Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The very first thing Noah does after leaving the ark isn't to rebuild his house, but to build an altar. This highlights that his immediate impulse is to honor God and express gratitude for their miraculous preservation, recognizing that worship is the foundation for their new life on earth.
Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
English Standard Version (ESV)
As Noah and his family finally emerge from the ark onto dry land after over a year, the very first thing Noah does is build an altar to the Lord. He then offers a burnt offering using animals and birds that were deemed "clean," signifying a profound act of thanksgiving and consecration to God for their miraculous preservation through the great flood. This marks the re-establishment of worship and a covenant relationship with God for the new world.
The very first thing Noah does after stepping onto dry land is not to build a home or explore, but something else entirely. What does this tell us about his priorities?
Right after exiting the ark, Noah's immediate action is to build an altar and offer sacrifices. This wasn't a delayed reaction but a deliberate, first step.
A Debt of Gratitude
This act wasn't just a ritual; it was a profound expression of thanksgiving. After surviving the complete devastation of the world and being preserved through such a miraculous event, Noah understood he owed God his deepest gratitude. He prioritized honoring God above all else in this new beginning.
Re-establishing Connection
Building an altar and offering sacrifices was how humanity, from the beginning, connected with God. It signified a return to proper worship and a re-establishment of the relationship that had been so severely impacted by the flood. This was about acknowledging God's sovereignty and mercy in a world cleansed by judgment.
Noah didn't just grab any animals; he specifically chose 'clean' ones. Why was this distinction important for the covenant God was about to establish?
The selection of 'clean' animals for Noah's burnt offering is significant, pointing towards the purity and holiness required in approaching God and the subsequent covenant He made.
Symbol of Purity
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The distinction between clean and unclean animals, already present by Noah's time, signified what was acceptable to God. Offering only the clean animals demonstrated an understanding that access to God and His favor required purity and adherence to His standards.
Foreshadowing the Covenant
This sacrifice served as a foundation for the covenant God established with Noah and all creation immediately after. The 'sweet savor' of the offering (Genesis 8:21) was accepted by God, leading Him to promise never again to destroy the earth by flood. This act was a crucial step in reinstating humanity's relationship with God and securing the continuity of life under His promise.
Understand the original words
mizbêach · Hebrew Noun
A structure typically made of stone or earth, designed for sacrifices or offerings to God, serving as a place of contact between the human and divine realms.
YHWH · Hebrew Noun/Proper Name
The personal, covenantal name of God revealed to Israel; it signifies His eternal existence, faithfulness to His promises, and holiness.
tâhôr · Hebrew Adjective
Animals designated as acceptable for ritual sacrifice according to the standards of holiness and purification in biblical law.
ʿôlâh · Hebrew Noun
A sacrifice wholly consumed by fire, symbolizing total devotion, surrender to God, and the need for atonement or appeasement of divine wrath.
Noah's act of building an altar and offering sacrifice is the very first recorded religious observance after the flood. It shows that even after a cataclysmic event and a new beginning, humanity's first response is to worship God and acknowledge His provision and covenant.
c. 2348 BC— this verse
The Great Flood
Following the flood that wiped out all life on Earth except for those on the ark, the waters began to recede. Noah and his family, along with the animals, were preserved through God's judgment.
c. 2348 BC
Noah's Ark Lands
The ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat, marking the end of the long period of being adrift and the beginning of the earth's re-habitation.
c. 2348 BC
Noah and family disembark
After testing the ground with birds, Noah and his family, along with all the animals, finally exited the ark to repopulate the earth.
c. 2348 BC
Noah builds an altar
Immediately after disembarking, Noah's first act was to build an altar and offer burnt offerings to the Lord, a profound act of thanksgiving and worship.
c. 2348 BC
God establishes the rainbow covenant
In response to Noah's sacrifice, God made a covenant, promising never again to destroy the earth with a flood, symbolized by the rainbow.
This passage details the laws for burnt offerings, showing the specific requirements and symbolism that Noah's act prefigured, highlighting the importance of sacrifice in approaching God.
Hebrews 9:11-14This New Testament passage explains how Christ's sacrifice is superior to the Old Testament offerings, including burnt offerings, providing a theological framework for understanding the ultimate purpose of Noah's sacrifice.
Romans 12:1Paul calls believers to offer their bodies as living sacrifices, demonstrating how the concept of sacrifice has evolved from literal animal offerings to a transformed life offered to God.
Genesis 1:28God's command to Noah to 'be fruitful and multiply' after the flood echoes His command to Adam and Eve in Genesis 1:28, showing the renewal of God's purpose for humanity and creation, which Noah's sacrifice acknowledges and ratifies.
Exodus 29:38-46This passage describes the daily burnt offerings prescribed for the Israelites, illustrating the continuation of this sacrificial practice as a central element of worship and a means of God's presence among His people.
clarkeGenesis 8:20: "And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar."
Noah builded an altar - As we have already seen that Adam, Cain, and Abel, offered sacrifices, there can be no doubt that they had altars on which they offered them; but this, builded by Noah, is certainly the first on record. It is worthy of remark that, as the old world began with sacrifice, so also did the new. Religion or the proper mode…
pooleGenesis 8:20: "And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar."
This is the first altar we read of, but not the first which was built; for the sacrifices which were offered before, Genesis 4:3-4 , presuppose an altar. Therefore it is no sufficient evidence that such things were not done because they are not said to be done in Scripture; which will be a useful consideration for the understanding of many pa…
The very first thing Noah does after leaving the ark isn't to rebuild his house, but to build an altar. This highlights that his immediate impulse is to honor God and express gratitude for their miraculous preservation, recognizing that worship is the foundation for their new life on earth.
As Noah and his family finally emerge from the ark onto dry land after over a year, the very first thing Noah does is build an altar to the Lord. He then offers a burnt offering using animals and birds that were deemed "clean," signifying a profound act of thanksgiving and consecration to God for their miraculous preservation through the great flood. This marks the re-establishment of worship and a covenant relationship with God for the new world.
As Noah and his family finally emerge from the ark onto dry land after over a year, the very first thing Noah does is build an altar to the Lord. He then offers a burnt offering using animals and birds that were deemed "clean," signifying a profound act of thanksgiving and consecration to God for their miraculous preservation through the great flood. This marks the re-establishment of worship and a covenant relationship with God for the new world.
"Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar." — The very first thing Noah does after leaving the ark isn't to rebuild his house, but to build an altar. This highlights that his immediate impulse is to honor God and express gratitude for their mira…
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Last reviewed October 2026