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GENESIS CHAPTERS 6–9

The Great Flood

God’s judgment on a violent world, His mercy on a faithful family, and His covenant promise to every living creature — the Flood as told in the Book of Genesis.
Begin the Story

Why the Flood Matters

The account of Noah and the Flood is one of the most familiar stories in Scripture, and one of the most important. It shows us how seriously God takes sin, how generously He extends grace, and how faithfully He keeps His promises. Christians have long read the story as pointing forward to salvation through Jesus Christ.
This page walks through the Genesis account in order, then explores what the Flood means for believers today. Open your Bible to Genesis 6–9 and read along.
Days and nights of rain
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Days the waters prevailed
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Years before the Flood (Gen. 6:3)
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People saved in the ark
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1. A World Filled with Violence

Genesis 6:1–7
Humanity had multiplied across the earth, but sin had multiplied with it. Genesis describes a world in which wickedness was constant and violence filled the land. God was grieved by what He saw, and He announced that He would bring judgment on the earth.
In Genesis 6:3 God says His Spirit will not strive with man forever and speaks of 120 years. Many Christians understand this as a period of patient warning before the Flood came.
“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.”
— Genesis 6:5 (KJV)

2. Noah Finds Grace

Genesis 6:8–10
In the middle of a corrupt generation, one man stood apart. Noah was a righteous man who walked with God. Scripture is clear that this was not Noah earning rescue by perfection; the text first says that he found grace.
Noah had three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, and he lived at a time when almost everyone around him had turned away from God.
“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”
— Genesis 6:8 (KJV)

3. God Commands the Ark

Genesis 6:11–22
God told Noah that He would destroy all flesh and gave him detailed instructions for building an ark. The ark was a large vessel meant to preserve life, not a ship built for sailing. God also promised to establish His covenant with Noah.
Noah obeyed, and the building of the ark stands as a picture of faith put into action.
“Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.”
— Genesis 6:22 (KJV)
  • Made of gopher wood and sealed inside and out with pitch
  • Length 300 cubits, width 50 cubits, height 30 cubits
  • Three decks, with rooms inside
  • A window near the top and a door in the side
  • Provisions of food for Noah’s family and the animals

4. Entering the Ark

Genesis 7:1–10
God told Noah to bring his household into the ark because he had been found righteous. Clean animals were taken in by sevens and unclean animals in pairs, along with birds, so that life would be preserved on the earth.
Seven days before the rain began, Noah and his family entered, and the Bible says that the LORD shut them in. The same God who brought judgment also secured their safety.

5. The Flood Comes

Genesis 7:11–24
On the seventeenth day of the second month of Noah’s six hundredth year, the fountains of the great deep burst open and the windows of heaven opened. Rain fell for forty days and forty nights, and the waters rose until they covered the high hills and the mountains.
Genesis says that all flesh that moved on the earth perished, and only Noah and those with him in the ark remained alive. The waters prevailed on the earth for 150 days.
“In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.”
— Genesis 7:11 (KJV)

6. God Remembers Noah

Genesis 8:1–14
After the long months of flood, the Bible says that God remembered Noah. This does not mean He had forgotten; it means He acted on behalf of those He had promised to save. He sent a wind over the earth and the waters began to fall.
The ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat in the seventh month. Noah sent out a raven, then a dove. The dove first found no resting place, then returned with an olive leaf, and later did not return at all. At last the earth was dry.
“And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged.”
— Genesis 8:1 (KJV)

7. Leaving the Ark and Worshipping

Genesis 8:15–22
God told Noah to come out of the ark with his family and the animals. The first thing Noah did was build an altar and offer sacrifices to the LORD. God was pleased, and He promised never again to curse the ground because of man or to destroy every living thing as He had done.
The promise includes the steady rhythm of seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.

8. The Covenant and the Rainbow

Genesis 9:1–17
God blessed Noah and his sons and gave them the command to fill the earth. He established a covenant with Noah, his descendants and every living creature: never again would a flood destroy all flesh. As the sign of that covenant, He set His bow in the cloud.
Every rainbow is a reminder of God’s faithfulness. It is a promise made by God, and it depends on His character, not on human performance.
“I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.”
— Genesis 9:13 (KJV)

9. After the Flood

Genesis 9:18–29
The account closes with Noah planting a vineyard and a sad episode of drunkenness within his family. Even the man who found grace was still a sinner who needed God’s mercy. The Flood washed away the wicked world, but it did not remove sin from the human heart, and that is part of why the Bible’s story still needs a Savior.

Timeline of the Flood

The Bible records dates for the major events, counted from Noah’s six hundredth year.
  • Day 17, month 2 (year 600): The fountains of the deep break open and the rain begins (7:11)
  • 40 days: Rain continues on the earth (7:12)
  • 150 days: The waters prevail on the earth (7:24)
  • Day 17, month 7: The ark rests on the mountains of Ararat (8:4)
  • Day 1, month 10: The tops of the mountains become visible (8:5)
  • Day 1, month 1 (year 601): The waters are dried up from the earth (8:13)
  • Day 27, month 2 (year 601): The earth is dry and God tells Noah to leave the ark (8:14–16)

The Flood Themes

The Flood iss real history recorded by Scripture and is also as a story rich in meaning. Four themes stand out.

God’s Justice

God is holy and sin is serious. The Flood shows that He does not ignore evil.

God’s Grace

Noah was saved because he found grace, a pattern fulfilled in the gospel.

Faith and Obedience

Noah believed God and acted on His word long before any rain fell.

Salvation in Christ

The ark points to Jesus, the one refuge God provides from judgment.

What the New Testament Says

Jesus referred to the Flood as a real event and used it as a warning about His return. People went on with ordinary life, eating, drinking and marrying, until the day Noah entered the ark. (Matthew 24:37–39; Luke 17:26–27)

Hebrews lists Noah among the heroes of faith. He was warned by God about things not yet seen, and he prepared an ark by faith, condemning the world and becoming heir of righteousness.

Peter says that eight souls were saved through water and connects this with baptism, which he says saves not by removing dirt from the body but as the answer of a good conscience toward God through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Christians understand the ark as a picture of safety found in Christ.

Peter calls Noah a preacher of righteousness and reminds readers that the world once perished by water. He also teaches that the present heavens and earth are reserved for a coming day of judgment, so believers should live in holiness and patience.

The Flood was Global and Tragic.

The Flood is part of God’s inspired Word and states that the the Flood was global and catastrophic. The central message is the same: God judges sin, saves by grace and keeps His promises.

There are many excellent resources that go into great detail of this tragic event, one good place to start is Answers in Genesis’ website on the flood.

Questions for Reflection

  • Why do you think the Bible says Noah “found grace” before it describes his righteousness?
  • What would it have cost Noah to keep building the ark while others doubted him?
  • How does the rainbow help you trust God’s promises today?
  • In what ways is Jesus like the ark for believers?

Frequently Asked Questions

Genesis 7:6 says that Noah was 600 years old when the floodwaters came on the earth.

Eight people: Noah, his wife, and his three sons Shem, Ham and Japheth with their wives (Genesis 7:7, 13).

From the day he entered to the day the earth was dry was a little more than a year, according to the dates in Genesis 7:11 and 8:14.

Genesis 8:4 says the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat, a region rather than one specific peak.

No. God promised in Genesis 9:11 that He would never again destroy all flesh by a flood. The Bible does teach a future judgment, but not by water.

Continue Your Journey

Read the full account in Genesis 6–9, then explore the next great moment in the Bible’s story: God’s covenant with Abraham.
Next: Abraham’s Covenant