The Flood (6:5-7:24)

C. The Flood (6:5-7:24)

The episode of divine-human intercourse exceeded the limit of God's tolerance, so he decided to destroy what he had made and start again with righteous Noah. God chose the flood as the instrument of destruction and cleansing. The flood was no ordinary overflow. It is portrayed as a veritable reversal of creation. The language and imagery of the flood narrative echo the Priestly creation story at too many strategic points to be coincidental. The parallels indicate that God intended to return the universe back to it pre-creation state of watery chaos and then remake it using the microcosm of Noah's ark. The story of the flood is the pivotal point of Genesis 1-11.

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The Flood, by Michelangelo (1475-1564) 1512, Sistine Chapel, Vatican, Rome -- CGFA

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 See Table 1.E for parallels between the creation and the flood.

Sumerian King List. An ancient list of kings from the early Mesopotamian civilization of Sumer uses the flood to divide history into pre-flood and post-flood periods, much as the biblical account does. The pre-flood kings had enormous life spans, whereas those after the flood were much reduced. Likewise, the pre-flood heroes of the biblical story had tremendous life spans, while those after are closer to what we would consider normal. See Pritchard (1969: 265-66) and Jacobsen (1939).