Genesis chapter Six
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(Clicking on these links will move you down this web page) Genesis chapter six | |
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Chapter six- the moral corruption of the human race Genesis 6:1-2 Who were the sons of God? Genesis 6:3-4 God the Holy Spirit was grieved What is the lifespan of modern mankind? Giants in the world |
Genesis 6:5-7 Satanic activity before the great flood
Genesis 6:8-10 Noah Genesis 6:11-12 Violence, evil, and immorality Genesis 6:13-22 Noah's ark |
What was God's judgment on the world about?
The period of time before the great flood is called, in the English language, ante-diluvian. Many archaeologists have done ante-diluvian excavations that add proof to the historical record of Genesis. Jesus Christ mentioned the great flood as a historic fact
"And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose"
Who were the sons of God?
So, what was the problem? It appears that the descendants of Seth, the godly line, intermarried with the descendants of Cain, the ungodly line. When a child of God marries a child of the devil (an idol worshipper, a child molester, an unrepentant homosexual, a polygamist, etcettera) what do you think is going to happen? What happened to King Solomon of Israel when he married idol worshipping women? They turned him away from the Lord
Why does God place this statement in His word? What is He teaching us? Anyone who belongs to God should not marry anyone who belongs to Satan. Is there scripture on that? Yes.
The sons of God are not angels in this verse, however, they are angels in the bible book of Job
Are there other scriptures that prove that the sons of God are believers? Yes.
"And the Lord said, "My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh- yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years."
There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown"
God the Holy Spirit (My Spirit) was grieved:
One thing that really grieved the Lord before the flood was idol worship. How do we know there was idol worship then? Because God told us through Joshua,
"...and if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell- but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord"
Here are a few things that grieve God the Holy Spirit today:
"This I say then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God"
The Lifespan of Modern Mankind:
Giants in the world at that time:
How can we apply that spiritually to our lives? Well, let me ask you a question-
is there a giant in your life? Maybe you are facing the giant of divorce, the giant
of persecution, the giant of loneliness, the giant of unemployment, the giant of
deteriorating health, or some other giant. You feel like you have a big problem but
a small God. But that is just backwards. One needs to have the correct spiritual
perspective- a big God but a small problem. Once you have that perspective, you can look at your
problem as a challenge to overcome just like other challenges in the past that you
have overcome. Placing your faith in Christ and asking Him to help you will enable your
perspective of Him to grow. As He shows you His faithfulness and helps you, you will
learn that He loves you and your respect for Him will increase. Respect has to come
before love and soon you will love Him more and more. Eventually, you will see that
you have a big God- One who can move mountains on your behalf and those giants only
turn out to be small mole hills that can easily be conquered by you as you trust
Him more and more.
Mighty men that were of old, men of renown:
Children were born to these unions before the flood (and they bare children to them).
Many of these wives were converted and loved the Lord in those days. If you read the
bible book of Ruth, you learn that an unsaved woman from an idol worshipping nation
was brought to the Lord by her husband. Ruth loved the Lord but was soon a widow.
God had a different destiny for her. One of her descendants was King David of Israel
(a mighty man of renown). It was the same before the flood. There were some
important people who came from those unions in those days.
Godly leaders (men of renown) were not able to turn society around for
righteousness, even though they tried.
Why does God want us to know about what happened before the flood? Because history
repeats itself- as it was then, so it will be again
"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart. And the Lord said,
"I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth Me that I have made them"
Satan appeared to be winning:
In those days, Satan had frustrated the plan of God. No more would righteousness reign on the earth because he had influenced mankind towards evil and violence. It appeared that Satan had won and God had lost. So, God had to re-evaluate His plan and start over again. Maybe a new beginning is what was needed.
In other words, the world declared war against God (the people grieved God) so God unleashed His war machine against them and drowned them all. Likewise, sometime in our future, rebellious mankind will, once again, declare war against God. And God will, once again, unleash His war machine against them. Many of the Old Testament prophets foretold this event and the bible book of Revelation reveals some graphic details of this 7 year war. Guess Who wins?
Noah found favor with God:
Noah was warned "of things not seen as yet." In other words, what was it that had never happened before? Some folks think that no rain had yet fallen because the earth had been watered with a heavy mist and dew. Noah had never seen rain. But God would not warn him about that. Rather, God warned him about the great flood and the destruction of the earth, humanity, and of the land dwelling animals.
Where did Noah live?
God is not cruel or vindictive. He did not enjoy destroying humanity. Satan is like that but God is not- even though Satan tries to lie and falsely accuse God at every opportunity. God loves people and when He judges people it is because of His righteous justice that He does it. People have free will to make choices. People are not robots. Sin always has consequences. When you examine the life of Jesus Christ, you will observe what God is really like- a loving Father who heals and blesses those who come to Him. God warned those individuals in the days of Noah to repent and invited all who wanted to be saved to enter the ark of safety. God even left the door of the ark open 7 days after Noah and his family entered to receive all who would be saved. But the people of the world loved their sin and chose their sin above God and refused to be saved.
