Genesis 7:1 Then the Lord said to Noah, “Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation. 2 You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal, a male and his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male and his female; 3 also seven each of birds of the air, male and female, to keep the species alive on the face of all the earth. 4 For after seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made.” 5 And Noah did according to all that the Lord commanded him. 6 Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters were on the earth.
7 So Noah, with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives, went into the ark because of the waters of the flood. 8 Of clean animals, of animals that are unclean, of birds, and of everything that creeps on the earth, 9 two by two they went into the ark to Noah, male and female, as God had commanded Noah. 10 And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were on the earth. 11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. 12 And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.
13 On the very same day Noah and Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark— 14 they and every beast after its kind, all cattle after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. 15 And they went into the ark to Noah, two by two, of all flesh in which is the breath of life. 16 So those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; and the Lord shut him in.
"Genesis 7:2; Genesis 7:8. Clean beasts by sevens. Male and female, reserving some for sacrifice. God’s special care is over man and beast, and over the preservation of religion… Come into the Ark and all your household. What useful instructions are here presented to the surviving world. Did Noah bring his whole family into the ark? Then let all heads of houses imitate his good example, and use their utmost endeavours to dedicate their families to God.” (Sutcliffe's Commentary)
"The ark was open for a long time for any who would join Noah and his family before the flood came, but no one came to join them! The minority who did believe were safe in the ark while the earth was being destroyed, but others could have been inside if they had acted on the basis of God's warning message being true truth.” (Edith Schaeffer)
Excerpt from What Must I Do To Be Saved? by D L Moody
"Suppose you do not want to hear a sermon so much as you want to know how to be saved. I want, if I can, to answer that question, 'What must I do to be saved?' There is no question that can come before us in this world that is so important; and I think that there is not a man in this audience to-night who does not feel interested in it.
I heard a man, when he was going out the other night, saying: 'I do not believe in sudden conversion. I do not believe what the preacher said tonight, that a man could come in here a sinner, and go out a Christian.' Now, I want to say that I do not believe in any other conversion. I do not believe that there ever has been a conversion in the world that was not instantaneous, and I want you to mark this: not but what many cannot tell the day nor the hour when they were converted. I will admit that: they may not know the time; but that does not change the great fact that there was a time when they passed from death unto life; that there was a time when they were born [begotten] into the kingdom of God.
There must have been a minute when their name was written in the Book of Life. There must have been a time when they were ere lost, and a time when they were saved; but we may not be conscious when the change takes place. I believe the conversion of some is like the rising of the sun, and of others like the flashing of a meteor. But both are instantaneous, really, in the sight of God. There must be a time when life begins to rise; when the dead soul begins to live.
Now, this evening I want to take up some of the Bible illustrations. In the first place, there is the ark. There was a minute when Noah was outside of the ark, and another minute when he was inside. And, bear in mind, it was the ark that saved Noah: it was not his righteousness; it was not his feelings; it was not his tears; it was not his prayers. It was the ark that saved him. If he had tried to make an ark of his feelings, or of his prayers, or of his life, he would have been swept away: he would have been drowned with the rest. But, you see, it was the ark that saved him.
When I was in Manchester, I went into the gallery one Sunday night to have a talk with a few inquirers; and while I was talking, a business man came in, and took his seat on the outskirts of the audience. I think, at first, he had come merely to criticize, and that he was a little skeptical. At last I saw he was in tears. I turned to him, and said, 'My friend, what is your difficulty?' ‘Well,' he said, 'Mr. Moody, the fact is, I cannot tell.' I said, 'Do you believe you are a sinner?’ He said, 'Yes; I know that.' I said, 'Christ is able to save you'; and I used one illustration after another, but he did not see it. At last I thought of the ark, and I said: 'Was it Noah's feelings that saved him? Was it Noah's righteousness that saved him, or was it the ark?' 'I see it, now,' said he; 'I see it.' He got up and shook hands with me, and said: 'Good-night: I must go. I have to go away by the train to-night; but I was determined to be saved before I went. I see it now.’
A few days after, he came and touched me on the shoulder, and said, 'Do you know me?' I said, 'I know your face, but do not remember where I have seen you.' He said, 'Do you not remember the illustration of the ark?' I said, ‘Yes.’ 'It has been all light ever since,’ said he. 'I understand it now. Christ is the Ark; He saves me; and I must get inside Him.' When I went down to Manchester again, and talked to the young friends there, I found he was the brightest light among them.
