Does the Rainbow Covenant Disprove the Flood?

by Severus 108 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Severus

  The story goes that God provided the rainbow as a symbol of his promise to never again destroy the world by flood.

  Noah and his family saw the rainbow after they left the ark. After the waters had receeded. After it had stopped raining for months...

  Yet a rainbow is simply sunlight spread out into its spectrum of colors and diverted to the eye of the observer by water droplets.

  Yes, a rainbow needs rain to appear.

  Read the Biblical account and see for yourself:

  (Genesis 8:1-7) After that God remembered Noah and every wild beast and every domestic animal that was with him in the ark, and God caused a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters began to subside. 2 And the springs of the watery deep and the floodgates of the heavens became stopped up, and so the downpour from the heavens was restrained. 3 And the waters began receding from off the earth, progressively receding; and at the end of a hundred and fifty days the waters were lacking. 4 And in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5 And the waters kept on progressively lessening until the tenth month. In the tenth month, on the first of the month, the tops of the mountains appeared. 6 So it occurred that at the end of forty days Noah proceeded to open the window of the ark that he had made. 7 After that he sent out a raven, and it continued flying outdoors, going and returning, until the waters dried off the earth.

  (Genesis 9:12-16) . . .And God added: “This is the sign of the covenant that I am giving between me and YOU and every living soul that is with YOU, for the generations to time indefinite. 13 My rainbow I do give in the cloud, and it must serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 And it shall occur that when I bring a cloud over the earth, then the rainbow will certainly appear in the cloud. 15 And I shall certainly remember my covenant which is between me and YOU and every living soul among all flesh; and no more will the waters become a deluge to bring all flesh to ruin. 16 And the rainbow must occur in the cloud, and I shall certainly see it to remember the covenant to time indefinite between God and every living soul among all flesh that is upon the earth.”

  The Insight Book fails to address the issue directly:

  Volume 2 p. 730 Rainbow

  The Bible does not describe the degree of clarity of the atmosphere just prior to the Flood. But apparently atmospheric conditions were such that, until a change came about when "the floodgates of the heavens were opened" (Ge 7:11), no others before Noah and his family had seen a rainbow. Even today, atmospheric conditions affect whether a rainbow can be seen or not.
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  Shazard

  Well condition before flood definetly was different. When ppl could live meny hundred years. Who knows how long could lizards live. Nobody actyally does not know limit of size of lizard if it could frow for very long period. Seems like lizard size is proportional to it's age. So... yes, actually conditions befor flood was very good for growth and reproduction for both - fauna, flora, humans.
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  Narkissos

  Shazard,

  (1) That was after the flood.

  (2) A rainbow is not an animal.
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  Shazard

  Nark, I was speaking about different conditions BEFORE Flood. And why it is so hard to believe, that conditions was such as rainbow was not able to form. Or if it could, then it never was connected to some promise from God! And who sayed that parameters of the world can't be changed by it's creator?
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  Spectrum

  If there was no precipitation before the biblical flood of 5000 years ago +/- a few hundred years, then why are scientists finding continental ice sheets whose core samples go back 10s of thousands of years? Assuming they are accurate.
  It means that there was precipitation pre flood years which means again the Jewish version of events is nothing more than myths written as facts in order to hoodwink the israelites.
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  peacefulpete

  The rainbow was in various Near Eastern mythologies a sign of peace after war. The warring god's bow (as in bow and arrows) was hung up in the sky.
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  mdb

  I don't understand the reason for this thread. How does the a rainbow disprove the flood? What evidence do you have or what is your arguement for this? You explain how light is divided through water droplets and then present some quotations about the flood and the rainbow, but I fail to see a disproving of it. Sorry.

  Yes, atmospheric conditions were different before the flood. It had never rained. The ground was watered by springs below the earth and by the morning dew. There would never have been the amount of water in the air required to produce a prism effect of the sun's light, yet I still don't see how a rainbow, a sign given by God that He would never destroy the earth by flood again, disproves anything.
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  Severus

  How does the a rainbow disprove the flood?

  Granted this is a simple-minded argument, but let me make it simpler...

  How did a rainbow appear after the flood if the rain had stopped days before??

  Perhaps you could retitle the thread, "Does the Flood Disprove the Rainbow Covenant?"
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  james_woods

  Please refer to the mosquito thread - it makes more sense...
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  lovelylil

  It says "when I bring a cloud over the earth, then shall the rainbow appear in the cloud"

  It is obvious that God is saying, when it rains (thus we will have a cloud), the rainbow will appear. This sign was given to remind mankind that God will never again flood the earth as a judgement against the people thus killing them. He actually felt regret afterwards.

  On a side point - some fundamentalists groups claim the the floods in New Orleans was due to God's judgement on them, rather than simply an act of nature. They should refer to the Genesis account as God promised NOT to flood the earth again in judgement against men.