be perfectly good like God. However, mankind did not remain in God's grace. Adam turned against God and distrusted his Word, and humans became wicked and sinful.





In the second prophecy, we hear the story of the flood, when God showed us his justice and vengeance (pages 18-21). Only Noah and his family were found to be just. God commanded Noah to build an ark, on which he, his family, and all of the animals God created were spared from God's vengeance. This ark represents the Church, through which we can receive sanctifying grace and be spared from the punishment of hell.





In the line of Noah, a just man, God willed to bring forth a Savior. With Noah's descendant, Abraham, God made a covenant that his descendants would bemore numerous than the stars in the sky (Genesis 15:5). Abraham had two sons: Ishmael, the son of the servant-girl, and Isaac, the son of his barren wife Sarah. Thus, Isaac is a precursor of Jesus, born of the Virgin Mary.





In the third prophecy, Abraham is commanded by God to slaughter his beloved son, Isaac, as an offering to God (pages 22-23). Abraham, a righteous man, obeys God's word, and takes Isaac to the mountain to sacrifice him. However, an angel stops him and spares Isaac. This event foreshadows the Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord, so it has an important place at the Easter Vigil. Isaac's son, Jacob, was the father of the twelve tribes of Israel, to whom God revealed his Covenant.





In the fourth prophecy, God