6
Chapter 6
1People began to grow in number all over the earth. They gave birth to daughters. 2The sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful. They chose for themselves any of them that they wanted to become their wives. #6:2 We do not know who ‘the sons of God’ were. They may have been men on the earth who trusted God. They may have been men who belonged to God in heaven, like angels. The ‘daughters of men’ were women who lived on the earth.
3The Lord said, ‘My Spirit will not give life to humans for ever. One day they will die. I will not let them live for more than 120 years. Then they will die.’
4The Nephilites lived on the earth at that time, and for some time after that. During that time, the sons of God were having sex with the daughters of men, who gave birth to their children. The Nephilites were famous great men and fighters.
5The Lord saw that men and women on the earth had become very bad. They thought only of evil things all the time. 6The Lord was sorry that he had made humans and put them on the earth. He became very upset. 7So the Lord said, ‘I made humans, but now I will destroy them. I will completely take them off the earth. As well as human people, I will also destroy the animals, the living things that move on the ground, and the birds. I am sorry that I made them.’
8But as for Noah, the Lord was happy about him. #6:8 Men and women turned against God. God felt very sad. Noah was different from the other people on the earth at that time. God was happy with him. The next verses tell us why God was happy about Noah.
God saves Noah
9This is the report about Noah and his family.
Noah was a good man. He was the only person at that time who lived in a completely right way. He stayed near to God in his life. 10Noah became the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth.
11God saw that everything on the earth had become spoiled. Everywhere, people were attacking each other. 12God saw how much the earth had become spoiled. Everyone was doing bad things. 13God said to Noah, ‘I will destroy everyone. That is what I have decided to do. Everywhere on the earth, people are attacking each other. Now I will destroy the people and also the earth. 14So make a ship for yourself. Use wood from cypress trees to make it.#6:14 Cypress trees are trees with hard wood. The ship must have rooms in it. Cover the inside and the outside of the ship with tar. #6:14 Tar stops water coming into the ship.
15This is how you will build the ship: It must be 150 metres long, 25 metres wide and 15 metres high.
16Make a roof for the ship. Leave a space 45 centimetres high all round under the roof. Put a door in the side of the ship. Inside the ship, make three floors above each other.
17I will cover the earth with deep water. I will destroy all living things, wherever they live. Everything that breathes will die. 18But I will make a covenant with you, Noah. You will go into the ship. You will take your wife with you, and also your three sons and their wives. 19You must also take two of every different kind of animal into the ship. One will be male and the other will be female. Then they will stay alive with you. 20Bring two of every different kind of bird, two of every different animal and two of every different living thing that moves along the ground. All these will come to you. You will take care of them so that they will stay alive. 21You must also take every different kind of food. That will be food for you and food for the animals.’
22Noah obeyed God. He did everything that God had told him to do.