Genesis 6:1 to Genesis 9:29. The Deluge 1 4. _The sons of God and the daughters of men_ This short strange passage serves as a kind of Preface to the Narrative of the Deluge. There is nothing to be found quite like it elsewhere in the O.T. It obviously is not a continuation of the previous chapter;... [ Continue Reading ]
_men_ Heb. _ha-adam_, i.e. "the man." It is not the proper name "Adam"; nor is it "the man" as an individual as in Genesis 3:24; Genesis 4:1: but "the man" collectively, in the sense of "the human race," LXX οἱ ἄνθρωποι. This use of the word is different from anything in the Paradise Narrative: see... [ Continue Reading ]
_that the sons of God_, &c. This is one of the most disputed passages in the book. But the difficulty, in a great measure, disappears, if it is frankly recognized, that the verse must be allowed to have its literal meaning. According to the legend which it preserves, intermarriages took place betwee... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the lord said_ It is not evident in this verse, why the Lord should pass a sentence of condemnation upon man. In the two preceding verses, it is not man, but "the sons of God," whose depravity has been described. Perhaps, however, the object of the words is, in view of the mixed marriages, to i... [ Continue Reading ]
_The Nephilim_ i.e. _giants_. It is natural to refer to Numbers 13:33, "And there we saw the Nephilim (Or, _giants_), the sons of Anak, which come of the Nephilim; and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight." The tradition that the Nephilim existed at the time of the... [ Continue Reading ]
_of man_ Literally, "the man," _ha-adam_, used generically, as in Genesis 6:1. "The unity of the race is a consistent doctrine of the O.T. It was האדם, _man_, when created as a single individual. It spread over the earth, and was still האדם, _man_. It was כלבשר, -alt flesh," that had corrupted its... [ Continue Reading ]
Introduction to the story of the Flood from J: Jehovah sees the sinfulness of man and resolves to annihilate the race. Genesis 6:5 to Genesis 9:17. The Flood. (J and P.) Here follows the Hebrew narrative of the Flood. The Flood is the one great event in the history of the world, which in the Hebre... [ Continue Reading ]
_And it repented the Lord … grieved him at his heart_ This is a strong instance of what is called anthropomorphism, an expression descriptive of human emotion or action ascribed to Jehovah (e.g. Genesis 3:8; Genesis 7:16; Genesis 8:21). Such expressions have often given rise to superficial criticism... [ Continue Reading ]
_destroy_ R.V. marg. Heb. _blot out_. LXX ἀπαλείψω, Lat. _delebo_. A characteristic word in J, cf. Genesis 7:4; Genesis 7:23; and different from the word for "destroy" in Genesis 6:13. (LXX καταφθείρω, Lat. _disperdam_.) _both man, and beast_, &c. No reference is here made to any preservation of li... [ Continue Reading ]
_But Noah_ The sudden introduction of Noah's name implies that there had been some previous account, in J, describing the contrast of Noah's virtue with the sinfulness of his contemporaries. In the composite narrative of Genesis many features have necessarily disappeared in the process of combining... [ Continue Reading ]
_These are the generations_, &c. The heading, or superscription of a new section in the narrative of P; cf. Genesis 2:4; Genesis 5:1. _a righteous man_ The word "righteous" (_ṣaddiq_), which occupies such an important place in Biblical Theology, occurs here for the first time. The sense of "rectitud... [ Continue Reading ]
The introduction to the Story of the Flood in P. Observe that, whereas J begins with the corruption of the human race, and closes with the mention of Noah, P begins with the mention of Noah and continues with the corruption of the human race.... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Noah begat_ See Genesis 5:32.... [ Continue Reading ]
_corrupt_ The full strength of the word would rather be given by "corrupted." LXX ἐφθάρη, Lat. _corrupta est_, "was marred, ruined." "Before God," i.e. according to the standard of His judgement. "God" is here _ha-Elohim_, i.e. _the_God, _the_Elohim, absolutely. _violence_ The particular form of wi... [ Continue Reading ]
_all flesh_ Used here for "all the human race." The phrase, which is found 13 times in the Story of the Flood, is a characteristic of P. _had corrupted his way_ This expression seems to be used with the object of shewing that man was a free agent, and that his corruption was not the result of blind... [ Continue Reading ]
Noah is commanded to build the Ark 13. _is come before me_ viz. mentally. The intention to destroy all flesh has entered the mind of God.... [ Continue Reading ]
_an ark_ The word here used, _têbâh_, is only found in this passage and in Exodus 2:3-5. It is of foreign origin; according to some, an Egyptian word; according to others, derived from the Assyrian. LXX κιβωτός, Lat. _arca_, which our translators adopted and transliterated. The "ark" of the Covenant... [ Continue Reading ]
The dimensions of the ark, as here given, are somewhat smaller than in the Assyrian account. Assuming that a cubit measured 1½ feet, the ark was 450 ft. long, 75 ft. broad, and 45 ft. high. It will be noticed that the breadth is exactly one-sixth, and the height exactly one-tenth, of the length. In... [ Continue Reading ]
_Alight_ Perhaps better than _a roof_. The word so rendered (_ṣôhar_) only occurs here in the singular: in the dual it is the regular Heb. word for "noonday." Accepting the rendering which connects it with "light," we should probably be right in conjecturing that it means here "a window," or "openin... [ Continue Reading ]
_And I, behold, I_ The emphasis on the 1st person seems to bring out the thought of the terrible necessity of this act of universal destruction brought upon the world by its Creator. _the flood_ Heb. _mabbûl_, a word used only of the Deluge in this passage (6 9) and in Psalms 29:10, where "the floo... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will establish my covenant_ We have here the first mention of a covenant relation between God and man. In the writing of P great stress is laid upon the covenant with Noah, here and in Genesis 9:8-17, and with the patriarchs, e.g. in Genesis 17:2-14. The word "covenant" (_b'rîth_, LXX διαθήκη, La... [ Continue Reading ]
_two of every sort_ Observe that here one pair of every kind of living creature is to be brought into the ark. "Male and female," as in Genesis 1:27 (P). A different phrase is used in Genesis 7:2 (J), where see note.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Of the fowl_, &c. The order in which the animals are here mentioned is deserving of notice; first the fowls, then the cattle, and finally the creeping things. What is the reason of this order? Probably the order of the account of the Creation in chap. 1 is followed, where the creation of the fowls... [ Continue Reading ]
_of all food that is eaten_ Presumably vegetables, cereals, and fruit. Cf. Genesis 1:29.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thus did Noah_ Lit. "and Noah did (it)." The words of this verse are characteristic of the style of P. We find the same formula in Exodus 7:6; Exodus 12:28; Exodus 12:50; Exodus 39:32; Exodus 39:43; Exodus 40:16, all belonging to P.... [ Continue Reading ]