The Wickedness of Man
1 When men began to multiply on the surface of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they took any that they wanted for themselves as wives.
3 The Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with man forever because he also is flesh, so his days will be 120 years.”
4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also after that, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and had children with them. Those were the mighty men of old who were men of renown.
5 The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of man’s heart was continually only evil. 6 The Lord was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved his heart.
7 The Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the surface of the earth—man, along with animals, creeping things, and birds of the sky—for I am sorry that I have made them.”
Noah Walked with God
8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.
9 This is the history of the generations of Noah: Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time. Noah walked with God.
10 Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 11 The earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 God saw the earth, and saw that it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.
God Spares Noah: The Ark
13 God said to Noah, “I will bring an end to all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I will destroy them and the earth. 14 Make a ship of gopher wood. You shall make rooms in the ship and shall seal it inside and outside with pitch. 15 This is how you shall make it. The length of the ship shall be 450 feet, its width 75 feet, and its height 45 feet. 16 You shall make a roof for the ship, and you shall leave an opening eighteen inches from the top. You shall set the door of the ship on its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third levels. 17 I, yes I, will bring the floodwaters on this earth, to destroy all flesh having the breath of life from under the sky. Everything on the earth will die.
18 But I will establish my covenant with you. You shall come into the ship, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.
19 Of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ship, to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female.
20 Of the birds after their kind, of the livestock after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you, to keep them alive.
21 Take with you all of the food that is eaten and gather it to yourself, and it will be for food for you, and for them.” 22 Thus Noah did. He did all that God commanded him.