"And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person (in Noah's family), a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly"
Does it say anywhere else in the bible that Noah was a righteous man? Yes.
"The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth"
Violence, evil, and immorality:
God commands Noah to build an ark (a large boat) of wood:
In English and non-metric modern measurements the ark was 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. Noah was to construct an opening all the way around the boat, 18 inches below the roof.
What was gopherwood?
Noah's ark is thought to have had a 20,000 to 43,300 ton displacement and a 1,500,000 (one and a half million) square feet capacity. That means that it was very large. He took seven pairs of clean animals. Some of these were for sacrifices to God after the ark of God landed. And he took one pair of the rest of the animals- male and female. It appears that it may have taken him 120 years to successfully build the ark.
The Moral Corruption of the Human Race
Sin is called "missing the mark". God wanted people to act like God but Satan got them to act evil, instead. Spiritual rebellion became good and moral righteousness, honor, justice, and decency became bad. Violence was more than common. Mankind in general had missed the mark or target of being righteous. Mankind embraced spiritual rebellion against God.
Since God's spiritual wife were the righteous ones, then the devil's spiritual wife
were the evil ones. The flame of righteousness in the world was flickering out.
That was a wrong choice so mankind in general was heading towards God's judgment because that was not God's will.
(Matthew 24:38; Luke 17:27). When the present evil world system gets as bad as it was in the days of Noah, He will return in the rapture for His saints who love Him. Then His judgment will fall on this world again.
"That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes"
(Matthew 24:39 Living Bible).
(Genesis 6:1-2).
In my opinion the sons of God were not fallen angels or aliens from another planet in the universe as some claim. The sons of God were those individuals who were saved. They loved the Lord and were obedient in His service. Do you have a scripture on that? Yes. Adam is called the son of God in
Luke 3:38 so it is logical to conclude that his male children, who loved the Lord, were called the sons of God.
(1 Kings 11:1-4).
"Be you not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion has light with darkness?"
(2 Corinthians 6:14).
A true Christian, who loves the Lord, should marry another true Christian who loves the Lord. That way they can raise children who love the Lord. What if a Christian marries an unbeliever? Due to human depravity, that is always downward, it is easier for an unbeliever to pull a believer down than it is for a believer to pull an unbeliever upwards. A child of God married to a child of Satan is going to have real spiritual problems. Many of the children of those relationships are not going to serve the Lord. God is telling us that this is what happened in that society before the great flood and it is the main reason why the light of the gospel was nearly totally extinguished. However, Paul the Apostle talks about the exception to this rule in this spiritual unbalance in marriage in his letter to the Corinthians:
"For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband? or how knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife?"
(1 Corinthians 7:16).
(Job 1:6). Why? The general expression, sons of God, refers to the righteous ones who belong to God.
Why cannot they be angels here? Because of the context. Angels cannot have sexual intercourse. Why not? This is what the Lord Jesus Christ (the Creator of the angels) said:
"Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven"
(Mark 12:24-25).
In other words angels do not procreate by having sexual intercourse. Each one is independently created by God.
"...yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered, and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, ye are not My people, there it shall be said unto them, "ye are the sons of the living God..."
(Hosea 1:10).
"If I say, I will speak thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of Your sons"
(Psalm 73:15).
(Genesis 6:3-4).
God the Holy Spirit grieved over mankind in the days of Noah. What does that mean? It means that mankind made the Lord sad. The word "grieved" is a reference to God feeling grief or sorrow. In other words God was in distress over the moral corruption of mankind. God kept convicting people of their sins and it did no good. The people refused to repent, refused to accept God, and enjoyed their sinful lifestyles. This made God feel bad so He limited the lifespan of all mankind. The idea here is that the longer the people lived, the more time they had to devote to their evil pursuits instead of righteous living.
(Joshua 24:15).
"These six things doth the Lord hate- yea, seven are an abomination unto Him- a proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, an heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren"
(Proverbs 6:16-19).
In modern words, some of these statements might mean:
hands that kill the innocent (hands which take life without cause),
a heart that plots evil (devises wicked schemes or a heart full of evil designs),
feet that race to do wrong (feet which are quick in running after sin),
a false witness who pours out lies (who utters lies or breathes out untrue words),
he that soweth discord among brethren (one who lets loose violent acts among brothers).
(Galatians 5:16-21).
In modern terms, some of these words might mean:
adultery and sexual immorality (including sexual orgies), uncleanness (unclean things), lustfulness (wrong use of the senses including immodesty and pornography), idolatry (worship of images and luxury), sorcery (use of Satanic power), hatred (hates), strife (fighting), jealousies (desire for what another has), outbursts of anger (angry feelings), rivalries (attempts to get the better of others), heresies (false teachings and sects), envyings (envy), drunkenness (uncontrolled drinking and feasting).
God says He will limit the longevity of human life to around 120 years. How many people do you know today who are over 120 years old? I do not know any.
Moses, the author of Genesis, knew very well about large physical giants. Why?
