When Lamech had lived 182 years, he fathered a son and called his name Noah, saying, “Out of the ground that the LORD has cursed, this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the painful toil of our hands.”

Genesis 5:28-29 ESV

Genesis 5 is the Bible’s first genealogy, and within it, we see the passage of time and generations. The chapter concludes with Lamech’s prayerful naming of his son, Noah, which means rest. Lamech called his son Noah because he hoped that Noah would be the one to break humanity free from the sin’s curse, and unlike Cain, Noah seems to have potential.

Genesis 6-8 tell how humanity became so wicked that God destroyed them all with a great flood, but in His mercy, God spares Noah and his family. After the flood, Noah almost seems to be a new Adam upon a new earth.

Could this be how God would defeat sin and evil?

For all of Lamech’s hope, Noah was no better than anyone else on the planet. God saved Noah from the flood only because of His mercy and grace.

In Genesis 9, Noah shows that he was no better than Adam by getting drunk on the first vineyard that he planted after the flood. Noah failed to be the bringer of rest that his father hoped him to be.

But where Noah failed, Jesus would succeed.

By living a sinless life, Jesus would truly be the new Adam, and He would die, not as punishment for His own sins, but for the sins of everyone else.

Noah’s life pointed toward Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, which truly bring us relief from sin’s curse.

Though God used Noah for His glory, Noah still sinned along with the rest of humanity. How has God been faithful to use you even though you still sin?