INTRODUCTION: This chapter gives an account of the conditions that led to the flood. How much these times resemble the day in which we live.I. THE SALT LOSES ITS SAVOUR - verses 1-2.
God's people are the preserving force in society [Matthew 5:13]. When the professing body of saints begin to compromise and lose their testimony the times are desperate. This is what happened before the flood. In Genesis 4, we noticed the descendants of Cain, who, though they excelled in some areas of culture, yet drifted further and further from God and that which was right. In Genesis 3:25-4:32, we were given a list of Seth's descendants. Many of these were God-fearing people. In Genesis 3:26, we noted that in the days of Enos they separated for public worship. They were the salt of the earth.In Genesis 6:1-2, we have a sad account of their spiritual declension. It began when they started to marry on the basis of physical attraction alone. In every age God has asked His people to marry those who likewise serve the true God. This is for their spiritual comfort and growth as well as for the spiritual benefit of their children [Deuteronomy 7:2-4; Exodus 34:14-16; I Corinthians 7:39; II Corinthians 6:14].
II. MAN'S CONDITION - verse 3-5.
A. Man's State Before The Flood:
1. Before the flood man resisted the work of God's Holy Spirit in common grace. This involved their refusal to hear the preachers of truth (Enoch, Noah) and the striving of the Spirit with their own conscience. Just as today, the restraints to sin were gradually broken down.
2. Man refused to profit from God's wonderful long- suffering. God gave them 120 years as a space of time to repent.
3. In verse 4, we see that wicked and brutal men were the leaders and heroes of that time. The children of these mixed marriages were great in society, but not before God.*
4. Verse 5 reveals that men's minds were a cesspool of evil. One only needs turn on the television to see modern examples. Bad language and sexual filth is the constant theme. One cannot go into public without hearing dirty or profane talk.
B. The Days Of Noah - Luke 17:26. Our Lord pointed out that the characteristics of life before the flood would re-appear before His second advent. In light of modern conditions, how this stirs us up to look for Christ's return. Note the traits mentioned:
1. Preoccupation with physical pleasure - Luke 17:27.
2. Explosion of knowledge - Genesis 4:22.
3. Materialistic attitudes - Luke 17:28.
4. Rejection of God's Word - I Peter 3:19.
5. Population increase - Genesis 6:1 & 11.
6. Widespread violence - Genesis 6:11-13.
7. Illicit sexual activity - Genesis 4:19.
8. Widespread blasphemy - Jude 15.III. GOD'S REPENTANCE - verses 6-7. ,br> In verse 6, we are told that God repented or changed His mind about man's creation. This, of course, is the language of accomodation. God is spoken of as though He were a man. God, strictly speaking, never changes His mind, for His plans are eternal and unchangeable [I Samuel 15:29; Romans 11:29].
This language is used to help us understand the change that occurred in man since creation, and the wrath of God toward man's sin. Even though God created man, He must judge him for his sin.
IV. GRACE - verse 8.
Here is the first mention of "grace" in the Bible. It occurs at the time of man's greatest depravity. God's grace may seem very restricted here, yet remember that through this one man the human race was preserved. Many, when reading verse 8, see only the justice of God in not destroying a righteous man along with the wicked. This falls far short, however, of the meaning of grace. True, Noah was a righteous man [verse 6], but remember it was God's grace that made him what he was [I Corinthians 15:10].V. NOAH'S FAMILY - verses 9-10.
These Scriptures give us more information about Noah. We are told of his righteous life and of his walk with God. Verse 10 mentions his three sons. Through these sons the earth was re- populated.VI. GOD'S DETERMINATION - verses 12-13.
When sin becomes open, judgment is near. God created man holy and placed him in a garden. Through sin the world became a "jungle." Judgment follows sin as the flower follows the bud.____________
* We must candidly confess that our interpretation of Genesis 6:1-4 is not the only one. The ancient Jewish commentators, as well as the early Christian writers, almost universally believed that the "sons of God" were fallen angels who began to coinhabit with human women, thus producing a race of giants. This they believed was part of the reason God sent the Flood. Those wishing to study this viewpoint will find it covered in the more advanced commentaries.
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