וַיְחִ֣י מְתוּשֶׁ֔לַח שֶׁ֧בַע וּשְׁמֹנִ֛ים שָׁנָ֖ה וּמְאַ֣ת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיּ֖וֹלֶד אֶת־לָֽמֶךְ׃

Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and he begot Lemekh.

וַֽיְחִ֣י מְתוּשֶׁ֗לַח אַֽחֲרֵי֙ הוֹלִיד֣וֹ אֶת־לֶ֔מֶךְ שְׁתַּ֤יִם וּשְׁמוֹנִים֙ שָׁנָ֔ה וּשְׁבַ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיּ֥וֹלֶד בָּנִ֖ים וּבָנֽוֹת׃

Methuselah lived after he begot Lemekh seven hundred and eighty-two years; and he begot sons and daughters.

וַיִּהְיוּ֙ כָּל־יְמֵ֣י מְתוּשֶׁ֔לַח תֵּ֤שַׁע וְשִׁשִּׁים֙ שָׁנָ֔ה וּתְשַׁ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיָּמֹֽת׃ (פ)

All the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years; and he died. Methuselah is the oldest person recorded in the Bible.

וַֽיְחִי־לֶ֕מֶךְ שְׁתַּ֧יִם וּשְׁמֹנִ֛ים שָׁנָ֖ה וּמְאַ֣ת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיּ֖וֹלֶד בֵּֽן׃

Lemekh lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and he begot a son.

וַיִּקְרָ֧א אֶת־שְׁמ֛וֹ נֹ֖חַ לֵאמֹ֑ר זֶ֠ה יְנַחֲמֵ֤נוּ מִֽמַּעֲשֵׂ֙נוּ֙ וּמֵעִצְּב֣וֹן יָדֵ֔ינוּ מִן־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֵֽרְרָ֖הּ יְהוָֽה׃

He called his name Noah, saying: This shall relieve us from the suffering of our work and from the misery of our hands, from the ground, which the Lord has cursed. Noah received this name because already from birth he was recognized as special. The commentaries and midrashim discuss what might have made Noah so unique. Noah was named after a prophecy, or after the hope, or as a prayer, that there would be relief from the toil and suffering. Indeed, the events of his life proved that Noah was the hope of humanity. Nevertheless, he did not provide relief for all of humanity, as only Noah and his family were spared during the flood. He did not bring salvation to the rest of mankind.

וַֽיְחִי־לֶ֗מֶךְ אַֽחֲרֵי֙ הוֹלִיד֣וֹ אֶת־נֹ֔חַ חָמֵ֤שׁ וְתִשְׁעִים֙ שָׁנָ֔ה וַחֲמֵ֥שׁ מֵאֹ֖ת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיּ֥וֹלֶד בָּנִ֖ים וּבָנֽוֹת׃

Lemekh lived after he begot Noah five hundred and ninety-five years; and he begot sons and daughters.

וַֽיְהִי֙ כָּל־יְמֵי־לֶ֔מֶךְ שֶׁ֤בַע וְשִׁבְעִים֙ שָׁנָ֔ה וּשְׁבַ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיָּמֹֽת׃ (ס)

All the days of Lemekh were seven hundred and seventy-seven years; and he died.

וַֽיְהִי־נֹ֕חַ בֶּן־חֲמֵ֥שׁ מֵא֖וֹת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיּ֣וֹלֶד נֹ֔חַ אֶת־שֵׁ֖ם אֶת־חָ֥ם וְאֶת־יָֽפֶת׃

Noah was five hundred years old; and Noah begot Shem, Ham, and Yefet. The Sages debate whether this listing reflects the order of their births. The verse marks the conclusion of the book of the descendants of Adam, which contains the names of representatives of the ten generations from Adam to Noah, but it provides almost no information about them. This “book of the legacy of Adam” concludes in a generation that underwent a great transformation. For this reason, the Torah goes into detail with regard to Noah and notes that already at his birth he was made a locus for humanity’s hope, by a prophecy that through him the world would be rectified. A new world would indeed begin with him, albeit in an unexpected manner.

וַֽיְהִי֙ כִּֽי־הֵחֵ֣ל הָֽאָדָ֔ם לָרֹ֖ב עַל־פְּנֵ֣י הָֽאֲדָמָ֑ה וּבָנ֖וֹת יֻלְּד֥וּ לָהֶֽם׃

It was, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them;

וַיִּרְא֤וּ בְנֵי־הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ אֶת־בְּנ֣וֹת הָֽאָדָ֔ם כִּ֥י טֹבֹ֖ת הֵ֑נָּה וַיִּקְח֤וּ לָהֶם֙ נָשִׁ֔ים מִכֹּ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר בָּחָֽרוּ׃

the sons of the great ones [benei ha’elohim] saw that the daughters of man were fair. Some explain that with the proliferation of the human race came the development of a social hierarchy. The term benei ha’elohim refers to members of an upper class that grew apart from the rest of humanity. According to this understanding, the daughters of man were women of the lower classes. According to another interpretation, the sons of God were angels who arrived in this world and were granted human bodies and qualities as a kind of test, which they failed. Although they ceased to be angels, they still retained their supernatural powers alongside their human urges. According to this opinion, the daughters of man refers to mortal women. And they took for themselves wives, from whomever they chose, whether young or old, single or married, without consideration for laws of any kind.

