In Genesis 6, we saw Noah, a man of faith, obediently building an ark exactly as God commanded. God told him there would be a flood that would destroy the entire planet and that he should prepare for it. According to some Bible scholars, it is believed that the ark must have taken at least 75 years to build. So this we know: 1. For years, Noah obeyed in faith in building the ark without seeing the flood as promised. 2. Noah probably endured scorn from the rest of the people who lived in sin, rebellion and violence. Why has this old man been building this giant wooden structure, especially in a place where it doesn't rain much? Nonetheless, we see obedience through faith coming from Noah.
God's promise, or should we say judgement, comes to pass. After the flood destroys the entire earth and it's inhabitants, with the exception of Noah and his family and a few animals, the ark floats to the top of Ararat mountains (located in present day Turkey). Noah first sends out a raven, then a dove to see if the waters had receded so that they could come out of the ark. At one point the raven came back with a freshly plucked olive leaf, which meant that lower elevations were above water and new life had began to spring forth. Important to mention that the symbol for peace traces back to this imagery of the dove with an olive leaf in its beak.
In Genesis 9, God makes a covenant to never destroy the earth with water again. The rainbow becomes a signature of that covenant. Also, since murder had grown so rampant before the flood since Cain and Abel, God lays heavy expectations for the sanctity of human life (Genesis 9:4-6). God orders Noah and his family to be fruitful and multiply just as He had done with Adam and Eve in the beginning. We see that humanity has been given a second chance, a fresh start, and things seem peaceful. There is hope. But not quiet so fast. Sin in the heart of men and women wasn't dead. The virus that started in Adam, the disobedience that started from Eve couldn't be destroyed by a flood. It was as if evil became ingrained in man's heart and his every intent was to be sinful and do all sorts of evil.
Towards the end of chapter 9 of Genesis, we see Noah drunk, passed out naked. His son, Canaan, sees him naked and doesn't do a thing, and instead goes and tells his brothers. The two brothers, Shem and Japheth, quickly hurried, walking backwards and avoiding the sight of their father's shame, and covered their father Noah. The old man later sobered up a bit and cursed Canaan, the son who had seen him naked. The Bible says that the Canaanite clan reached toward Sidon, Gerar, Gaza, Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim. Yes, you read that right, the two cities that would be destroyed for their insane wickedness, Sodom and Gomorrah, descended from the cursed son of Noah.