The Lord Makes a Covenant with Noah (Genesis 6:1–22)

 

The Lord Makes a Covenant with Noah (Genesis 6:1–22)

God is a God of justice. When He saw how full of wickedness the world had become—how people’s every thought and intention was constantly evil—He declared that He would bring judgment through a great flood. But even in the midst of judgment, God made a covenant with Noah. He told Noah to build an ark and to take his family, pairs of animals, and enough food into it to survive.

The flood that God sent lasted forty days and forty nights—a massive, earth-covering deluge. Everything that breathed through its nostrils perished. But Noah and his family, who were inside the ark, were saved. The ark, in many ways, points forward to Jesus Christ. Just as the ark saved Noah from judgment, anyone who is in Christ will never be lost.

As Acts 16:31 says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

God is not only just—He is also a God who saves. He doesn’t want anyone to perish, but wants everyone to come to repentance and be saved (2 Peter 3:9). That’s why anyone who turns from their sin and believes in the Lord Jesus will not be condemned but will have eternal life. But those who reject Jesus to the end will face the righteous judgment of God.

My Spirit Will Not Contend with Humans Forever

“1 When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. 3 Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” 4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown. (Genesis 6:1–4)

In Genesis 5, we see how human life had expanded and generations had multiplied. People lived for hundreds of years—many over 900. Among them, daughters were born, and the “sons of God” took them as wives. This phrase—“sons of God”—has sparked a lot of debate. One interpretation says these are the descendants of Seth (the godly line), while the “daughters of humans” were from Cain’s line (the ungodly). But in the Old Testament, the term “sons of God” typically refers to heavenly beings—angels (Job 1:6; 2:1; Psalm 89:6; 82:6). So it is believed these were fallen angels who rebelled against God and are now considered demons.

In Genesis 3, the serpent (Hebrew: nachash) who deceived Eve is a term that can mean “whisperer” or “enchanter”. While we don’t fully understand how fallen angels could have children with human women, we do see that throughout history and across cultures, people have interacted with mediums, spiritists, and the occult—practices that God considers detestable and strictly forbids (Leviticus 19:31; Exodus 22:18).

In verse 3, God clearly states that His Spirit will not remain with humanity forever, since they have become corrupt. This signals impending judgment. Humans were originally created in God’s image—formed from the dust, with God breathing life (His Spirit) into them. But sin caused them to become flesh—separated from God’s Spirit, disconnected from the relationship of love and obedience they were made for.

As Romans 1:21 says: “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

A Covenant of Grace and the Patience of God

Even then, God didn’t abandon humanity. He gave Adam a promise—a covenant of salvation. He would send the offspring of the woman, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as the Lamb who would take away the sin of the world. Through this Savior, fallen humans could be redeemed.

God didn’t bring immediate judgment. Instead, He gave them 120 years—a grace period, a chance to repent. Many believe this was the time Noah spent building the ark. Similarly, in the book of Jonah, the violent and rebellious city of Nineveh was warned of destruction in 40 days. But when they repented, God postponed judgment for 100 years.

The Nephilim and the Spiritual Battle

The children born from the union of the “sons of God” and human women were Nephilim—giants and mighty warriors, like Goliath. These were the Anakites, mentioned again when the twelve Israelite spies scouted the land of Canaan. Seeing these giants, they reported,

“We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” (Numbers 13:33)

What does this mean spritually?

It’s a picture of spiritual warfare. Our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of darkness (Ephesians 6:12). In this world, it may seem like the powerful—the rich, the famous, the successful—run everything. But remember David. He was just a shepherd boy with a slingshot, yet he took down the mighty Goliath. How? By trusting in the Lord Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth.

The Narrow Way of the Cross

The world chases success, power, fame, and recognition. That’s what people admire and pursue. But Jesus chose a different path—a narrow, difficult road marked by the suffering of the cross. He was rejected, despised, humiliated, accused, and ultimately crucified.

He suffered for our sins. And now, He calls His followers to take up their own cross daily, deny themselves, and follow Him.