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהוָ֗ה לֹֽא־יָד֨וֹן רוּחִ֤י בָֽאָדָם֙ לְעֹלָ֔ם בְּשַׁגַּ֖ם ה֣וּא בָשָׂ֑ר וְהָי֣וּ יָמָ֔יו מֵאָ֥ה וְעֶשְׂרִ֖ים שָׁנָֽה׃

Society turned a blind eye to lawlessness. No one interfered with or objected to the breaching of boundaries. Therefore, the Lord said: My spirit shall not abide in man forever. According to many commentaries, the verse means: My spirit shall not fight and complain about man forever, for he too is flesh. Man has repeatedly failed to actualize his superiority over other creatures; therefore, he too is only flesh. And his days shall be one hundred and twenty years. I will grant mankind an extension of 120 years before sealing its fate. If man does not change, humanity will cease to exist in its current form.

הַנְּפִלִ֞ים הָי֣וּ בָאָרֶץ֮ בַּיָּמִ֣ים הָהֵם֒ וְגַ֣ם אַֽחֲרֵי־כֵ֗ן אֲשֶׁ֨ר יָבֹ֜אוּ בְּנֵ֤י הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ אֶל־בְּנ֣וֹת הָֽאָדָ֔ם וְיָלְד֖וּ לָהֶ֑ם הֵ֧מָּה הַגִּבֹּרִ֛ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר מֵעוֹלָ֖ם אַנְשֵׁ֥י הַשֵּֽׁם׃ (פ)

The verse notes: The giants [nefilim] were on the earth in those days, and also thereafter. It is possible that they were called nefilim because they fell [nafelu] from their position of greatness, or because they were more wondrous [nifla] than the rest of humanity. The nefilim are mentioned much later as well, some as mythical creatures, others as actual people, perhaps remnants of the primeval giants mentioned in this verse. The nefilim were born when the sons of the great ones consorted with the daughters of man, and they bore them children. Although the nefilim were not themselves “sons of the great ones” in either sense mentioned above, as their children they were nonetheless great and powerful. Although few in number, the nefilim ruled over many places in the world. For example, Og, king of Bashan, was described as one of the last surviving descendants of these giants. He was killed by the children of Israel in his kingdom, the Bashan, in the present-day Golan Heights. They were the mighty who were from ancient times, the men of renown, those who made a name for themselves and were remembered by later generations. When people spoke of the mighty men of yore, they were referring to these nefilim.

וַיַּ֣רְא יְהוָ֔ה כִּ֥י רַבָּ֛ה רָעַ֥ת הָאָדָ֖ם בָּאָ֑רֶץ וְכָל־יֵ֙צֶר֙ מַחְשְׁבֹ֣ת לִבּ֔וֹ רַ֥ק רַ֖ע כָּל־הַיּֽוֹם׃

The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. One’s inclinations are not necessarily evil; they are the proactive and creative force within man, which can lead him in various directions. Indeed, the Sages speak of a good inclination. The verse, however, refers to an inclination that is completely evil. That is, man chose to utilize his inclination exclusively for evil.

וַיִּנָּ֣חֶם יְהוָ֔ה כִּֽי־עָשָׂ֥ה אֶת־הָֽאָדָ֖ם בָּאָ֑רֶץ וַיִּתְעַצֵּ֖ב אֶל־לִבּֽוֹ׃

The Lord regretted, as it were, that He had made man on the earth. The hopes placed upon man, who was granted free will, were dashed. And He was saddened in His heart. The verse employs anthropomorphic expressions toward God, meant to convey that the creation of man was a failure. Some explain the verse as follows: The Lord considered and decided with regard to the man that He had made on the earth, and He brought sadness to the heart of man.

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהוָ֗ה אֶמְחֶ֨ה אֶת־הָאָדָ֤ם אֲשֶׁר־בָּרָ֙אתִי֙ מֵעַל֙ פְּנֵ֣י הָֽאֲדָמָ֔ה מֵֽאָדָם֙ עַד־בְּהֵמָ֔ה עַד־רֶ֖מֶשׂ וְעַד־ע֣וֹף הַשָּׁמָ֑יִם כִּ֥י נִחַ֖מְתִּי כִּ֥י עֲשִׂיתִֽם׃

The Lord said: I will obliterate man whom I have created from the face of the earth; from man to animal, to crawling creatures, to birds of the heavens; for I regret that I made them. Man is not simply the pinnacle of creation, but the very purpose of it. Only man can direct the many objects and creatures of the world to their collective purpose. Consequently, in his absence, all of creation loses its reason for being. The Sages teach a parable to illustrate this idea: A man fashioned a wedding canopy for his son and prepared many types of food for the wedding feast. Sometime later, before the wedding, his son died. The father then dismantled the canopy, saying: I fashioned all this only for my son. Now that he is dead, why do I need a wedding canopy? Similarly, the Holy One, blessed be He, said: I created all the animals only for man. Now that man sins, why do I need these creatures?

וְנֹ֕חַ מָ֥צָא חֵ֖ן בְּעֵינֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃ (פ)

But from the entire human race, only Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. After being disappointed by the rest of Adam’s descendants, God chose Noah as the father of the new humanity, due to his special qualities.