Genesis 8:11

"When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf!  Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth."  Genesis 8:11

 

This time when the dove came back, it brought a fresh olive leaf, so because of that Noah, knew that the flood waters had gone down.  I wonder if there is any significance to the fact that the dove brought an olive leaf.

It is interesting to note that the dove brought back the olive leaf in the evening.  In the first six days of creation evening was always before morning.  So for the dove to come in the evening, it was coming first thing in the day.

Many people have also brought up the question of how long a plant could survive under water. NeverThirsty has an article that offer one possible explanation.  Mediterranean Olive trees could easily sprout leaves in only 30 days.  Wayne Jackson quotes Alfred Edersheim saying that the olive tree can grow and bear leaves under water and he bears witness to having seen with his own eyes a young olive tree fully leafed and completely immersed in a northern California stream.  John Mackay also wrote an article about the survivability and regrowth of olive trees.  The most striking piece of information I found in his article was about dams in Australia, "In Australia there a many large man-made dams can be full for 20 or 30 yrs then dry out during massive drought. Soon after we see grass and weeds commencing to grow from seeds we have now proven have been buried in the mud for up to decades."

Genesis 8:10

 "He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark."  Genesis 8:10

 

Noah gave the dove a week before sending it out again.

 

I wonder if God does this with us.  Go out and check, but, nope the time isn't right, so wait awhile and then go check again.  Maybe he's teaching us to rely on his timeline.  Sometimes the best course of action is to wait, and that can be hard to do.  We want to go out there and get it done now.  Instead we need to step back and wait until God tells us it is the right time.

Genesis 8:9

"But the dove could find no place to set its feet because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark.  He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark."  Genesis 8:9

The dove couldn't find a resting place, so it returned to Noah and he welcomed it back into his own hands.

This image is a great illustration of God's love and compassion for us.  Like the dove, we can fly around all over the world, but the chaotic waters of anxiety and stress cover all the surfaces of the earth and so we can't had a place to rest in peace.  If we follow the example of the dove and fly back to God, he will reach out his very hands to cradle us to his breast so that we can rest with him.

Genesis 8:8

 "Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground."  Genesis 8:8

Since the raven didn't return, Noah sent out a dove.  Actually verse 7 doesn't tell us why Noah sent out the raven, it only tells us that he sent it out.  Here in verse 8 it tells us that the dove was sent out to see if the water had gone down from over all the ground.  Maybe he was just tired of that raven and wanted to let it out so it would keep being a pest.  Maybe doves are more reliable birds.

Genesis 8:7

 "And sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth."  Genesis 8:7

Now Noah and his family had been cooped up from a long time and he's finally opened a window and let a raven out.  It sounds like the raven never came back, it just kept flying around until the water dried up enough for it to land somewhere.  How long can ravens stay in the air without landing?

Genesis 8:6

 "After forty days Noah opened the window he had made in the ark."  Genesis 8:6

Another forty days passed by with Noah and his family closed up in the ark before he opened the window.  They've already been in the ark for eight months and now Noah waits another month before opening the window.  That's a long time to wait.

Genesis 8:5

“The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.”  Genesis 8:5

Noah and his family can finally see the mountain tops.  They have hope that one day soon they will be able to get out and walk around on dry land.  They’ve been closed up in the ark for eight months and now they have renewed hope.