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    What happened during Noah's flood?

    What happened during Noah's flood? God sent a worldwide flood to judge humanity's wickedness, saving only Noah, his family, and pairs of every animal kind aboard an ark that Noah built by God's command.

    Key verse: Genesis 6:8 (KJV)

    God sent a worldwide flood to judge humanity's wickedness, saving only Noah, his family, and pairs of every animal kind aboard an ark that Noah built by God's command.

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    Quick Answer

    God sent a worldwide flood to judge humanity's wickedness, saving only Noah, his family, and pairs of every animal kind aboard an ark that Noah built by God's command.

    "But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD." — Genesis 6:8 (KJV)

    The Biblical Answer

    Genesis 6-9 records that humanity had become so corrupt that God regretted making them. Noah alone 'found grace in the eyes of the LORD' and was instructed to build an enormous ark (approximately 450 feet long). Noah loaded his family of eight and pairs of every animal kind aboard. God sent rain for 40 days and nights, and water from underground springs also burst forth. The flood covered the entire earth for about a year. After the waters receded, the ark rested on the mountains of Ararat. God made a covenant with Noah, promising never to destroy the earth with a flood again, sealing it with the rainbow. The flood serves as both a historical event and a type of God's judgment and salvation.

    Key Scripture References

    "But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD."
    "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life... the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights."
    "I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth."

    Frequently asked questions

    Frequently asked questions

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    Deep Dive Commentary

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    Read it in context

    The answer above sits inside Genesis. The 365-day chronological plan reads it in the order the events happened.

    Read Genesis on day 11 of the chronological Bible reading plan

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    Every verse quoted in “What happened during Noah's flood?” comes from the King James Version, free to download and print.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Genesis 6-9 records that humanity had become so corrupt that God regretted making them. Noah alone 'found grace in the eyes of the LORD' and was instructed to build an enormous ark (approximately 450 feet long). Noah loaded his family of eight and pairs of every animal kind aboard. God sent rain for 40 days and nights, and water from underground springs also burst forth. The flood covered the entire earth for about a year. After the waters receded, the ark rested on the mountains of Ararat. God made a covenant with Noah, promising never to destroy the earth with a flood again, sealing it with the rainbow. The flood serves as both a historical event and a type of God's judgment and salvation.

    At Babel, humanity united to build a tower to heaven in defiance of God. God confused their language, scattering them across the earth and creating the diversity of nations.

    A covenant is a solemn, binding agreement between God and His people, establishing promises and obligations that shape the biblical narrative from Genesis to Revelation.