Awhile ago I heard the familiar story of Noah and the Flood. For some reason as I listened this time I began thinking about what it must have been like to be Noah’s wife. Not much is known about her, the Bible doesn’t even give us her name, yet her world was radically changed because of the call that God placed on her husband’s life. Even without a lot of details about who she was, what her history was, and the specifics of how the worldwide flood effected her personally, there are a few lessons that we can extrapolate from her circumstances.
- She married wisely – The marriage process looked a lot different during those days, there is no doubt, but one can’t deny the fact that Noah’s wife married wisely. After all, when God looked at the Earth, it was her husband alone that was said to have found favor in HIs eyes (Gen. 6:8). Her husband “did all that God commanded him” (Gen. 7:5) demonstrating a heart of obedience and submission to the Creator of the Universe. As a result of this wise marital choice, Noah’s wife’s life, and the lives of her three sons were spared. We may not have as a dramatic story to tell of how marrying wisely impacted our lives, but we can be sure that doing so will produce benefits. If we are unsure of the character traits that we should look for, finding someone who finds favor with God and who diligently obeys Him is a wonderful place to start.
- She got on board. – This may seem like a silly statement in retrospect, but we have to remember that Noah was building a boat, something no one may have ever heard of, in order to weather a torrential rain, which no one had ever seen. However, this didn’t stop Noah’s wife from climbing on the ark before any raindrops had fallen (Gen. 7:1-5). One can presume that she trusted that God’s plan for her husband’s life was His plan for hers as well. Both figuratively and literally, it seems she got on board with that plan. There’s no indication that she tried to circumvent this plan or come up with an alternative course of action “just in case.” She trusted that God was leading her husband and that in doing so, He was providing protection for her too. We would do well to emulate this attitude in whatever direction God leads our spouse.
- She weathered the storm – Of course God, through Noah, provided the ark that allowed his wife and family to survive the Flood. However, the difficulties likely didn’t start when the rain fell. It is conceivable that Noah was ridiculed by his neighbors and I would imagine that his wife was equally subject to the whisperings and gossip of the neighbors’ wives. Noah’s spouse didn’t let this stop her from following in her husband’s footsteps and trusting in the plan that God had given him. Additionally, the Bible gives no indication that once the 40 days and 40 nights were over, she tried to hastened their departure, eager to get back to their former ways of doing things. It was probably easier to stay on the ark when the pounding of the rain could be heard. It was likely much more difficult when they were still floating on the waters 109 days later. It must have been even more challenging when dry land didn’t appear until more months had passed. Yet, there is no indication that Noah’s wife “jumped ship,” complained relentlessly, or questioned what they were doing. She stuck by her husband’s side, weathering the initial downpour and the (likely unpleasant) aftermath.
- She planted where they landed – I don’t know if Noah’s wife literally cultivated a garden (although given the agricultural nature of the times this is a possibility), but Scripture does indicate that Noah’s household was established near where the ark landed. There is no indication of a journey made back to where they resided before or pining for the “good old days” before the Flood commenced. Instead, Noah’s family established themselves where God placed them. Although like most of these lessons it is an argument from silence, I imagine that at least some of this household management can be attributed to Noah’s wife. She not only went on the journey that God had for her husband, but once He settled them, as the matriarch she likely had a significant role in reestablishing the family’s home. She did this where God placed them, partaking of His blessing and the provision that He had made (Gen. 9:1-3).
While we may not know a lot of the details of Noah’s wife’s life, there is much we can learn from what we do know, and even from some of the areas of silence on what we don’t. It couldn’t have been easy to be the spouse of the man who was building the first boat in order to survive the world’s first storm. Yet I’m thankful for the example that was set and the lessons that can be learned from Noah’s wife.