God Saw How Great Human Wickedness Had Become

“5 The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. 6 The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. 7 So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.” (Gensis 6:5-7)

God sees everything—nothing escapes Him. And while He has every right to judge immediately, He doesn’t. Instead, He patiently waits, longing for people to repent. Just like He already knew the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah but still sent angels to confirm them, He also saw how deeply people had turned away from His godliness and holiness. He saw that they didn’t turn back, didn’t repent.

So the Bible says God was grieved and deeply troubled—not because He made a mistake, but because judgment was now necessary in a world full of sin. Isaiah called God’s judgment a “strange” or “unusual” work (Isaiah 28:21), meaning it’s not His first desire—but He is just. When He declared that He would wipe out all living creatures—people, animals, and birds—it was because wickedness had filled the earth.

Through this, we can discern when God’s judgment is at hand. When it is coming? There is a clue in the covenant with Abraham. When God made a covenant with Abraham, He said it would take 400 years before the Amorites (representing the Canaanites) would be judged because “their sin has not yet reached its full measure” (Genesis 15:16, NIV; ESV: “not yet complete”).

The Hebrew word used there is shalem (שָׁלֵם), which means completeness, wholeness, or payment in full. It’s related to the idea of something reaching its limit or being fully paid—just like when Jesus said on the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30). That Greek word—tetelestai—also means “paid in full” or “completed,” translated in Hebrew, shalem.

Therefore, God's judgment doesn’t come arbitrarily; it comes when sin has reached its full measure. This shows us something amazing: God holds off judgment until Jesus Christ, His Son, became the sacrifice for sin, the ransom price in full. That’s why there is patience—so people have time to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

We might wonder: how could God’s judgment like the flood or the Amorites' destruction happen before Jesus came? The answer is found in God's eternal plan. The book of Revelation tells us that the Lamb—Jesus—was slain “from the creation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). Even before time began, God already planned salvation through Jesus. That means Old Testament believers, like Abraham, were saved by faith in the coming Christ, just as we are saved by faith in the Christ who has come.

Noah Found Favor with God

“8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. 9 This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God. 10 Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth. 11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. 12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. 14 So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. 15 This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high. 16 Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit high all around. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. 17 I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish.” (Genesis 6:8-17)

Noah found grace in God’s eyes—not because he deserved it, but because of God’s mercy. The Bible says there is no one righteous on their own (Romans 3:10), and salvation is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8). So how did Noah become righteous and blameless? Because God had chosen him in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4). His righteousness was a gift, just like ours.

And just like Noah, when we are clothed in Christ’s righteousness, we walk with God. That walk means living differently in a corrupt world, denying ourselves, taking up our cross, and following Jesus (Luke 9:23). It means dying to self and living for Christ.

God saw the world’s violence and corruption, so He told Noah to build an ark. It was massive—about 145 meters long, 24 meters wide, and 14 meters high (three stories tall). It would be the means by which Noah and his family would be saved when the flood came to judge the world. The ark represents Jesus Christ—God’s only provision for salvation.

God Makes a Covenant with Noah

“18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. 19 You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20 Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. 21 You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.” 22 Noah did everything just as God commanded him. (Gensis 6:18-22)

God made a covenant with Noah—and it was a covenant of salvation. He invited Noah and his family into the ark to be saved from judgment. Likewise, the only way to be saved from God’s final judgment is to enter the "ark" of Jesus Christ. That happens when we trust in His blood that was shed to wash away our sins. When we’re cleansed, the Holy Spirit comes to live in us again, restoring our relationship with God and making us in His royal residence.

The covenant with Noah foreshadows the greater covenant of salvation through Jesus. It is by grace alone. And it comes with a warning: those inside the ark are saved, but those who stay outside will perish.

God told Noah to bring two of each kind of animal, bird, and creature—male and female—to preserve life. He also told him to gather food for the journey. All of creation, because of humanity’s sin, is groaning for restoration (Romans 8:19).

Noah obeyed. He did everything God told him. That’s faith in action. Jesus said the wise person is the one who hears His words and puts them into practice—that person builds their life on a solid rock. When storms come, they won’t fall. But the one who only hears and doesn’t act is like someone building on sand. When the storm hits, their life collapses (Matthew 7:24–27).

Those who stand on the solid foundation of Jesus—our ark and our Rock—are safe. But those who ignore Him face destruction.

May 11, 2025
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Scripture quotes are from the NIV.