Introduction
Genesis is the book of beginnings, the seed plot
of the Bible. It is the window to the Scriptures. Much of what is
developed further finds in origin in the Bible’s first book. Its
study provides a firm foundation for all else that follows.
Unvarying divine principles adorn its pages, principles that are
followed throughout the rest of the sacred record. The student who
invests in this book will reap the rewards of understanding in the
rest of the divine revelation.
Now one of the
many unwritten laws of biblical interpretation is the law of first
mention. Very often the first time a word, a phrase or an incident
occurs we have the key to its use throughout Scripture—and many of
these first mentions are unsurprisingly found in Genesis. The first
instance of the word house
is in Gen. 7: 1: “And Jehovah said to Noah, Go into the ark, thou
and all thy house; for thee have I seen
righteous before me in this generation”.
This is the first house that is mentioned in Scripture. Not only
that, but this word house
is encased in the first mention of a phrase that occurs in one form
or another throughout the Bible:
thou and thy house. What
can we learn from this? What divine principle is enshrined here? Let
us look into the matter.
The House of Noah and the
Flood
The first thing to be
considered as ever is the context in which this verse is set. We
read earlier “And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of Man was great
on the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart
only evil continually … And Jehovah said, I will destroy Man, whom I
have created, from the earth … But Noah found favour in the eyes of
Jehovah” (Gen. 6: 5–8). Man’s sin was so great that God was going to
execute judgement by destroying man with a universal flood. Yes,
from subsequent Scriptures, this first judgement foreshadows God’s
final judgment. Yes, those swept away in the waters of the flood,
having no faith, will be eternally lost. But those truths are not
brought before us here. Whatever application may be made of these
events in the context of Gospel preaching, it is the
interpretation that we
need to understand. As has often been said, Scripture may have many
applications but only one interpretation. It is not a question here
of heaven or hell. There is no thought of eternity in these verses.
It is a judgement on earth and in time that is before us. Against
this background, God was going to save one house from that
judgement, and that house was Noah’s. What was the basis of this
salvation? The faith of each individual in Noah’s house? No. The
answer is “for
thee have I seen
righteous before me in this generation” (Gen. 7: 1, my emphasis). It
was the righteousness of one man alone and it had nothing to do with
the spiritual state of any other members of his family. Actually, we
learn later that one of Noah’s sons was far from righteous, so much
so that his action resulted in a curse (see Gen. 9: 25). Thus God
will preserve the whole house from the judgment waters of the flood
solely on the basis
of the righteousness of its head. We should also note that Noah’s
sons were not children but adults, for they were all married. This
first and most important example shows us that God distinguishes
between the house of a man of faith and all other houses. However,
that distinction is for time and on earth. It has absolutely nothing
to do with a person’s ultimate eternal destination. From this one
Scripture we learn this truth,
that so far as matters on
earth are concerned, God identifies a man’s house with the man
himself. The proof that this is a divine principle is that
it will be seen again and again throughout the Scriptures. It is the
first and most telling example of ‘thou and thy house’.
The House of Lot in Sodom
The next example that I want
you to consider is Lot’s house in Sodom. The context is another
judgement scene. Again, the setting is earth and time. There is no
thought of heaven and hell or eternity involved in what is taught
here. It is not now a universal judgement on the earth, but a
limited one on the cities of the plain (see Gen. 19: 24, 25). It is
also not by water but by fire, solemn harbinger of God’s final
judgement of a universe marred by sin (see 2 Pet. 3: 10–12). The
context here is again one of time. In one of those cities there is,
like Noah, one righteous man—although we have to wait almost to the
end of the Bible before that is revealed to us. For some, his
conduct in Genesis would raise many a question as regards his
righteousness. However, Scripture is clear: “… and saved righteous
Lot, distressed with the abandoned conversation of the godless, (for
the righteous man through seeing and hearing, dwelling among them,
tormented [his] righteous soul day after day with [their] lawless
works,)” (2 Pet. 2: 7, 8). Note however, that while Lot’s name is
coupled with that of Noah’s in Peter’s epistle, a measure of
distance is introduced by the record of Genesis. Noah and his house
were secured safely in the ark
directly by God: “And
Jehovah shut him in” (Gen. 7: 16), but with Lot, the intervention,
like the judgement, is not direct but angelic, implying a degree of
distance. Now what is the question the heavenly visitors ask Lot?
“Whom hast thou here besides? A son–in–law, and thy sons, and thy
daughters, and all whom thou hast in the city—bring [them] out of
the place. For we are going to destroy this place, because the cry
of them is great before Jehovah, and Jehovah has sent us to destroy
it” (Gen. 19: 12, 13). The words
Whom has thou here besides
clearly refer to the composition of his house. Again, we have
similar circumstances for Lot as for Noah: a coming judgement on
earth and in time, in which the house of a righteous man is
identified with the man himself so far as his position on earth is
concerned. Again, those known as composing Lot’s house were all
adults. Sadly, subsequent circumstances tell us that Lot lost all
except his two daughters, and they were hardly marked by
righteousness (see Gen. 19: 30–38). It was by the righteousness of
one man that salvation came to the house.
