13 Now it came about in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first of the month, the water was dried up from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the surface of the ground was dried up. 14 In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry. 15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 “Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you, birds and animals and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, that they may breed abundantly on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. 19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out by their families from the ark.
How exciting it must have been for Noah to finally get to leave the ark, and how excited the animals must have been to go out and stretch their legs a bit! Noah had to wait a long time again from the bit of encouragement (seeing dry ground), to the time when he was allowed to get out on it.
This is just my wonderings: I wonder - was there grass again, did the Lord wait until some of the beauty had returned? Did He ask Noah to wait until He could make the world more hospitable before he even got to see it? Did he "prepare a place" for him? Or was it still a big muddy mess?
I, being the optimist that I am, choose to believe that God was making it ready for Noah and the animals. Unless, of course, I am proven wrong in the following chapters.
I love the straight up conversations that God and Noah have. I guess it really doesn't tell us what Noah says to God. I just like that God speaks to Noah so clearly.
I find the obedience of Noah refreshing and the favor God shows him encouraging.
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