Corruption and the Call of Noah: Genesis 6 Bible Study Companion

  Corruption and the Call of Noah: Genesis 6

Welcome readers to The Daily Manna! Here we read God's Word as our daily manna, allowing it to nourish and transform us into the image of Christ.

Today’s study brings us to Genesis Chapter 6, where we witness how deeply sin has spread through the world after Adam and Eve — and how one man through the lineage of Seth, Noah, found favor in the eyes of God.

I do want to remind you that these posts are meant to be a helping companion not a substitute for reading your Bible. This works best if you read the section before reading any further. 

Summary of Genesis 6

Verses 1–4: Wickedness fills the earth — the sons of God take wives from the daughters of men.

Verses 5–8: God sees that every thought of man is evil, and decides to cleanse the world.

Verses 9–22: Noah is righteous and blameless; God instructs him to build the ark.

Key Themes and Meaning

The Corruption of Humanity

Sin didn’t stop with Cain, it spread like a disease through generations. Humanity became violent and morally corrupt.

We see at the very beginning of chapter 6 that human beings began to increase on earth and daughters were born. Now of course daughters have been born since the beginning. The Bible just mentions it now because it's relevant to the story. 

It says in Genesis 6:2 that sons of God saw that daughters of humans were beautiful. And they married any they chose, this of course was how the nephilim were made later in verse 4. 

“The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become… and His heart was deeply troubled.” (Genesis 6:5–6)

Here we know that God was sorry he made mankind because their hearts were only evil all the time. This troubled him and he grieved. 

This shows God’s grief over sin — not because He’s surprised, but because it breaks His creation’s harmony. Humans had fallen so far that he had to wipe out every thing that had breath from the animals, the birds, and the creatures that moved on the ground. He regretted making humans. 

The whole earth was corrupt in God's Sight (notice how I didn't say man's sight, but God's Sight). Earth was full of violence and corruption.

Jesus warns in the new testament in Luke 17:26-27 that this will happen again just as in the days of Noah.

Luke 17:26-27 NIV

[26] “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. [27] People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.

Noah’s Righteousness and Obedience

In a world full of darkness, Noah stood out to God as a chosen vessel that he would save. Noah's name means: rest.

“But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.” Genesis 6:8. This means he was saved by grace. 

Noah walked with God. His obedience was what set him apart. Not perfection as he still had sin, but faithfulness. When God told him to build the ark, he obeyed completely, even though rain had never fallen before.

Because of Noah's faithfulness God said he will establish his covenant with Noah and he will enter the ark, him and his family. This was after he gave instructions on how to build the ark. He also instructed him to take two of every kind of animal and to take every kind of food for his family and the animals. Noah did just as God commanded even though no one had ever seen rain.

God’s Judgment and Mercy

God’s decision to bring the flood was both just and merciful. It shows His holiness, that He will not tolerate sin. It also shows his mercy, in choosing to save Noah and his family to continue His promise of redemption.

The ark is seen as a protection or hiding place. The Hebrew word for ark is “tebah” which means “box” or “chest” ; this same word is used in Exodus 2:3-5 where Moses is put in a basket to hide and protect him. 

This is also where we see the first biblical mention of a covenant or a “berith”. Covenants are made by God with man for the purpose of salvation. God declares his commitment and demands a response from man. 

There are many covenants God makes in Genesis with mankind:

The edenic covenant in Genesis 2:15-17: 

This is where God provides for all man's needs. All expected from humankind was not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 

The Adamic covenant in Genesis 3:14-21:

This is where God gives the promise of the Messiah. There were no requirements for humankind but humanity will suffer consequences of sin until the coming of the Messiah. 

The Noahic Covenant in Genesis 9:1-19:

This is God's promise to never flood the earth again. There was no requirement for humankind. A rainbow was given as a sign of that promise. 

The Abrahamic Covenant in Genesis 15:3-21:

God promises to make a mighty nation of Abraham's descendants and give them the land of Canaan. This required Abraham to walk before God and be blameless. The sign of this covenant was circumcision for man. 

Reflection for Today

Are we living set apart like Noah, even when the world is corrupt?

What does our obedience say about our faith?

How can we grieve over sin the way God does?

What sins are we committing that God grieves over? 

Closing

Genesis 6 reminds us that even when the world seems dark, God always preserves a remnant of faith. Like Noah, we are called to walk faithfully, to listen to God’s voice, and to obey even when it doesn’t make sense.

Let us pray:

Lord, help us to walk faithfully like Noah. Keep our hearts pure in a world full of 

corruption. Let us obey You completely and trust in Your plan, even when we don’t understand. Amen.