Why I Love Rainbows 1985

In a word:
Hope.

In the story of Noah and the flood
God destroys all He has made
But for one wooden boat
For the evil that man opened upon the land
Grieved Him at His heart
And He regretted creation.

God loved Noah
And Noah walked with God
With a stout heart.

So God gave Noah His plan
And Noah and his loved ones
And every kind of animal
And every kind of fodder
Were saved in an ark.

And when He had covered the earth with its baptism
And buried the dead in the weight of the deep
God’s grief was honored
And He was comforted by the ark.

“See,” He comforted Noah,
“It is done.  It will never happen again.”

The baptism of the flood
Like the covenant of circumcision between God and Abraham
Happens only once.
“Here now is my promise,” the Lord said.

“When you see my bow in the sky,
You will remember my promise”


The rainbow stands in shimmering glory
Testifying of His great love for me
The promise between us
Of life saved in an ark
Me
My loved ones
The animals
The fodder.

It will be fire next time
For one baptizes with water to repentance, bringing comfort
And the next comes with fire and the Holy Spirit, to reveal silver and gold.
A wooden boat could not sustain us from the fire.

As Noah climbed into the wooden boat
So shall we clamber in to Thee
A right safe ark
And a great comfort to us who so love rainbows

Noah embarked, and God brought him to rest on the mountaintop.

Take comfort, then, my soul,
For you are destined to port
In Jerusalem of Gold.