive door, impossible for those within to close,
was slowly swung to its place by unseen hands. Noah was shut in
and the rejecters of God’s mercy were shut out. So when Christ shall
cease His intercession for guilty men before His coming in the clouds
of heaven, the door of mercy will be shut. Then divine grace will no
[56]
longer restrain the wicked, and Satan will have full control of those
who have rejected mercy. They will endeavor to destroy God’s people;
but as Noah was shut into the ark, so the righteous will be shielded by
divine power.
For seven days after Noah and his family entered the ark, there
appeared no sign of the coming storm. During this period their faith
was tested. It was a time of triumph to the world without. They
continued making a jest of the manifestations of God’s power. They
gathered in crowds about the ark, deriding its inmates with a daring
violence never ventured upon before.
But upon the eighth day dark clouds overspread the heavens. There
followed the muttering of thunder and the flash of lightning. Soon
large drops of rain began to fall. The world had never witnessed
anything like this, and the hearts of men were struck with fear. All
were secretly inquiring, “Can it be that Noah was right and that the
world is doomed?” The beasts were roaming about in the wildest
terror. Then “the fountains of the great deep” were “broken up, and the
windows of heaven were opened.” Water appeared to come from the
clouds in mighty cataracts. Rivers broke away from their boundaries
and overflowed the valleys. Jets of water burst from the earth with
indescribable force.
The people first beheld their splendid buildings and beautiful gar-
dens and groves where they had placed their idols destroyed by light-
ning from heaven. Altars on which human sacrifices had been offered
were torn down, and the worshipers were made to tremble at the power
of the living God.