Genesis 6 – Good / Evil

Dear family and friends, all the political leaders in Noah's time were unscrupulous. The government was completely crooked. Courts were flooded with dishonest judges. The victimization of women was higher than at any time since. Does that sound familiar? People did not attend places of prayer any longer. Worship leaders were wicked. 'All the righteous people died,' Sefer HaYashar (Hoboken, NJ: KTAV Publishing House, Inc., 1993) p.16 The entire world mocked Noah and his grandfather, Mesushelach, the only Holy Men that remained. Morality was gone! The world's Spiritual fiber did not exist any longer. Stealing, pillaging, and violence was rampant. Every form of sexual deviance existed unrestrained. Men abused women of every age and social class.

Do the events in Genesis 6 compare in any way to our world? Is our world headed in the direction of utter destruction like in Noah's day?

Genesis 6.5

וַיַּרְא יְהֹוָה כִּי רַבָּה רָעַת הָאָדָם בָּאָרֶץ וְכָל־יֵצֶר מַחְשְׁבֹת לִבּוֹ רַק רַע כָּל־הַיּוֹם : ס

Genesis 6.5

And The Lord Saw the exponential wickedness of Adam's descendants on the earth, and every inclination of his mind's thoughts was only evil continually.

God Said, 'The end of all living things has come before me on account of their evil deeds [the Nephilim], and I plan to destroy them from the face of the earth.' Sefer Ha Yashar (Hoboken, NJ: KTAV Publishing House, Inc., 1993) p.17 Today, like back then, some people do not believe in God, His Rulership, or His Justice. They live as if they do not care. They do not fear, honor, or respect The Lord God of Israel. They do not Observe The Mitzvot of The Torah that The Lord God Requires. They follow their evil inclination like the people who perished in the Flood in Noah's time.

Psalms 94.9 – 12

He who planted the ear, shall He not Hear? He who formed the eye, shall He not See? He who chastises the nations, shall He not Chastise? He who Teaches man knowledge, The Lord, Knows man's thoughts, that they are vanity. Happy is the man whom You Chasten, Ooh Lord, and whom You teach from your Torah.

In Genesis 6.3 The Lord mercifully Said, 'My Spirit shall not continue to judge [these evil] men forever. He is flesh…'The Holy Scriptures credit this comment to the Merciful Attribute of The Lord. The Lord in His Mercy is saying man has become so very evil that He cannot continue to look away from man's evil… man's sin… Man is NOT Spiritual any longer… man is only flesh… Then The Lord Said, '…his days will be a hundred and twenty years. ' Noah and Mesushelach were told by God to preach this message: Thus Says, God. ' Repent of your evil ways and He Will Change His Decree against you.'

Christians and Jews agree that The Lord was patient with the evil people in Noah's time. 'God spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly.' 2Peter 2:5.

Noah was a preacher of righteousness. Genesis 6.3 states that God Waited 120 years. God Said in reference to the sinful people living in Noah's day, 'My Spirit shall not continue to judge [these evil] men forever since he is but flesh…'

Humankind was created with two inclinations. Our inclinations are challenged to do good and evil equally. If choices between good and evil were nonexistent our lives would be predetermined. We would do what we are programmed to. We would not be accountable because we would not have the freedom to choose. We learn about the Yetzer Rah from Genesis 6.3 and Genesis 8.21 where Scripture says, 'every inclination of his mind's thoughts was only evil continually.'

Holy Scripture Informs us that the daughters of men were beautiful to look upon. Humankind did not age until Genesis 24.1 where Scripture says, 'Abraham was old, and well advanced in age.' The atmosphere was not harmful to our bodies. Grandmothers would look young and fresh just like their great-granddaughters. Everyone was vegetarian, healthy, and thin. Every woman was beautiful and attractive! The lust of man grew. Humankind was joined by several fallen Angels. English translation refers to these angels as the sons of God or as the rulers of judges. They are identified in the original language as 'the fallen' / הַנְּפִלִים Ha Nih Fee Leem.

Humankind was corrupt! The fallen angels Uzza and Azael took women who were wives, daughters, and grandmothers. Their evil lust was not constrained. They abused and victimized whomever they wanted. Their thoughts were continually evil until The day of judgment until the rains came and the floodwaters rose on the earth. They perished!

Genesis Six discusses the victimization of women. Men, this includes assault, i.e., verbal and sexual, and victimization of any kind. Touching, grabbing, feeling, pinching, stalking, raping, and enslaving women is not permitted.

Genesis 6.1 – 2

And it came to pass when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were pretty; and they took as wives all those whom they chose.

The first two-thousand- eighty-five years F.C. / from creation, humankind did not age until after the Akeidah. When Abraham and Isaac were coming down from Mount Moriah Abraham, prayed for visible old age. Instantly people throughout the world showed age—Rabbi Meir Zlotowitz and Rabbi Nosson Scherman,The Artscroll Tanach Series – Bereishis Vol. I(a) (Brooklyn, New York: Mesorah Publications, Ltd. 3rd Impression, 1989), pp 888 – 889. The point to this story is when the sons / Angels of God saw the daughters of men, they were pretty. The two Angels took wives for themselves from anyone they wanted. They did not restrain their lustful desires. That is when they became fallen, Angels. Holy Scripture Says 'they took.' we are to understand they had the physical power to do as they chose. They did not employ restraint. They used force to take whoever they wanted. Their misuse of their supernatural power helped to destroy the entire social order. The Nefilim broke their agreement with The Lord and The Torah.

Genesis 6.4

There were Nefilim in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came into the daughters of men, and they bore children to them, the same became mighty men of old, men of renown.

They were supernatural beings that had sexual relations with humans that resulted in giants. That improper unholy mix of supernatural beings destroyed all humankind and eliminated it from off the face of the earth.

God Purged the entire world with water to purify it from evil sins. However, the memories of those transgressions were seared into the minds of the survivors. The anguish suffered by women carried over to the new world. These sins continue. If we desire to bring about Tikkun Olam, we must be kind and loving to all people.

Scripture Beckons us to improve our world. We can save our country and our world by Observing Ha Torah.

I ask our Creator for an excellent pleasant happy Sabbath observance. Best Wishes!

Dr. Akiva Gamliel Belk

Author

Comments |0|

Legend *) Required fields are marked
**) You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>