Genesis 6

¹ When men had begun to be plentiful on the earth, and daughters had been born to them,

² the sons of God, looking at the daughters of men, saw they were pleasing, so they married as many as they chose.

³ Yahweh said, ‘My spirit must not for ever be disgraced in man, for he is but flesh; his life shall last no more than a hundred and twenty years’.

⁴ The Nephilim were on the earth at that time (and even afterwards) when the sons of God resorted to the daughters of man, and had children by them. These are the heroes of days gone by, the famous men.

⁵ Yahweh saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that the thoughts in his heart fashioned nothing but wickedness all day long.

⁶ Yahweh regretted having made man on the earth, and his heart grieved.

⁷ ‘I will rid the earth’s face of man, my own creation,’ Yahweh said ‘and of animals also, reptiles too, and the birds of heaven; for I regret having made them.’

⁸ But Noah had found favour with Yahweh. This is the story of Noah:

⁹ Noah was a good man, a man of integrity among his contemporaries, and he walked with God.

¹⁰ Noah became the father of three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth.

¹¹ The earth grew corrupt in God’s sight, and filled with violence.

¹² God contemplated the earth: it was corrupt, for corrupt were the ways of all flesh on the earth.

¹³ God said to Noah, ‘The end has come for all things of flesh; I have decided this, because the earth is full of violence of man’s making, and I will efface them from the earth.

¹⁴ Make yourself an ark out of resinous wood. Make it with reeds and line it with pitch inside and out.

¹⁵ This is how to make it: the length of the ark is to be three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.

¹⁶ Make a roof for the ark… put the door of the ark high up in the side, and make a first, second and third deck.

¹⁷ For my part I mean to bring a flood, and send the waters over the earth, to destroy all flesh on it, every living creature under heaven; everything on earth shall perish.

¹⁸ But I will establish my Covenant with you, and you must go on board the ark, yourself, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives along with you.

¹⁹ From all living creatures, from all flesh, you must take two of each kind aboard the ark, to save their lives with yours; they must be a male and a female.

²⁰ Of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of reptile on the ground, two must go with you so that their lives may be saved.

²¹ For your part provide yourself with eatables of all kinds, and lay in a store of them, to serve as food for yourself and them.’

²² Noah did this; he did all that God had ordered him.