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

Wickedness in the world

1When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, 2the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. 3Then the Lord said, ‘My Spirit will not contend with#6:3 Or My spirit will not remain in humans for ever, for they are mortal#6:3 Or corrupt; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.’

4The Nephilim were on the earth in those days – and also afterwards – when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.

5The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. 6The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. 7So the Lord said, ‘I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created – and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground – for I regret that I have made them.’ 8But Noah found favour in the eyes of the Lord.

Noah and the flood

9This is the account of Noah and his family.

Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God. 10Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth.

11Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. 12God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13So God said to Noah, ‘I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. 14So make yourself an ark of cypress#6:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain. wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. 15This is how you are to build it: the ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.#6:15 That is, about 135 metres long, 23 metres wide and 14 metres high 16Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit#6:16 That is, about 45 centimetres high all around.#6:16 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. 17I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish. 18But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark – you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. 19You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. 21You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.’

22Noah did everything just as God commanded him.

The Holy Bible, New International Version® (Anglicised), NIV®

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Genesis 6

Genesis 6