The Houses of Israel on
The Passover Night
This is yet another judgement
scene. It is not the world, nor a group of cities but this time it
is a whole nation that is to come under judgment. “Thus saith
Jehovah: About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt. And
all the first born in the land of Egypt shall die, from the
firstborn of Pharaoh who sitteth on his throne, even unto the
firstborn of the bondwoman that is behind the mill; and all the
firstborn of cattle” (Ex. 11: 4, 5). Now the Passover night is often
rightly applied to the Gospel with the preacher dwelling much on the
words “when I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Ex. 12: 13), but
our present business is with interpretation and not application. For
this we must take full account of the words “On the tenth of this
month let them take themselves each a lamb, for a father’s house, a
lamb for a house” (Ex. 12: 3). It is not a lamb for an individual,
but a lamb for a father’s house This what the Bible says. God is
going to destroy all the first–born males in the land of Egypt. Once
again, this judgment is in time and on the earth. The blood of the
lamb was to be put “on the two door–posts and on the lintel of the
houses in which they eat it” (v7). It is clearly again a household
matter.
All within
any house that had
the blood applied were safe from the destroying angel. The blood
alone secured the
safety of those within the house. If an Egyptian firstborn had
sought shelter within the house of an Israelite that had the blood,
he would have been just as safe as every Israelite within that
house. The composition of the individuals within the house, or their
individual spiritual state, was irrelevant in the matter. Even if
they failed to eat the roasted lamb, or ignored the injunctions on
dress (see Ex. 12: 8–11), the house was still safe as long as the
blood was there. One thing alone mattered: the blood on the lintel
and the door posts. If the blood was applied, then that house was
safe. Without multiplying words, the principle is once again evident
that in time and on earth, God identifies a man’s house with the man
whose house it is.
The House of Rahab in
Jericho
My final example in the OT is
the house of Rahab in Jericho. Jericho is the city of a curse (see
Josh. 6: 26) and God was going to destroy it. This time the judgment
is not on the whole world, not on a whole nation, not on a
collection of cities but on a single city—Jericho. Yet again, this
is a judgment in time and on earth, although often taken up in the
preaching of the Gospel and rightly applied to eternal matters. But
our business is with interpretation. God is going to bring something
truly remarkable out of this place. He has His eye on a woman, not a
man. Her life to date would hardly find a parallel in Lot, let alone
Noah. Rahab was a harlot—her life was morally in keeping with that
of Jericho’s inhabitants. Yet God is not only going to bless that
woman but elevate her to a position of great privilege. She is going
to be placed in the line of the Messiah. She will be one of the four
women mentioned in the genealogy of the Christ in Matthew. Joshua 2:
1–24; 5: 13–6: 27 details the events of the fall of Jericho. The
spies sent out by Joshua came to Rahab’s house and she hid them from
the king of Jericho. She had heard all that God had done and she
says to the spies “We heard [of it], and our heart melted, and there
remained no more spirit in any man because of you; for Jehovah your
God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. And
now, I pray you, swear to me by Jehovah, since I have dealt kindly
with you, that ye will also deal kindly with my father’s house, and
give me a certain sign, that ye will let my father live, and my
mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that belong to
them, and deliver our souls from death” (Josh. 2: 11–13). In the NT
the comment of the Holy Spirit on Rahab is succinct: “By faith Rahab
the harlot did not perish along with the unbelieving, having
received the spies in peace” (Heb. 11: 31). The one distinguishing
feature of Rahab was that she was marked by faith. Once again we
have the whole house saved because of the faith of one. But what is
distinctly remarkable here is that Rahab is a woman. She is not the
head of the house. She has both a father and a mother, as well as
brothers and sisters. She has no family seniority whatever. Yet she
doesn’t just ask for herself but for “my father’s house” (Josh. 2:
12). Her house was on the city wall. It was to be identified by the
scarlet thread bound in the window, a detail in itself that speaks
volumes. But we must pass over any Gospel application for we are
concerned now, as in previous examples, with the interpretation.
Yes, her faith saved her soul for all eternity, but that is not
before us here. On the basis of her faith
the whole house is
saved, not for heaven and eternity, but for time and on earth. When
Jericho’s walls fell, the house of Rahab stood. Scripture records:
“And Joshua saved alive Rahab the harlot, and her father’s
household, and all that she had, and she dwelt in the midst of
Israel to this day; because she hid the messengers whom Joshua had
sent to spy out Jericho” (Josh. 6: 25). The principle taught is
crystal clear. God identified Rahab’s house with Rahab, so far as
her position on earth was concerned. Note the extension of the
principle now brought out. Remarkably (and possibly uniquely), here
the identification of the house with one in the house is maintained,
but it is not just the head of the house but
any one within the
house who exercises faith that secures the house.
