Genesis 8:6 - Meaning and Application

Here we have the account of the messengers Noah sent out to bring him news from outside, a raven and a dove. Notice, first, that even though God had told Noah exactly when the flood would begin, down to the day (Genesis 7:4), he did not tell him by revelation exactly when or how it would end.

God gave Noah the first detail because he needed it to prepare the ark and settle in it. But the timing of the flood’s ending would only satisfy curiosity. Leaving that unknown also gave Noah room to exercise faith and patience. Noah could not know the flood’s rise and fall apart from revelation, but he could use ordinary means to see whether the waters were going down, so God left that to him.

Notice, too, that although Noah trusted by faith that he would be delivered, and waited patiently for it, he still wanted to know more. He thought it was a long time to be shut up in the ark. That shows that a sincere faith can include a strong desire to be free from trouble, eager waiting for relief, and careful questions about whether deliverance is near.

Noah did not run ahead of God, but he did look for God to act. As Scripture says, “He who believes will not be in a hurry” (Isaiah 28:16), yet he still goes forward to meet the Lord. Noah first sent out a raven through the ark’s window. The Hebrew wording suggests it kept flying about and returning, feeding on the dead bodies floating on the water, and then coming back to rest, likely on the ark rather than inside it.

That gave Noah little comfort, so he sent out a dove. The first time, she came back with no good report, and she was likely wet and dirty. The second time, she returned with an olive leaf in her beak, and that leaf had clearly been freshly picked, showing that the trees, and especially the fruit trees, were beginning to rise above the water.

There are several things to notice here. First, Noah sent the dove out again seven days later, and the third sending was also after seven days. The first sending of the dove was likely seven days after the raven went out. This suggests that these actions took place on the Sabbath, which Noah seems to have kept carefully in the ark.

After gathering with the little church in worship on that day, he then looked for special blessings from heaven and asked about them. “After I pray, I will look up” (Psalm 5:3). The dove also gives a picture of a gracious soul. Such a soul finds no lasting rest, peace, or satisfaction in this world, which is full of sin and judgment, and returns to Christ as its ark, its place of safety.

The worldly heart is more like the raven. It settles on the corruption it finds in the world and feeds on it. But the soul that knows its need says, “Return to your rest, O my soul,” that is, return to your Noah, your refuge (Psalm 116:7). It also says, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!” so it could flee to him (Psalm 55:6).

As Noah reached out his hand and drew the dove back into the ark, so Christ will kindly receive, protect, and help those who come to him for rest. The olive branch, which was a sign of peace, was not brought by the raven, a bird of prey, or by a proud peacock. It was brought by a gentle, patient, humble dove. In the same way, a dove-like spirit is what brings signs of rest and joy into the world.

Some people see these events as a picture of greater things. They say the law was first sent out like the raven, but it brought no news that God’s wrath over the world of mankind was easing. So, when the right time came, God sent the gospel like the dove. The Holy Spirit came in the form of a dove, and the gospel brings us an olive branch, offering a better hope.