“The Beatitudes: Noah“
[By Kiara Bessette]

When I think of beatitudes, Noah comes to mind. Noah and his family lived during a very difficult time. The Bible says the whole world was evil and no one did any good. It must have been hard for Noah and his family to be surrounded by all those bad people and things. Things might be tough today, but based on how the Bible describes it, I think Noah and his family had it worse. Genesis 6:5 – “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (ESV). It was a very dark time, it would be hard to be a light surrounded by so much dark. Genesis 6:8 – “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord” (ESV). That makes me think of Matthew 5:8 – “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (ESV). So, we know Noah must have had a pure heart because God talked to him. So, God gives Noah some instructions to build an ark. Genesis 6:22 – “Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him” (ESV). This makes me think of Matthew 5:3 – “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” (ESV). Noah submitted himself to God’s will and obeyed. Then he went to build the ark. 1 Peter 3:20 – “…while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water” (NKJV). This fulfills Matthew 5:6 – “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled” (NKJV). Because of Noah’s obedience, he not only saved himself and his family, but gave the world encouraging examples of the beatitudes.