Let me take another illustration. There was the blood in Goshen. God says, 'When I see the blood I will pass over you.’ Now He does not say, 'When I see Moses' feelings, or the feelings of the people, I will pass over you'; or, 'When I see you praying and weeping, I will pass over you'; but, 'When I see the blood I will pass over you.' It was the blood that saved them, not their righteousness. And a little child by that blood in Goshen was just as safe as Moses or Aaron or Joshua or Caleb. It was the blood that saved them. Look! there is the Jew taking the hyssop. He dips it in the blood, and strikes it on the doorpost. One minute it is not there: the next it is there. The moment the blood is there they are saved. God says, 'When I see the blood I will pass over you.' Some people say, 'If I were only as good as that minister I should feel so safe’ or, 'If I were only as good as that mother in Israel who has been praying fifty years for the poor and unfortunate, should I not feel very safe?' My friends, if you are behind the blood, you are as safe as any man or woman who has been praying for fifty years. It is not their righteousness and good works that are going to save them. They never saved any one. God says, 'When I see the blood I will pass over you.’ And when I am sheltered behind the blood, then I am saved; and if I am not sheltered behind the blood, I am not saved. That was instantaneous, was not it? God says, 'When I see the blood, it shall be a token, and I will not enter.' Death came down and passed over Egypt; and where the blood was on the doorpost he passed by; but where the blood could not be found, in he went and took the victim away. The great palaces could not keep out death; wealth and position could not keep out death. He went and took the Crown Prince of Egypt; he took the richest and the poorest, the highest and the lowest. Death makes no distinction, except a man is behind the blood.
My friends, be wise tonight, and get behind the blood. The blood has been shed. The blood is on the mercy-seat; and while it is there you can be saved. God is imputing to His Son your trespasses and sins. He says, 'I will look at the blood on the mercy-seat.' Press in, my friends; make haste and get in tonight; for the Master of the house will rise up by-and-by and shut to the door, and then there will be no hope.”
Christ is the Ark. Get in Him in prayer by faith
Genesis 7:17 Now the flood was on the earth forty days. The waters increased and lifted up the ark, and it rose high above the earth. 18 The waters prevailed and greatly increased on the earth, and the ark moved about on the surface of the waters. 19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered. 20 The waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward, and the mountains were covered.
"And the flood was forty days upon the earth — Forty is the number of probation and judgment. In that regard, the waters remained until the judgment had accomplished the whole purpose of God in sending it. On a day for a year principle, a comparable period of time will be occupied at the second coming of the Lord, to reduce the world of flesh to the obedience required in Christ. (Cp. Micah 7:15-20).
The very waters that destroyed those on the face of the earth, ensured the safety of those in the ark. Peter records: 'Eight souls were saved by water' (1 Peter 3:20). The water saved them because it lifted them up above the destruction that swept the world. It was a means of salvation to them, because of the protection afforded them in the ark. The same principle also applies to our relationship to Christ through the waters of baptism. It is a token of death to 'the body of sin,’ that the individual might be raised to life (Rom. 6:4-6). The waters of the Flood washed the earth clean and preserved Noah and his family, as the waters of Baptism blot out past sins and enable believers to rise to a new way of life. Christ is thus a 'savour of death unto death... and of life unto life' (2 Cor. 2:15-16). Referring to the Flood, Peter comments: 'Eight souls were saved by water; the like figure, whereunto even baptism doth also now save us" (1 Pet. 3:20-21).” http://christadelphianbooks.org/uploads/CMH_digital/Genesis%20-%20Expositor.pdf
"Hence we learn, that whatever ordinary judgments God may inflict upon the wicked, when the day of crisis comes, he will go out of his way to accomplish his threatenings, and to make his peculiar providence and vengeance known.” (Sutcliffe's Commentary) "The waters rose so high, that the tops of the highest mountains were overflowed more than twenty feet. There is no place on earth so high as to set men out of the reach of God's judgments. God's hand will find out all his enemies, Ps 21:8. When the flood thus increased, Noah's ark was lifted up, and the waters which broke down every thing else, bore up the ark. That which to unbelievers betokens death unto death, to the faithful betokens life unto life.” (Matthew Henry)
21 And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds and cattle and beasts and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man. 22 All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all that was on the dry land, died. 23 So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the ground: both man and cattle, creeping thing and bird of the air. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive. 24 And the waters prevailed on the earth one hundred and fifty days.
