The rainbow, a symbol of God’s covenant with humanity and also a binding reference to His law, is used today as a decoration of diversity and justified by “exclusive love.”
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The rainbow does not occur often
The rainbow doesn’t appear very often in the Bible, but when it is mentioned, it is in connection with the covenant between God and man, and with a clear description of who or what the rainbow mentioned in a Bible passage is connected to.
The first rainbow appeared only to a few people. They were Noah, his wife, his sons, and their wives. After the Flood, only these eight remained of all humanity. God made an (eternal) covenant with Noah and sealed it with the previously unseen rainbow. Genesis 9:11-13:
“And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.“
A “modified” world
Before the Flood, climatic conditions were clearly completely different, as two statements indicate. After the Flood, God also announced that some things would change compared to before, Genesis 8:22:
“From now on, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall not cease, as long as the earth endures.”
Regarding the creation phase, Scripture mentions how the land and plants came into contact with water, Genesis 2:5-6:
“And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.“
Evidence of Noah’s iron faith
The absence of rain, something we consider completely normal, also illustrates that Noah’s faith in God and his trust in Him were unshakable. Building a huge ship (the ark) on dry land, with rain previously unknown—where would the abundant water come from? The blasphemies of other people during the 120-year construction phase most likely raised this question as well. Well, the Bible provides an answer to this as well, Genesis 7:11-12:
“In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.“
Erupting springs from the great depths. Thus, immense fountains of water must have shot upwards. Under enormous pressure, correspondingly hot, and explosively spread through the atmosphere. This also included earth, dirt, and debris. Hot water, rapidly cooled, especially when the pressure was released, caused literally torrential rainfall. That there must be enormous water reserves deep within the Earth is now beyond doubt. The impetus for this came from the discovery of diamonds, which can only form at depths of around 120 km and above, and these diamonds had water inclusions.
After the Flood, conditions were extremely different. This also included continental shifts due to the massive water eruptions. If God emphasized that “from now on” there would be frost and heat, summer and winter, then things were correspondingly different before the Flood. It is also possible that massive plate shifts led to a new distribution of land masses, a new center of gravity, and subsequently a tilting of the Earth’s axis. Well, speculative, but conceivable.
The first covenant after the Flood
God’s covenant with Noah was the first covenant after the Flood. It was never revoked, not even by the covenant with Abraham, the covenant with Moses, or the “New Covenant” introduced by Jesus Christ (Info). The rainbow, from the time of possible rainfall, is the symbol of this covenant that remains valid to this day.
If anyone has broken God’s covenant, it has always been God’s people. Had they not been broken one after the other, there would never have been a reason for the ever-faithful Lord to renew this covenant. After all, people were the “covenant breakers,” and God was under no obligation. God’s love and mercy were always the driving forces behind making a new covenant.
Rainbow over the throne of God
The next place in the Bible where the rainbow is mentioned is “very late”, in Revelation 4:3:
“And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.”
In this scene, John is led in spirit (vision) into the Heavenly King’s Hall and receives insights. Around this throne are 24 more thrones, on which the 24 elders sit, each dressed in white robes and wearing a golden crown. Verse 5 clearly reveals whose throne, above which the rainbow shines, is actually around:
“And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.“
It is God’s throne. And when God speaks, there is a mighty “rumble,” like lightning and thunder. An analogy that appears repeatedly in the Bible. Moses experienced it on Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:16), and Elihu, a friend of Job, also reported it (Job 37:4). Voices, lightning, and thunder are also what the condemned people hear during the last of the seven plagues, Revelation 16:18:
“And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.“
The rainbow over the throne of God is therefore a sure sign that God will continue to hold fast to His covenant.
Rainbow over Jesus Christ
The third rainbow mentioned is related to an “angel” in Revelation 10:1:
“And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:“
In addition to the rainbow, two other descriptions are significant here: the cloud and the feet like pillars of fire. These were the guides of the people of Israel during their wanderings in the desert. The cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, Exodus 13:21:
“And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night:“
Just as the rainbow is a sign from God, so too are the cloud and the pillar of fire inseparably connected with the Lord. This “angel” is none other than Jesus Christ. Some may gasp at this point, but this is entirely unnecessary. “Angel” does not automatically imply a winged heavenly being serving God. Rather, it is primarily, as the Greek word “angelos” suggests, a messenger.
Only in context is it clear whether this is a heavenly, created being, or a representation of messengers of a church (Revelation 2 and 3), or Jesus Christ, who is also described as the messenger of the Book of Revelation (Revelation 1:1-2). More on the topic of “Angels” – here.
Breaking the covenant by breaking the law
The rainbow, God’s covenant, God’s throne, and above the head of Jesus Christ, the King of kings.
A king without law? There never was, there isn’t, and there never will be. When the people of Israel broke the covenant with God, it always involved the (permanent) transgression of God’s law. The covenant was broken by disregarding God’s commandment.
Isaiah 24:5:
“The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.”
Jeremiah 11:10:
“They are turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, which refused to hear my words; and they went after other gods to serve them: the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant which I made with their fathers.“
God unequivocally linked the covenant with Moses with His law, Deuteronomy 4:13:
“And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.“
Rainbow – Covenant – Law
The logical conclusion, therefore, is that the rainbow is the sign of God’s covenant and thus also contains His eternal law. And this is where humanity is in a major crisis, and always has been. It remains the same today. Therefore, the rainbow is not a “diversity-all-love-God-only-forgives” sign, but rather His sign for the “contract clause” with humanity, which contains the Ten Commandments written in stone.
Galatians 6:7:
“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.“
Today, there is a general consensus that God’s commandments are invalid, only partially valid, only applied to ancient Israel, that one no longer needs to observe the laws, etc. (Info). All of this will fall terribly heavily on the feet of careless people.
For this reason, for the “provisional conclusion of earthly affairs,” people will also be presented with the Law of God, which the people of Israel always carried in the Ark of the Covenant, directly before their eyes (Revelation 11:19):
“And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.“
And again, lightning, voices and thunder make it clear who is making His voice heard here.
Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Revelation 14:12
Bible verses from King James Version (1611)
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