Genesis 6:11-13

The context

Genesis 6 introduces the flood. The chapter opens with the sons of God and the Nephilim, notes the wickedness of humanity and God's grief, then gives the state of the earth in verses 11–13. Noah finds favor in verse 8, and the command to build the ark follows. The prose is repetitive and formulaic.

What it establishes

The narrative gives a moral diagnosis before it gives a judgment. Corruption and violence are named as the condition of the earth, and the divine speech frames the decision as a response to what is described.

What it does not establish

It does not settle the identity of the sons of God. That question, and the related one about the Nephilim, is disputed and the passage does not resolve it. Nor does the verse describe the flood's extent or geology.

Short note, first pass, October 2026. Corrections welcome.

Cited in these answers

• The biblical account of Noah was derived from the Babylonian myth of Utanapishtim — your mythical God didn't “inspire” it.

Part of Scripture, Opened — the exegetical layer behind every citation on this site. Scripture quotations are from the ESV.