“But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the livestock that were with him in the Ark. And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided.”
– Genesis 8:1
As I read that verse, I want to camp out and pray according to the first four words in Genesis 8:1, “But God remembered Noah.” What are we to think when we read that in the Bible, “God remembered Noah”? Does that mean that God had forgotten Noah? If I remember something it’s like it was out of my mind before and then I thought about it. But that’s not the way things work with the omniscient God of the universe. So one of the things we see all throughout scripture is God described in language that we understand. But always remember that God is not like us in so many ways.
Despite our shortcomings and inability to remain faithful to our promises, God is eternally faithful.
God Doesn’t Forget
Yes, we are made in his image, but he is omniscient. The way he knows is entirely different than the way we know. So why is that important as you read Genesis 8:1, and we think about how to pray according to it. “God remembered Noah,” what is the Bible saying there? It’s not that God forgot Noah in the middle of this storm and flood in the earth.
And God’s doing all this over here and there through the flood and then he remembers, “Oh, wait a minute, Noah is back there. I need to take care of him.” No, the whole picture here is God knew, was thinking about, looking over, watching over, protecting Noah at every point. And at this point when God caused the waters to subside and a wind to blow over the earth to bring an end to the flood, God was doing this because he had promised Noah that he would bring him through this, and his family with him, all the beasts and livestock with him in the Ark, that there would be an end to this flood and that they would walk again on dry land.
Remember That God Loves, Sees, And Hears You
God was being faithful to what he had promised Noah and his family as God always is faithful to what he promises his people. When you or I go through difficult times, challenging times, where we’re wondering, “When is this going to end? When am I going to get relief?”, I want to remind you in those times that God knows, you loves you, sees you, cares for you, and is committed to protecting, providing for you all the way to the end of suffering, all the way to the end of trials.
We know there’s coming a day in the future when there will be no more suffering for all who trust in God through Jesus. No more pain, no more trial, no more temptation. One day sin and suffering and death itself will be gone. God will wipe away every tear from our eyes and we will experience eternal joy with him in heaven.
Genesis 8:1 Reminds Us That God Never Forgets Us
So know amidst this fallen world of suffering and every moment that God remembers you, that God knows you, that God is with you, and God is leading and guiding and protecting you even in the hard days, especially in the hard days, toward a day when suffering and hurt and sin and death will be no more. So be encouraged today, even as we pray, God, thank you for never forgetting us.
God, I pray for people who are walking through particularly difficult times right now, or even as we contemplate suffering, just think about deep pain and hurt that they’ve experienced in their lives. God, we praise you that you never forget us, that you love us, that you lead us, you guide us, you hold us, you protect us, you sustain us, you satisfy us even in the middle of challenges, difficulties, suffering, pain in this world. And we praise you for your promise that one day it will end.
Genesis 8:1 Praises God For His Faithfulness
God, we love the promise that you are working all things together for our good in this fallen world and we love the promise that one day we’re going to be glorified with you, that you’re going to wipe every tear from our eyes and that sin and suffering and sorrow and pain and death will be no more. All glory be to your name. We praise you for remembering us, for your faithfulness to us, your faithfulness to all of your promises. We trust wholly in you today and we praise you for the way you remember us at every single moment. God, I pray that every single person listening right now would just know through faith in Jesus as your sons and daughters you remember them. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
