Genesis 7:21 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And all flesh died that moved on the earth, birds, livestock, beasts, all swarming creatures that swarm on the earth, and all mankind.

NIV: Every living thing that moved on land perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind.

NASB: So all creatures that moved on the earth perished: birds, livestock, animals, and every swarming thing that swarms upon the earth, and all mankind;

CSB: Every creature perished—those that crawl on the earth, birds, livestock, wildlife, and those that swarm on the earth, as well as all mankind.

NLT: All the living things on earth died — birds, domestic animals, wild animals, small animals that scurry along the ground, and all the people.

KJV: And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man:

NKJV: And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds and cattle and beasts and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man.

Up to this point in the story of the flood, the focus has stayed with the ark, and with the eventual survivors. Now it moves to clearly indicate what happened to everything left outside of the ark. In short, everything died. The verse lists some of those groups: birds, livestock, beasts, wild animals, and swarming creatures, along with every single human being. While some debate whether or not this was a local or global event, this verse makes the outcome of this event explicitly clear: not a single person survived this disaster, other than those aboard the ark.

The experience of those first moments while the waters rose must have been truly terrible. Those aboard the ark were finding out, in the critical moment, whether or not this vessel would support them. As promised, of course, it did (Genesis 7:17). An additional source of nerves would have been the ark's lack of control. This structure was not a "ship," and had no oars, sails, or rudders. It was simply a waterproof box. But, since it was designed by God (Genesis 6:14–16), and sealed by God (Genesis 7:16), it served its purpose well.

The end result of this deluge was final and absolute. Everything died, except for the remnant on the ark adrift on a single, vast ocean.

Genesis 7:11–24 describes the greatest disaster in world history: the flood. For forty days and nights, rain falls from above, and underground water rushes from below. As a result, floodwaters fully cover the surface of the land for another 110 days. The ark, built as God has instructed Noah, is able to float and survive the deluge. Every land-dwelling, air-breathing human and creature dies, except for those aboard the ark.

Genesis 7 tells the story of the actual flood itself. God again commends Noah for his righteousness. The animals of every kind come to the ark. God shuts Noah and his family and the animals in, and it begins to rain. Water pours from above and bursts forth from below with incredible intensity. This outpouring of water lasts for 40 days, and covers the surface of the earth for another 110 days. The ark floats, rises, moves across the surface of the water. Outside of it, every land-dwelling, air-breathing thing dies. God wipes it all out, including every human being other than Noah and his family.

In chapter 6, God saw the wickedness and violence of humanity and resolved to wipe it all out. He revealed that plan to Noah, and He commanded Noah to build the ark. In chapter 7, the ark is finished, the animals arrive, the door is shut, and the rain begins on a specific date in the history of the world. All life aboard the ark is saved; all land-dwelling, air-breathing life outside of it is ended. The waters burst from below the earth and pour from above with great intensity for 40 days and then covered the earth for another 110. In the following chapter, the ark will come to rest, and the remade earth will begin to dry out.

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.