suzydoll
Cheneyville, LA
age: 62
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Mrs. Noah is undoubtedly one of the most significant women in Bible history—yet we have no record of her name. She is merely referred to as Noah's wife the five times she is mentioned (6:18; 7:7, 13; 8:16, 18). What was she like? How did she live?
Mrs. Noah was not a nobody, but rather a real somebody fulfilling her feminine role. She obeyed God by submitting to her husband's leadership. Noah, being a righteous man (6:9) would not have abused his position or corrupted it into tyranny. She faithfully helped Noah during several hundred years of farming (5:29), up to 120 years of boat-building, more than a year of zoo-keeping (under divine guidance) on an enormous houseboat, then during a few hundred years of farming with a side-line in wine-making (Genesis 9). She also supported him in his preaching ministry (2 Peter 2:5).
Nobody without faith could have done what she did. How otherwise could she have backed her husband in building a large ocean-going vessel to escape a flood when she had never even seen rain (2:5-6)? Without faith how could she have raised three sons with hammering in her ears as a constant reminder of the coming doom? Without faith how could she have stepped on the Ark and left nearly everything behind? She must have believed that God could and would save them as He had promised. She was probably aware that her husband was destined for a special service to God when she married him. Lamech had named Noah from a word meaning 'rest' because God had revealed to him that this son would bring rest to God's people (5:29).
Crucial to Mrs. Noah's faith was the fact that her eyes had to be fixed on the world to come after the Flood. She lived and raised her family for more than half her life in a world she knew was doomed for destruction. She had to teach Shem, Ham and Japheth to live differently from their friends and to prepare themselves for this future world. She couldn't allow herself or her family to become too attached to the temporary trappings around them.
Close Family
She must have fostered a very close family life. They had to be close because they had to move further and further away from the beliefs and practices of the people around them. They also had to prepare for a time when there wouldn't be anyone else. During the long years of working and waiting she and Noah did have the support of believing members of their wider family circle.
There was paternal grandfather Lamech (not to be confused with the Lamech of Chapter 4) who died five years before the Flood and was great grandfather of Methuselah (the oldest man who ever lived—969 years) who survived till the year of the Flood. God had mercy on them in their old age and didn't put them through the ordeal. Nor did he put babies or children or adolescents through it; he timed the arrival of offspring to fit in with His sovereign plan. Four married couples went through it—the senior pair to manage and the other three to multiply.
There must have been a sense in which Mrs. Noah was free from the bondage of other people's opinions—free to obey God no matter what. She was the only believing female of her generation to board the Ark. There were only three in the next generation—the young women who became her son's wives. Were they brought to faith by her husband's preaching and her prayers? They were to have an absolutely crucial place in human history. From their descendants all the nations of the earth originated (Genesis 10 and 11).
A Woman of Courage
What courage and determination she must have possessed to sustain her lonely position; to face the destruction of everything she knew. What spiritual strength would have been necessary to endure the hostility and ridicule. Nothing but sheer steel could have weathered the cries of those drowning. Great grace must have been granted for her to be shut in with seven others and many thousands of animals for more than a year. Only uncommon courage could face what she first viewed from the mountains of Ararat where the Ark lodged: the totally transformed world with its fossil reminders of death and destruction.
This woman a nobody? She must have been one of the greatest women who ever lived. It matters not that her name wasn't recorded. She impacted the world's history for ever.
How did she do it? She did it by being a godly wife and mother. She was married to a 'savior', Noah, who was used of God to save believers from physical death in the Flood and therefore the world's population from extinction. Her oldest son, Shem, was the ancestor of the Jews. From this nation came Jesus, the incarnate Creator and Savior.
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marcilea
Laconia, NH
age: 65
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Wonderful portrayal Suzydoll ! Mrs Noah had to be all of that but I never thought about it before. Thank-You!
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suziq49221
Adrian, MI
age: 48
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Wow! That is impressive. Thank-You Lord for Mrs. Noah. Thank-you too for sharing.
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knightnyte2
Spring, TX
age: 55
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thanks... often overlooked, but women in the Bible are just totally awesome. MS Job did a pretty good job as well, don't you think? Job bragged about her...
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ks52
Santa Rosa, CA
age: 51
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Nicely done Suzy. Yes, we do tend to overlook the women's accomplishments. Thanks for reminding us.
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suzydoll
Cheneyville, LA
age: 62
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Thank You everyone for the nice reply s. If you truly liked this post please go check out my other post here "what if your worse sin was recorded in the bible" That is about another woman of the bible. Rahab "the prostitute" I was following Bro. Oleta's bible study on the book of Joshua and was so impressed by Rahab that I wanted to do a post on her also. I think you will enjoy her story too.
Suzy 
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