1-4The number of people on earth continued to increase. When these people had daughters, the sons of God saw how beautiful they were. So they chose the women they wanted. They married them, and the women had their children.

Then the Lord said, “People are only human. I will not let my Spirit be troubled by them forever. I will let them live only 120 years.”#6:1-4 People … 120 years Or “The spirit from me will not live in people forever, because they are flesh. They will live only 120 years.” Or “My Spirit will not judge people forever, because they will all die in 120 years.”

During this time and also later, the Nephilim people lived in the land. They have been famous as powerful soldiers since ancient times.

5The Lord saw that the people on the earth were very evil. He saw that they thought only about evil things all the time. 6The Lord was sorry that he had made people on the earth. It made him very sad in his heart. 7So the Lord said, “I will destroy all the people I created on the earth. I will destroy every person and every animal and everything that crawls on the earth. And I will destroy all the birds in the air, because I am sorry that I have made them.”

8But Noah pleased the Lord.

Noah and the Great Flood

9This is the history of Noah’s family. He was a good man all his life, and he always followed God. 10Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

11-12When God looked at the earth, he saw that people had ruined it. Violence was everywhere, and it had ruined their life on earth.

13So God said to Noah, “Everyone has filled the earth with anger and violence. So I will destroy all living things. I will remove them from the earth. 14Use cypress wood#6:14 cypress wood In Hebrew, “gopher timbers.” It is uncertain what kind of wood this is. It might be a kind of tree or squared timbers. and build a boat for yourself. Make rooms in the boat and cover it with tar inside and out.

15“This is the size I want you to make the boat: 300 cubits#6:15 300 cubits 437' 1/8" (133 m) if this was the short cubit or 510' 1 13/16" (155.5 m) if it was the long cubit. long, 50 cubits#6:15 50 cubits 72' 10" (22.2 m) if this was the short cubit or 85' 5/16" (25.92 m) if it was the long cubit. wide, and 30 cubits#6:15 30 cubits 43' 8 7/16" (13.3 m) if this was the short cubit or 51' 3/16" (15.55 m) if it was the long cubit. high. 16Make a window for the boat about 1 cubit#6:16 1 cubit 17 1/2" (44.4 cm) if this was the short cubit or 20 5/8" (51.83 cm) if it was the long cubit. below the roof.#6:16 Make a window … below the roof Or “Make an opening for the boat about 18 inches tall.” Put a door in the side of the boat. Make three floors in the boat: a top deck, a middle deck, and a lower deck.

17“Understand what I am telling you. I will bring a great flood of water on the earth. I will destroy all living things that live under heaven. Everything on the earth will die. 18I will make a special agreement with you. You, your wife, your sons, and their wives will all go into the boat. 19Also, you will take two of every living thing on the earth with you into the boat. Take a male and female of every kind of animal so that they might survive with you. 20Two of every kind of bird, animal, and creeping thing will come to you so that you might keep them alive. 21Also bring every kind of food into the boat, for you and for the animals.”

22Noah did everything God commanded him.

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Genesis 6

1And after that men began to be multiplied upon the earth, and daughters were born to them.

2The sons of God seeing the daughters of men, that they were fair, took themselves wives of all which they chose.

3And God said: My spirit shall not remain in man for ever, because he is flesh; and his days shall be a hundred and twenty years.

4Now giants were upon the earth in those days. For after the sons of God went in to the daughters of men, and they brought forth children, these are the mighty men of old, men of renown.

5And God seeing that the wickedness of men was great on the earth, and that all the thought of their heart was bent upon evil at all times,

6It repented him that he had made man on the earth. And being touched inwardly with sorrow of heart,

7He said: I will destroy man, whom I have created, from the face of the earth, from man even to beasts, from the creeping thing even to the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.

8But Noe found grace before the Lord.

9These are the generations of Noe. Noe was a just and perfect man in his generations; he walked with God.

10And he begot three sons, Sem, Cham, and Japheth.

11And the earth was corrupted before God, and was filled with iniquity.

12And when God had seen that the earth was corrupted (for all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth),

13He said to Noe: The end of all flesh is come before me; the earth is filled with iniquity through them; and I will destroy them with the earth.

14Make thee an ark of timber planks: thou shalt make little rooms in the ark, and thou shalt pitch it within and without.

15And thus shalt thou make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits; the breadth of it fifty cubits; and the height of it thirty cubits.

16Thou shalt make a window in the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish the top of it; and the door of the ark thou shalt set in the side; with lower, middle chambers, and third stories shalt thou make it.

17Behold, I will bring the waters of a great flood upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, under heaven. All things that are in the earth shall be consumed.

18And I will establish my covenant with thee, and thou shalt enter into the ark; thou and thy sons, and thy wife, and the wives of thy sons with thee.

19And of every living creature of all flesh, thou shalt bring two of each sort into the ark, that they may live with thee: of the male sex, and the female.

20Of fowls according to their kind, and of beasts in their kind, and of every thing that creepeth on earth according to its kind; two of every sort shall go in with thee, that they may live.

21Thou shalt take unto thee of all food that may be eaten, and thou shalt lay it up with thee: and it shall be food for thee and them.

22And Noe did all things which God commanded him.

An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.

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Genesis 6

Genesis 6