Genesis 6

2 sons of God. Possibly descendants of Seth who worshipped Jehovah: see ch. iv. 26, and cp. Exod. iv. 22; Deut. xxxii. 5; Psa. lxxiii. 15. Other interpretations offered are (1) young men of rank; (2) angels; (3) descendants of Cain.

daughters of men. Daughters of the other race, the Cainites.

took them wives. Cp. 1 Kings i. 1-3; 2 Cor. vi. 14.

3. My spirit, etc. Or, “My spirit shall not strive (or, ‘dwell,’ as in the Septuagint version) in man for ever, in his errors he is flesh.” Moffatt renders: “Human creatures are but flesh; my spirit is not to be immortal in them; they shall not live more than a hundred and twenty years.”

4 giants (Heb., “the Nephilim”). These men may have been great in stature and strength; but the word seems to refer chiefly to the lawless and tyrannical use of brute force.

6 it repented. This is spoken after the manner of men, as “remembered” (viii. 1), “look” (ix. 16), and “came down to see” (xi. 5, 7, etc.). Representations of God’s character and doings are adapted to the understanding of man. Hence His abhorrence of sin and His determination to punish it are spoken of as if they affected Him as they would affect us (cp. Numb. xxiii. 19; Mal. iii. 6; James i. 17); whilst His forbearance and forgiveness are represented under the guise of repentance and putting away of wrath (1 Sam. xv. 11; 2 Sam. xxiv. 16).

8. Noah found grace. Cp. Moses (Exod. xxxiii. 13, 17).

14 an ark. Noah’s ark was, taking the cubit as eighteen inches, 450 feet long, 75 broad, and 45 high.—gopher. Probably cypress.

16 window. “A light,” R.V.—finish it. The meaning seems to be that the roof of the ark was to be brought up to a ridge of a cubit wide.

18 covenant. The word “covenant,” in Scripture, frequently signifies a solemnly declared purpose or promise of God, relating sometimes to the earth and the lower animals (see Gen. ix. 10), but generally to man, in which case it infers corresponding obligations on his part.

22 so did Noah. The exactitude and completeness of Noah’s obedience are recorded with emphatic repetition (vii. 5), and referred to with approbation (Heb. xi. 7; and cp. 1 Pet. iii. 20).