6:1,2
We now come to a short passage before we encounter the tale of Noah. The passage does raise a number of questions, but the general thrust of the passage is clear. This main thrust is the evil that is in the world and God’s reaction to it. First we see that mankind is increasing on the earth, and there is special mention of the daughters who were born. These daughters were very beautiful, and this was recognised by the “sons of God”. This presents us with our first problem. Who were the “sons of God”. There are two main options. The first is that it refers to the descendants of Seth, as opposed to the descendants of Cain. The problem with this one is that it doesn’t make much textual sense, it is a very odd way of referring to the descendants of Seth. Theologically it is rather dubious as well. The second option is that it means angels. Now this does fit with the use of the term elsewhere in the Bible, but then we have the problem of angelic beings marrying women! The short answer is nobody knows.
6:3
Man was now in rebellion against God, and God declares that He will not put up with this forever. In our own day we need to be aware that while God is “slow to anger”, this does not mean He never angers. There comes a point where He is no longer willing to put up with man’s sin. Man is “mortal” or “corrupt”. Actually, of course, he is both. The mention of one hundred and twenty years probably means that man’s lifespan will now be limited to one hundred and twenty years, i.e. rather less than the figures we saw in chapter 5. Alternatively it could refer to the time gap between these words and the judgement heaped upon the earth by the floor. The former alternative seems the more likely of the two.
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