Genesis 6:1-22

6:1-4 | This passage is widely debated and studied and is meant for us to continue to learn and grow from God’s Word. The Hebrew word used in this passage is Nephilim. This is a word associated with men of great stature (perhaps giants), those who were greatly feared, and those who were well known. One interpretation is that these were fallen angels who took daughters of men (human women) as wives. (Their offspring would have created giants.) Another interpretation of this passage is that men in Seth’s line took wives from the line of Cain.

Regardless of the position one takes on understanding these particular verses, it is certainly a warning from God as to what happens when sin is allowed to rule over us. It is a reminder to make sure we raise up godly generations who call upon the name of the Lord and have boldness and courage to stand for God and His Word without compromise.

6:3 | 120 years most likely refers to the amount of time left before the flood. Noah did not take 120 years to build the ark, but it was 120 years until he stepped onto the ark with his family. Noah had Japeth when he was 500 years old. Shem was 100 years old two years after the flood (Gen. 11:10). Ham was the youngest and also on the ark. All sons helped him build it after they were married. So construction of the ark likely took somewhere between 55 and 75 years.

Common Question: Why doesn’t 120 years likely refer to the new life-span of man? Many still lived well beyond 120 years until the time of Moses. That would mean God was wrong in that declaration. Lifespans became shorter as genes became more unpure as well as many other reasons.

6:6 | That God was grieved in His heart by man’s wickedness shows that He has emotions (1 Sam. 15:11; 2 Sam. 24:16; Isa. 63:10; Eph. 4:10). He sorrows over the sin of His children in the way a human parent grieves over a rebellious or estranged son or daughter.

6:9 | In the OT, to be just means to be genuine or sincere. In the NT, it means to be right with God. In both cases, Noah qualified.

6:17 | When God approached Noah to build an ark because floodwaters would come on the earth, the earth had received only moisture from the ground, never any rain (Gen. 2:5-6). So Noah’s obedience was truly “by faith” (Heb. 11:7). He could not anticipate what was coming based on past experience; still, he believed God, and that was enough reason for him to build.

6:18 | This is the first mention of a covenant. In it, God promises, to redeem a people for Himself (9:9-17).

6:22 | God gave Noah exact proportions, and Noah did all that God commanded him. People want to pick and choose what to believe, but Noah believed and obeyed everything God said - and that obedience saved him and his family as well as all the generations after him. Present obedience to the whole truth of God’s Word can impact future generations as well.