Genesis 6 - Printer Friendly

What does Genesis 6 mean?

Chapter Commentary:

Just a few chapters ago, God looked at all He had made on the earth and called it good (Genesis 1:31). Several hundred years after Adam and Eve walked out of Eden, God sees a very different world. Human sinfulness has made it far from good. This trend towards sin is certainly not out of forgetfulness. Adam and his children all live hundreds of years, maintaining a long line of eyewitnesses to God's work on earth. And yet, many terrible things begin to happen in the world of man.

For one thing, the members of a mysterious group described as the "sons of God" begin to take human wives and reproduce. Their offspring became heroic and famous and, apparently, quite powerful on the earth. There is frequent debate over the nature of these men. Some speculate that they were humans of large physical build. Others suggest these were the offspring of humans and demons. Or that they were aliens. While the number of possible interpretations is almost infinite, the Bible devotes very little time to this particular idea. Rather, it seems to be a footnote in the story of the flood.

Powerful humans unchecked in their sinfulness always produce death, destruction, and wickedness. Consider how much damage modern dictators have done with only 30-40 years of active life at their disposal. In this chapter, God points out that every inclination of the thoughts of human beings is only evil all the time (Genesis 6:5). He decides to reduce human lifespans to just 120 years (Genesis 6:3). Much as with confusing languages at the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11), this seems to be God's way of limiting the evil man can inflict.

An alternate interpretation of this passage is that God will wipe out all land-dwelling life on the planet in 120 years. However one interprets this remark, it certainly comes to pass.

Very few times in Scripture is God said to experience "regret." The state of mankind prior to the flood produces this emotion in their Creator. This comment has to be understood in careful context, and with a sense of the original Hebrew language. What God experiences here is not a feeling of error, but a sense of anguish. Much like a parent who feels pained when disciplining a child, but has no doubt that it is the right decision, so too can God feel grief over man's sin without concluding that He was wrong to create humans. Some translations use phrases such as "grieved," or even "repented," all carrying the same idea of sorrow (Genesis 6:6–7).

However, the Bible does not indicate that God feels guilt, or doubts about His creation. Rather, this verse expresses God's anguish at seeing the wickedness and violence in the world of men.

In order to preserve His creation, God declares that He will exercise His authority as the Creator and wipe out humanity for its sinfulness and violence, along with the birds, insects, and other animals (Genesis 6:7, 13, 17). In this chapter, as with those that follow, there is often debate over the extent of this flood. Some see this as a truly global event, others as a "local" event which only destroyed all of man, not all of the planet. There are points to be made on both sides, but God's intent—and the effect—is beyond debate: the destruction of the entire human race, with exception of one family.

That exception is Noah. God points out that Noah is a righteous and blameless man who walks faithfully with the Creator. God declares His intentions to Noah: He will destroy all land-dwelling life with a great flood. However, He will not wipe out His creation entirely. He will spare Noah and Noah's family. In addition, He will spare a male and female pair of every kind of bird, "creeping thing," and animal (Genesis 6:19–21).

The means for this salvation are unique. God tells Noah to build a huge box, an "ark." It will be some 450 feet (137 meters) long, almost 5 stories tall, and seaworthy (Genesis 6:14–16). Once it is constructed, Noah and family will board the ark and be saved from the coming flood. In addition, Noah will prepare food for his family and all the pairs of animals who will come to ark, at God's direction, to be saved.

The chapter ends with an amazing statement: Noah did everything, just as God commanded. Faithful Noah would be saved and be the means by which God would save humanity and start again. And, the story of the ark and flood will serve as powerful foreshadowing of the ministry of Jesus Christ, many thousands of years later.

Genesis 6:1–8 introduces us to two mysterious groups: the ''sons of God'' and the Nephilim. Provoked by the wickedness of humanity and, perhaps, by the power of these two groups, God declares that He will reduce human lifespans to 120 years. Alternatively, this same remark might refer to God's plan to wipe out all of humanity in 120 years. In either case, this prediction is fulfilled. God will exercise His authority as Creator and execute justice by ending the world as it was. Human civilization will be forced to start again, through one man: Noah.

Genesis 6:9-22 begins another new section in Genesis called the ''generations of Noah.'' Because of humanity's power and wickedness, the earth had become filled with violence and sinfulness. By contrast, Noah was a righteous, blameless man who walked with God. God chooses to declare to Noah His plan to end all land-dwelling life on earth, but also to save Noah and his family and two of every animal. Noah obeys God's command to build the ark that would preserve the human race from total destruction in the flood.

Chapter Summary:

God sees. In the first chapter of Genesis, God saw that all He had made was good. Now, many generations after sin entered the world, God sees that all man has made is wickedness and evil. Human beings have used their power for violence and destruction. God declares His plan to wipe out all land-dwelling life on the face of the earth. He will however, preserve humanity and animal life for a new beginning through the one righteous man, Noah, and a huge life-giving structure called an ark.

Chapter Context:

The previous chapter traced the generations from Adam through his son Seth and all of the way to Noah. This chapter reveals that Noah will be the man through whom God will preserve humanity for a new beginning after wiping out all life on the face of the earth. God tells Noah to build an enormous structure, an ark, and prepare to welcome representatives of all of the animals on earth. Noah does exactly that, setting the stage for the cataclysmic judgment of God to come in chapter 7.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 11/22/2024 8:58:05 PM