"There expired all flesh.The resulting death of all [animals] by drowning is here recounted. (v 21] 'All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life died.' [v 22] This statement refers solely to man, whose higher life is exclusively expressed by the phrase חיים נשׁמת nı̂shmat chayı̂ym, 'breath of life' Genesis 2:7. It affirms the death of the whole of mankind. The sum total of animal and vegetable life, with the exception of those in the ark, is here declared to be extinguished for the final judgment (1 Pet. 3:20; 2 Pet. 2:5; 3:5, 6). (Barnes' Notes on the Bible)
"The same 'word of God' that had caused earth to appear and life to be manifested, proclaimed the decree that reversed the work of creation, causing the world to 'overflow with water' and ‘perish' (2 Pet. 3:6).” http://christadelphianbooks.org/uploads/CMH_digital/Genesis%20-%20Expositor.pdf
"In the creation account God brought order out chaos. The first half of the Flood story shows the reverse of that. As the earth is inundated with water, it returns to its original watery condition before God said, ‘Let there be light!’ (1:3). It returns to tohu wabohu [NULL AND VOID]… These movements of physical order and chaos mirror the moral world. Humanity has degenerated from moral order established at the beginning [it was good] to moral chaos where ‘every inclination of the thoughts of heart was only evil all the time’ (6:5).’…” ( Dr. Laurence Turner)
"People died—old people and young; beautiful and brave along with the grisly and gray. Only Noah and those with him escaped the terrible, universal death of the wicked. Jesus affirmed the historicity of the 'days of Noah' when he compared them to the end days (Matt. 24:37, 38; Luke 17:26, 27). Peter similarly used the story of Noah and the Flood as a pattern." (Nelson Bible Study Notes)
“In Matthew 24, after describing His 'glorious appearing,' Jesus continued: 'But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”(Matthew 24:36-44…) Here Jesus Christ draws a parallel between His return and the sudden descent of billions of tons of water upon the lost in Noah’s day. Those ancient people thought Noah was a crazy old man 'until the flood came and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be' (Matt 24:39)...
Jesus continued: 'Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left'... This is probably the second most quoted text in the Bible now being used to support the Left Behind idea of a silent Rature prior to the Tribulation. Supposedly, when this verse is fulfilled, those who are 'taken' will vanish without a trace, leaving only their clothes, shoes, false teeth, and wedding rings, while those who are 'left' will have to endure the Tribulation, facing the Antichrist and the Mark of the Beast. But is this really what Jesus Christ is saying?...
Jesus basically said, 'My return will be just like Noah’s day' (Verses 37-39) Now think about it. Did Noah and his family vanish before the Flood? No, they walked visibly into the ark. And what about those who were left behind after the door of the ark was shut, did they have second chance? Again, No. How were they left? They were left dead, they did not escape. After saying, 'the flood came, and took them all away,' Jesus made His power-packed point: 'so shall also the coming [parousia] of the Son of man be' (Verse 39). And then, without a break, Christ said, 'Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.' (Verse 40) Upon careful analysis, these words leave no room for the continuing lives of Left Behind’s Rayford Steele and Buck Williams during the Tribulation after the Rapture.Why not? Because those who are 'taken' are taken up at the 'coming' or parousia, which applies to the visible 'glorious appearing' of Jesus Christ." (Truth Left Behind by Steve Wohlberg)
"All the men, women, and children, that were in the world, excepting those in the ark, died. We may easily imagine what terror seized them. Our Saviour tells us, that till the very day that the flood came, they were eating and drinking, Luke 17:26,27; they were deaf and blind to all Divine warnings. In this posture death surprised them. They were convinced of their folly when it was too late. We may suppose they tried all ways and means possible to save themselves, but all in vain. And those that are not found in Christ, the Ark, are certainly undone, undone for ever. Let us pause, and consider this tremendous judgment! Who can stand before the Lord when he is angry? The sin of sinners will be their ruin, first or last, if not repented of. The righteous God knows how to bring ruin upon the world of the ungodly, 2Peter 2:5. How tremendous will be the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men! Happy they who are part of Christ's family, and safe with him as such; they may look forward without dismay, and rejoice that they shall triumph, when fire shall burn up the earth, and all that therein is. We are apt to suppose some favourable distinctions in our own case or character; but if we neglect, refuse, or abuse the salvation of Christ, we shall, notwithstanding such fancied advantages, be destroyed in the common ruin of an unbelieving world.” (Matthew Henry)
“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness.” (2 Peter 3:10-11)