There are other
examples in the OT that we could look at but I think that these four
with their distinctive settings are more than sufficient. They
clearly establish the principle that
a man’s household is
identified with that man. However, perhaps you are thinking
that the principle is limited to the OT. This is not so, for the NT
has several examples (see Luke 19: 1–10; 1 Cor. 1: 15–17 etc.). I
will take just one, an example whose details closely match our four
OT examples. Before I do so, let me point out a simple truth. If you
get the interpretation of a Scripture correct, then it will open the
door for other Scriptures, including ones that were previously
difficult to understand.
The Jailor’s House in
Philippi
This, as in previous
examples, is a judgment scene. It is not even a single city now,
such as Jericho, but a prison. Paul and Silas have been wrongly
apprehended, scourged and thrust into jail. “And having laid many
stripes upon them they cast [them] into prison, charging the jailor
to keep them safely; who, having received such a charge, cast them
into the inner prison, and secured their feet to the stocks” (Acts
16: 23, 24). He who had sent an angel to lead Peter out of prison
(see Acts 5: 19), sends an earthquake to release Paul and Silas.
Once again, this divine intervention in judgment is on earth and in
time. Like the Passover, it is another of the Bible’s midnight
scenes. Now in all the previous cases, the salvation involved
belonged not just to the individual but to the house. It was not for
eternity, but for time. Why should it be any different here? Sadly,
the truths of the Gospel are often pressed in an unbalanced way that
clouds over the details that we have in the passage. Salvation for
eternity must always be greater than any salvation in time, but it
is
not the only
salvation that the Bible contemplates. Hence, we must never read
into Scripture what is not there on the one hand, or take out what
is there on the other. Thus the reply to the jailor’s query is often
only half–quoted by the Gospel preacher: “Believe on the Lord Jesus
and thou shalt be saved” (Acts. 16: 31). But this was not all that
was said. The complete reply was “Believe on the Lord Jesus and thou
shalt be saved,
thou and thy house”
(Acts 16: 31, my emphasis). Like our first example of Noah and his
house it is another clear ‘thou and thy
house’ Scripture. The literal rendering
of the Greek is unquestionable: The word
believe is a command in
the singular addressed to the jailor alone. The parallels with our
previous examples, and that of Noah in particular, cannot be set
aside. Let us look at the details with care.
The word of the
Lord was spoken to all in the house, but the matter is recorded in
such a way that the jailor takes the prominent place: “and they
spoke to him the word of the Lord, with all that were in his house”
(v32). When it says Paul and Silas were washed from their stripes,
the action is attributed to the jailor (see v33). Likewise, when he
brought them into his house and laid the table for them, the action
again is recorded as the jailor’s (see v34), although others, such
as slaves, may have acted under his directions. The joy of the
occasion is recorded by the words “rejoiced householdly” (v34,
literal rendering)—a weaker expression than that of “with all that
were in his house” (v32) used previously. As to baptism, we read
“and was baptised, he and all his straightway” (v33) which is an
elliptical statement, the assumed sense being ‘he and all his
house’. However, the critical question is ‘Who
believed?’ If this NT example embodies the principle ‘thou
and thy house’ that we have seen in the OT Scriptures, then we will
find that faith is attributed to one person only. The words are
“having believed in God” (v34), and in English this carries a degree
of vagueness as to who is referred to. However, the words
having believed in Greek
are a single word, a participle in the perfect tense. Participles
are really verbal adjectives and thus in Greek they have number
(singular or plural) and gender (masculine, feminine or neuter).
This participle is masculine singular. Unquestionably, the sense is
thus ‘he
having believed in God’.
Faith is thus limited to the
jailor alone.
Now clearly all
who are baptised are baptised here on earth and not in heaven.
Writing to Christians, Paul says “We have been buried therefore with
him by baptism unto death”. Death is God’s judgment on man’s sin.
The apostle goes on to say “in order that, even as Christ has been
raised up from among [the] dead by the glory of the Father, so we
also should walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6: 4). Where does that
walk take place? On earth and in time, that is now. But does baptism
save? It does in regard to time and earth. Strikingly, Peter
connects the salvation associated with baptism with the salvation of
Noah’s house, speaking of the time “when the long suffering of God
waited in [the] days of Noah while [the] ark was preparing, into
which few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water: which
figure also now saves you, [even] baptism …” (1 Pet. 3: 20, 21).
Thus baptism saves for earth and time, separating the house that is
baptised from all others in the eye of God. The parallels with
Noah’s house and the jailor’s house are unavoidable. Hence our one
NT example is entirely in keeping with our OT examples establishing
the Biblical principle of “thou and thy house”.
Conclusion
Many other examples could have been taken up in
addition to those given. Abraham, Eli, David and others could have
been used from the OT and Zaccheus, Stephanus and Lydia from the NT.
However, the examples taken should serve to illustrate the important
principle seen throughout the Scriptures, that so far as the
position on earth is concerned, God identifies a man’s house with
that man.
