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This Parasha is entitled Noach which means ‘rest’ It begins in Genesis 6:9 through 11:32.

Noah was a just man and perfect in his generation, Noah walked with God, despite living during a time of great unholiness.
Noah was the son of Lamech. And had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and each of them had wives.

Noah’s occupation was shipbuilder, preacher, and after the Flood the planter of a vineyard. For 120 years, Noah preached the message – of repentance.

The earth was wicked in God’s sight. The sons of God, who I believe were fallen angels, looked upon the daughters of men, and saw their beauty and took any of them they desired to be their wives.
Children were born as a result. These were the Nephilim, which means the fallen ones. They were mighty men in the Earth. Sin, violence, cruelty, lawlessness, wickedness, and the rejection of God was pervasive everywhere.

Adonai did not hesitate to let His attitude be known about this prevailing wickedness. He said: “I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the Earth.
Yes, and I will destroy every living thing – all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, even the birds of the sky. I am sorry I ever made them.”

Noah was told to build a large boat from cypress wood and waterproof it with pitch, both inside and out.

Pitch was a tar-like substance which sealed the seams and cracks in the wood, most likely this would have made the ark black in color.

It is also interesting to note that this word “pitch” – the tar covering the inside and outside of the ark, has the same three letter root as the word for “atonement.”

This pitch was responsible for keeping the ark afloat and delivering Noah and his family alive and dry through the judgment of the Flood.

Chapter 7 Adonai’s instructions to Noah were gather your entire family and go into the ark. Get seven pairs, seven males and seven females of every kind of clean animal and also of all the birds.

Get one pair of every unclean animal male and female on the Earth; lead all these animals into the ark with you.

Once all the preparations had been completed, the Flood came. From above came a torrential rain for 40 days and nights.
From below, some scientists believe that there was a seismic upheaval and shifting of the earth’s crust, causing the ocean floor to rise and break up, releasing their reservoirs of subterranean waters.

As a result, the whole Earth was flooded. Every living thing on the Earth that had the breath of life outside the Ark was destroyed. Only marine life survived.

Chapter 8: The ark finally rested in the mountains of Ararat – after 150 days it was made clear that the Earth was once again suitable for habitation.

Then the eight people and all the animals exited the ark; this was 377 days after they had first entered it. Noah then offered a sacrifice to God. Adonai promised to never again curse the ground again in this way.

Chapter 9: Noah’s new beginning included a covenant. Adonai instructed Noah to be fruitful and increase in number and fill the Earth.

After the flood, Noah began to cultivate the ground, and planted a vineyard, one day he drank some wine, became drunk, and lay naked inside his tent.

Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside.

But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s nakedness.

Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father’s nakedness.

When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves he will be to his brothers.”
Question? Why did Noah Curse Canaan and not Ham? What did Canaan do?
I cannot be dogmatic about this, but I believe that, Ham had sex with his mother or Noah’s wife, and Canaan was the offspring of that union. My beliefs are based on and in Leviticus 18.
“None of you shall approach any blood relative of his to uncover nakedness; I am the Lord.”
“You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father, that is, the nakedness of your mother. you are not to uncover her nakedness.”
“You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife; it is your father’s nakedness.”6-8 NASU.
Chapter 10: Here the genealogy of Noah’s family provides information on future history and the geographical distribution of people in the ancient Near East.
Clues are given about the settlement of the coastal areas, northern Africa, Syria, Canaan, and Mesopotamia.

All of the major regions are thus represented, as well as most of the nations who would in some way interact with Israel.

Chapter 11: came the notorious incident known as the tower of Babel. Adonai had commanded humanity to be fruitful and multiply and that they should scatter across the Earth.
They decided instead to gather together into one place and build a tower at Babel. This infamous project was an arrogant declaration of war against God.

God brought this to an end to by confusing the builder’s language and scattering them all over the Earth, so they would not remain united in rebellion against God.

Moses traces the family line of Shem; this shows how Abraham fit into the plan of God. We see here another evidence of divine election.

God chose Abraham in His grace. This would also be the beginning of the nation of Israel.
Father, my prayer and sincere desire is that Messiah will soon return and make all things new again.
And all believers will rejoice, the first will be last and the last will be first.
The crooked Paths will be made straight. Sins and cruises will be abolished. And you O God will be praised, exalted, glorified, and obeyed. Amen.