Chapter 8 — THE FLOOD

The descendants of Seth were called the sons of God. The descendants of Cain were called the sons of men. When the sons of God married the daughters of the sons of men, the sons of God became corrupt. The influence of their wicked wives caused many of the descendants of Seth to lose their holy character and join the descendants of Cain in worshiping idols. Many lost their love for God and stopped obeying His commandments.SRme 1.197

But some of the children of Seth loved and honored God. They did what was right. Noah and his family were among the few who remained righteous.SRme 1.198

The wickedness of the other people became so bad that God was sorry He had created people on the earth. God saw that the wicked had become so sinful they could think of nothing but how to do more evil.SRme 1.199

More than 100 years before the Flood the Lord sent an angel to talk to faithful Noah. The angel told Noah that God could not continue to show mercy toward the sinful human race. God would destroy the wicked. But God wanted the people to know what He planned to do. God decided to train Noah to become a faithful preacher who would warn the people of the world that the earth was soon to be destroyed. The wicked would have a chance to repent. They would have no excuse for continuing their rebellion.SRme 1.200

During the time Noah was preaching he was to build a large boat called an ark. God would tell Noah exactly how to build the ark so that he and his family would be saved from the Flood. As the people saw Noah building the ark, they would know he truly believed what he was preaching.SRme 1.201

Noah and his family were not the only people who trusted and obeyed God. But Noah was the most righteous person living on the earth. God made sure that Noah stayed alive to build the ark and to warn the world of the coming destruction. Methuselah, Noah's grandfather, lived until the year the Flood came. Other people believed Noah's preaching and helped him build the ark. But they also died before the Flood came.SRme 1.202

Noah's preaching and building the ark was a warning to the people. All were given a chance to repent and turn to God. But the wicked did not believe Noah. They laughed at his warnings and made fun of him for building a huge boat on dry land. Noah's efforts to save the people did not succeed. But for more than 100 years he kept trying to get the wicked to repent. Every nail Noah hammered into the ark was as a sermon to the people. As Noah worked and preached, the people watched with amazement. They thought he was crazy.SRme 1.203