2 Peter 2
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, [1] putting them into gloomy dungeons [2] to be held for judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6 if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;
There you have it. The New Testament writers constantly reframed Old Testament events in terms of their own current beliefs. So it looks like either blatant contradiction or an evolution of belief.
I have no problem with Noah being called a "preacher of righteousness" here. When I said above that Noah was never commisioned to preach in the OT, it was directed to the poster insinuating that Noah was going around telling folks to get into the ark or die (which is the common false teaching of JW's and others.) I also believe you are trying to insinuate that this text in Peter is also saying the same thing, which is FALSE.
If you look at more of the context and bring in Lot, who was also credited as being "righteous" too, we can see why it is thus for Lot and for Noah the same:
2 Peter 2:7-8
{Lot} who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men 8(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)-
Lot and Noah are being EQUATED with being righteous in the same way. Men who were living in a world of debased lawlessness and were tormented by what they saw. They were both preachers of righteousness by HATING the filthy lives of the lawless men around them, which would have been VERY OBVIOUS by Noah and Lot's WORDS and THEIR ACTIONS.
>>However you try to define the word 'preacher', it still implies actively communicating with others. (Humans need to hear preaching, not angels, right?)<<
If there was ANY SPEECH from Noah and Lot to their respective LAWLESS NEIGHBORS, it would have been preaching of condemnation for their evil and wicked ways, which is "preaching of righteousness." There was NO OFFERING of LIFE to the ones ALREADY CONDEMNED BY GOD TO DIE in either S&G or Noah's age.
Gen 6:13
13 So God said to Noah, "I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them.
The ones above ARE ALREADY CONDEMNED. There was no LIFE/DEATH message from Noah. God ALREADY had them ALL labeled to DIE, except for Noah and his close family:
Gen 6:18-19
18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark--you and your sons and your wife and your sons' wives with you.
There was NO LIFE/DEATH covenant message for all men in a covenant made strictly for ONLY NOAH and his family as proven above.
Noah and his family were predetermined to live by a covenant between them and God.
Everyone else...NO COVENANT.
>>How could anyone have taken note of Noah's passive example?<<
Building a huge ark of a structure was no mere PASSIVE example, it was MORE ACTIVE THAN ANY WORD COULD EVER BE. Actions speak LOUDER than words. The structure of the ark itself SCREAMED OUT LOUD OF THE IMPENDING CONDEMNATION AND DESTRUCTION OF THAT WHICH WAS TO COME even WITHOUT uttering so much as word.
>>As you stuggle in vain to stay afloat, seeing the ark floating by would be of no significance if Noah had not first told you that he was building an ark. How do you surmise that 7 souls are safely aboard, while you are drowning?<<
Just being in the presence of the huge ark while being built would have been word enough that they were ALREADY CONDEMNED and Noah and his family WAS SAVED before the rain came.
But they TOOK NO NOTE.
Edited by - pomegranate on 26 August 2002 22:11:58