Because during the wilderness wanderings of the Hebrews, the subordinates of Moses
gave him this report from their spying activities,
"...and there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants- and
we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight"
(Numbers 13:33). The Hebrew word for giant(s) in Genesis and Numbers is
naphiyl (nephilim). These were physical giants. Later, God had Moses use another
Hebrew word for physical giants. That was the word, rapha' (rephaim). Moses wrote,
"...that also was accounted a land of giants- giants dwelt therein in old time, and
the Ammonites call them Zamzummims"
(Deuteronomy 2:20). Later, King David of Israel and his men killed some giants
(2 Samuel 21:22). The Hebrew word, in that passage of scripture,
used for giant(s) is also rephaim. Any physical giants on this earth have long
since disappeared. Why does God want us to know about physical giants that He
created in the past? One answer to that question could be variety. God loves variety.
That is why He created so many birds and fish in different colors, shapes, and sizes.
The same with human beings. He created human beings in different colors and sizes.
Some are tall, some are short, some are fat, some are skinny, and more...
It appears that a godly man found it increasingly difficult to find a godly wife during
those early days of apostasy before the flood so the man had to marry a girl who
did not love the Lord (the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men).
It appears that the same thing was happening with some in the early church, so, as already
mentioned, Paul the Apostle taught about the exception to the rule in the spiritual
unbalance of marriage in his letter to the Corinthians,
"...for what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband? or how
knowest thou, O man, whether thou shalt save thy wife?"
(1 Corinthians 7:16). I am sure many a godly man was able to influence his wife to
love and serve the Lord in those days before the flood. But, let me warn you here.
This is the exception
to the rule, not the rule. The rule is that a believer is to marry a believer. If you
are a believer and want to marry an unbeliever, get the unbeliever converted to Christ
first before you get married. My maternal grandmother, a Luthern, married an
unbeliever. He made the choice to be a drunk, wife beater, and adulterer and made
her life a living hell. God's will is to have a happy and functional family and not a
dysfunctional one- so be careful.
(Ecclesiastes 3:15). Jesus appeared to answer that question for us,
"...for as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered
into the ark..."
(Matthew 24:38). It was business as usual right up to the end. Everything in society
appeared to be normal except the violence, evil, and immorality. They were
unconcerned about God or His judgment- God was far from their thoughts.
That society was a type for the society of Jesus' day- and for our society today.
We really need to be salt and light to our society today to influence it for Christ.
When the world of our future matches the world of our past, something is going to
happen- God will allow this world to be destroyed. But first, Christ will come in
the Rapture for His church and then His judgment will fall on this world. We will
study more about that when we get to the bible book of Revelation.
(Genesis 6:5-7).
What was Satan doing in those days? Satan tempted mankind to do evil and mankind enjoyed his sinful living so much that he refused to give it up in exchange for the holy living that God demanded. I can just imagine Satan standing in front of the Lord again, pointing his finger at Him (like he did in the case of Job) and boasting that he had complete ownership of every person on the earth. But I can imagine that God said: "not so, Satan. I have one man on earth who belongs to Me and that man is Noah." Remember, God always deals with a remnant- a remnant of quality rather than quantity. God's people may be outnumbered here on this earth but we are special and highly loved by Him. We are sons and daughters by adoption, we are ambassadors for Christ, we are a royal priesthood, and we are a unique and chosen people among the redeemed by the blood of Christ.
"But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. These are the generations of Noah- Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth"
(Genesis 6:8-10).
Who was Noah?
Noah was a righteous man who consistently followed God's will and enjoyed a close relationship with Him. He was a preacher of righteousness. He was in the godly family lineage of Seth. Methuselah was his grandfather. The name Noah means rest.
Noah was a man of faith:
"By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith"
(Hebrews 11:7).
According to Babylonian tradition, Noah lived at Fara on the Euphrates River (in what is present day Iraq). It is possible that he was the mayor of that city and may have gotten others to help him build the ark and store the necessary food. This city is about half way between old Babylon and Ur. The river has since changed its course and Fara is now about 25 kilometers (40 miles) east of the present day river.
(2 Peter 2:5). "...the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water"
(1 Peter 3:20).
"Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord God"
(Ezekiel 14:14). "...even though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live," saith the Lord God, "they would deliver neither son nor daughter; they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness"
(Ezekiel 14:20).
(Genesis 6:11-12).
Sounds like today, does it not?
"...God said unto Noah, the end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: the length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it. And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish My covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee. And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. And take thou unto thee of all food that is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them. Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he"
(Genesis 6:13-22).
Here we can see God's deliverance. He delivered Noah and his loved ones from destruction. He did this because of His great love for those who loved Him. God is still in the delivering business today. If you love Him, He may well deliver or protect you from some certain destruction.
Gopherwood is thought to have been either cedar or redwood- a wood that does not easily rot or decay. It was to be a wood of longevity because God did not want the ark to waterlog and sink to the bottom like many wood logs do today after they are water saturated. This action shows the keeping hand of God. God keeps us and watches over us for our safety and protection and He only wants the best for us.
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As of April 1, 2013