Genesis 8:20
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)
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The first thing Noah does after leaving the ark isn't building a home for himself, but building an altar to God. This highlights that for Noah, and for us, reconnecting with God and expressing gratitude is the foundational step after experiencing deliverance. He takes from "every clean beast and every clean fowl" not just to repopulate the earth, but as offerings, showing that life itself is a gift to be returned to the Giver.
After months aboard the ark, God finally tells Noah and his family it's time to disembark onto the newly dried earth. As the first act upon this fresh start, Noah builds an altar to the Lord and offers sacrifices, marking a profound transition from salvation to worship and thanksgiving. This immediate act of devotion sets the tone for humanity's relationship with God in the new world.
After the ultimate disaster, the very first thing Noah does upon safe landing isn't building a house or tending crops. It's something far more profound.
Noah's immediate act of building an altar and offering sacrifices signifies the priority of worship and thanksgiving. This wasn't just a building; it was a dedication. It declared that even after experiencing God's judgment and preservation, his relationship with God was paramount. This sets a pattern: before establishing human life anew, God's honor must be established first. It's a powerful reminder that our relationship with God should be the foundation of all new beginnings.
Why specific animals? And what did this sacrifice represent for Noah and for the future of humanity?
The text specifies 'every clean animal and every clean bird.' This distinction, already present before the Law of Moses, points to God's ordered creation and his requirements for worship. The burnt offering was a complete consumption by fire, symbolizing total devotion and a recognition that life itself belongs to God. For Noah, it was an act of faith, acknowledging his sin and the judgment it deserved, while trusting God's provision of a substitute and His promise of preservation. This 'sweet savor' (Genesis 8:21) was God's acceptance of Noah's faith and His renewed covenant with humanity.
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 sacrifices immediately after the flood signifies that worship and gratitude to God are foundational for rebuilding and for the continuation of humanity, even before securing his own dwelling.
c. 2950 BC— this verse
Noahic Flood Recedes
The waters of the great flood, which covered the entire earth, finally recede after over a year. Noah and his family, along with all the animals, emerge from the ark onto dry land.
c. 2950 BC
First Altar and Sacrifice
Noah immediately builds an altar and offers burnt offerings of clean animals to the LORD. This marks the first recorded act of worship and thanksgiving after the flood.
c. 2950 BC
God's Covenant and Promise
In response to Noah's sacrifice, the LORD smells a pleasing aroma and promises never again to curse the ground for humanity's sake or to destroy all living creatures with a flood.
c. 2950 BC
God's Mandate for Humanity
God blesses Noah and his family, commanding them to 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth,' establishing a new beginning for humankind.
This passage details the laws for burnt offerings, which were sacrifices entirely consumed by fire as an expression of devotion and atonement. It directly connects to Noah's action by showing the established practice and purpose of such offerings in Israel's worship.
Hebrews 11:4This verse in the Hall of Faith highlights Abel's sacrifice as superior to Cain's, implying the ancient and God-ordained nature of sacrifice. It reinforces the idea that Noah's act was part of a continuous tradition of worship through sacrifice.
Exodus 20:24God instructs the Israelites to build altars of earth or unhewn stone for offerings. This passage shows God's ongoing design for altars and sacrifices as a way for His people to approach Him, echoing Noah's foundational act.
Revelation 5:6This vision describes a Lamb standing as though it had been slain before God's throne. It offers a profound theological parallel, suggesting that sacrifice, symbolized by the slain Lamb (Jesus), is central to heavenly worship, just as Noah's sacrifice was foundational for humanity's renewed relationship with God.
Genesis 9:1-17Immediately following Noah's sacrifice, God establishes a covenant with Noah and all living creatures, marked by His promise never again to destroy the earth by flood. This shows the direct link between Noah's act of worship and God's gracious covenant renewal with humanity.
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 first thing Noah does after leaving the ark isn't building a home for himself, but building an altar to God. This highlights that for Noah, and for us, reconnecting with God and expressing gratitude is the foundational step after experiencing deliverance. He takes from "every clean beast and every clean fowl" not just to repopulate the earth, but as offerings, showing that life itself is a gift to be returned to the Giver.
After months aboard the ark, God finally tells Noah and his family it's time to disembark onto the newly dried earth. As the first act upon this fresh start, Noah builds an altar to the Lord and offers sacrifices, marking a profound transition from salvation to worship and thanksgiving. This immediate act of devotion sets the tone for humanity's relationship with God in the new world.
After months aboard the ark, God finally tells Noah and his family it's time to disembark onto the newly dried earth. As the first act upon this fresh start, Noah builds an altar to the Lord and offers sacrifices, marking a profound transition from salvation to worship and thanksgiving. This immediate act of devotion sets the tone for humanity's relationship with God in the new world.
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c. 2950 BC
Permission to Eat Flesh
God grants Noah and his descendants permission to eat meat, a significant shift from the pre-flood diet, establishing a new relationship with the animal kingdom.
c. 2950 BC
The Rainbow as a Sign
God establishes the rainbow as a visible sign of His covenant, a perpetual reminder of His promise never to destroy the earth again by a flood.
"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 first thing Noah does after leaving the ark isn't building a home for himself, but building an altar to God. This highlights that for Noah, and for us, reconnecting with God and expressing gratit…
