God's Blessing and Caveat - Genesis 9:1-7

1 So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. 2 And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. 3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. 4 But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. 5 Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man's brother I will require the life of man. 6 "Whoever sheds man's blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man. 7 And as for you, be fruitful and multiply; Bring forth abundantly in the earth And multiply in it." - Genesis 9:1-7

Just as He blessed Adam and Eve, the Lord renewed His blessing with Noah and his descendants. However, given the corruption that permeated the human race, as well as all living creatures, the Lord made provision for mankind by allowing the fear of man to be ingrained in the hearts of all other creatures. In this way, man could kill and eat animals, whereas he could not do so before, and during, the flood. 

No longer vegetarians, man could eat the flesh of living animals. However, the Lord added an interesting caveat to the blessing. Man could not eat meat in which the blood remained in the animal that had been killed. The life of God's creation is in its blood. This is why the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ has such power to this day, and into eternity. 

Whereas the blood of other living creatures carried impurities that could make a person ill, the blood of the sinless Lamb of God was perfect and completely pure. Pure enough to wash away the sins of every man, woman, boy or girl who would ever believe that His blood would take away our sins.

In this age of grace, the Lord exhorts those who follow Him to forgive those who offend us. To bless and even to pray for those who mistreat us and say all manner of evil against us. As Christ's followers, the Lord no longer allows us to vindicate ourselves when someone offends us. The Lord Himself is our vindicator. When He chastens those who oppose us, His judgment is always just and fair.

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