Noah’s Faith Amid Depravity

5, 6. (a) How did Satan proceed to contaminate mankind? (b) In what ways did Noah and his family stand out as being no part of that world?

⁵ From the rebellion in Eden onward, Satan the Devil has been bent on “misleading the entire inhabited earth.” (Revelation 12:9) Jehovah had commanded man and woman to use their God-given sexual powers honorably within the marriage arrangement, in order to “fill the earth” with their kind. (Genesis 1:28; Hebrews 13:4) But the Devil turned to contaminating humanity with unnatural sex. How? Spirit sons of God joined Satan in his rebellion. These became “demons,” with Satan as their “ruler.” (Luke 11:15) And of what did the demons’ activity then consist? They came down to earth, materialized human bodies, and cohabited with the good-looking daughters of men. The outcome was appalling!

⁶ Hybrid offspring were thus produced, fleshly giants that were half demon, half human. These were the Nephilim, murderous “Fellers” of mankind, as the record shows: “And the earth came to be ruined in the sight of the true God and the earth became filled with violence. So God saw the earth and, look! it was ruined, because all flesh had ruined its way on the earth.” Violence and sexual depravity became so widespread that only of Noah could it be said: “He proved himself faultless among his generations. Noah walked with the true God.” His wife, his sons, and their wives​—alone of all mankind—​showed faith and godly fear. Apparently, Noah’s family line was not contaminated by the sexual depravity of his day.​—Genesis 6:4, 9-12, Ref. Bi., footnote.

7. As demonstrated in Noah’s day, how does Jehovah judge the bad and the righteous? (Compare Matthew 25:40, 45, 46.)

⁷ Jehovah obliterated that violent, sex-crazed, demonistic world. Sending the great Deluge, he flushed out everything that was bad. Hybrid Nephilim and corrupted humans were swept into oblivion, while the demonistic former sons of God made their escape back to the spirit realm​—to await God’s judgment of them.

10, 11. (a) To gain God’s approval, what vices must be avoided? (b) What armor must we put on, and why?

¹⁰ In these final days, the lives of so many people revolve around sex, with or without the benefit of marriage. And for many of those who are married, divorce or annulment has become a norm. Disregarding clear-cut warnings by Jesus’ disciples, many in Christendom indulge in homosexuality. Already, some of these are “receiving in themselves the full recompense” in the form of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. However, there could be hope of salvation even for such persons. Remember, Jesus spoke favorably of prostitutes who cleaned up their lives and believed in him, in contrast with the proud, unrepentant religious leaders of his day.​—Romans 1:26, 27; 2 Peter 2:9, 10; Jude 6, 7; Matthew 21:31, 32.

¹¹ Any of Jehovah’s people who may have become tainted with, or who are tempted to indulge in, immoral practices must awaken and put on the full armor that God provides! (Ephesians 6:11-18) These days are truly “just as the days of Noah were.” That “roaring lion,” the Devil, and his depraved demons are working around the clock to isolate and entrap God’s servants. We must take our stand against those enemies, solid in the faith.​—1 Peter 5:8, 9.

12. Why is it important to follow the counsel of Psalm 97:10?

¹² Shocking as it is, even some who have been prominent in Jehovah’s organization have succumbed to immoral practices, including homosexuality, wife swapping, and child molesting. It is to be noted, also, that during the past year, 36,638 individuals had to be disfellowshipped from the Christian congregation, the greater number of them for practicing immorality. Jehovah’s organization must be kept clean! (1 Corinthians 5:9-13) This is a time for congregation elders, ministerial servants, and indeed all our brothers and sisters to avoid any circumstances that could lead to immorality. Loyalty to Jehovah’s standards will be rewarded, as Psalm 97:10 states: “O you lovers of Jehovah, hate what is bad. He is guarding the souls of his loyal ones; out of the hand of the wicked ones he delivers them.”

13. What sound advice is given by the apostles Paul and Peter?

¹³ At the latest, the “great tribulation” will clear out all those “who are disgusting in their filth.” How concerned we must be to hate, yes, abhor, and avoid worldly depravity! We must “flee from fornication”! (Revelation 21:8; 1 Corinthians 6:9, 10, 18) The apostle Peter, after warning against doubt-sowing apostates and about the reality of “Jehovah’s day,” exhorts us to “holy acts of conduct and deeds of godly devotion.” He adds: “But there are new heavens and a new earth that we are awaiting according to his promise, and in these righteousness is to dwell. Hence, beloved ones, since you are awaiting these things, do your utmost to be found finally by him spotless and unblemished and in peace.” What a joy thus to attain to the “new earth,” where God will ‘make all things new’ and clean!​—2 Peter 3:3-7, 10-14; Revelation 21:1, 4, 5.

Heed Further ‘Warning Examples’

14. Why was the cleansing by the Flood only temporary?

¹⁴ After the great Deluge had cleansed the earth of all demonic and human filth, Jehovah repeated the mandate originally given to Adam, by saying to Noah and his sons: “Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth.” (Genesis 9:1) In a token way they did this, 70 “families”​—a figuratively perfect number—​being listed in Genesis chapter 10. But mankind was still suffering the effects of sin inherited from Adam. And apparently demonic influence again led humans to sink into sexual depravity.

15. What do we learn from God’s judgment of Sodom?

¹⁵ In time, Jehovah’s “friend,” Abraham, and Abraham’s nephew Lot moved to the area of Canaan. Lot chose to transfer to the District of the Jordan, which was “like the garden of Jehovah.” But was it that way morally? Far from it! The city of Sodom, where Lot took up residence, and neighboring Gomorrah were steeped in homosexuality. Not even ten righteous men could be found there. For this reason, Jehovah brought upon those cities “the judicial punishment of everlasting fire.” Never will those depraved cities be restored! Jesus cited God’s judgment on Sodom, along with what occurred “in the days of Noah,” in underlining the need for us to be on guard!​—Genesis 13:10; 18:32; Jude 7; Luke 17:26-30.

16. What demon activity calls for us to put up a hard fight for the faith?

¹⁶ Make no mistake! Satan and his demons are still on the rampage! Though thrown into figurative “pits of dense darkness” and restricted from taking on fleshly bodies, those depraved spirits are intent upon corrupting humans, and especially Jehovah’s servants. (2 Peter 2:4-6) No doubt the demons influenced Canaan to commit his immoral act toward his grandfather Noah. (Genesis 9:22-25) Certainly they must have spawned the perversions that became ‘the way of the land of Canaan,’ so that it finally vomited out its inhabitants. (Leviticus 18:3-25) Likewise, the demons foster the unnatural sex practices that afflict so many communities today. In putting up a hard fight for the faith, we must resist any attacks by those fallen angels that impel humans to ‘commit fornication excessively and to go out after flesh for unnatural use.’​—Jude 3, 6, 7.