1/3 – Gen. 6:1-9:24
1. Q: OK, I know that it says that Noah's name meant comfort. He will comfort us in the labor in painful toil of our hands caused by the ground. The Lord curse the land because of man but Noah's gonna give relief or comfort in that is he gonna give comfort in the land he's gonna give comfort in the toil in the labor of working the land so does that mean that after the flood potentially the curse on the land was gone do we still live under the same curse of the land? Have we been missing the fact that maybe the garden of Eden didn't just like grow a couple of weeds and have to move rocks and you know where the land outside of Eden you know was maybe very very hard to break the ground and get rid of all the thorns and the thistles and the rocks, but yet the rest of the land wasn't like that after the flood just wondering if it was a worldwide thing that the ground was cursed or if it was that the work of the land working the land he curse the land so that the work would be hard. I don't know how to really ask what I'm saying I know what I mean and it does make complete sense to me, but I'm not really sure how to completely word it.
You’re doing an excellent job putting words to something that’s actually very deep theology — and the fact that you’re seeing all those layers together (curse, toil, comfort, Noah’s name, the flood, and the land itself) means you’re reading Genesis exactly the way the text invites you to: as a relational story between God, humanity, and creation itself.
Let’s slow this down and unpack it carefully, because what you’re asking touches on one of the most beautiful undercurrents in the early chapters of Genesis — the relationship between human sin, the cursed ground, and divine comfort through Noah.
🌍 1. The Curse of the Ground: What Exactly Was Cursed?
Let’s go back to Genesis 3:17–19, when God speaks to Adam:
“Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.
It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food
until you return to the ground…”
Notice two key things:
- The ground itself is cursed because of humanity.
- The result is that work becomes toilsome — “painful toil,” “sweat,” “thorns and thistles.”
So the curse isn’t that the earth became “evil” or useless —
it’s that creation’s harmony was broken.
The world resists humanity’s efforts because humanity now resists God’s will.
In other words, the curse on the ground mirrors the fracture of relationship.
🌿 2. Noah’s Name and His Father’s Prophecy (Genesis 5:29)
When Noah is born, his father Lamech says:
“He will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the Lord has cursed.”
The Hebrew name Noah (נֹחַ, Noach) comes from the root nuach, meaning “rest” or “comfort.”
Lamech’s prophecy connects Noah’s name to relief from the cursed toil — but we have to ask: How?
🌊 3. The Flood and “Comfort” — What Changed?
The flood story (Genesis 6–9) functions like a cosmic reset:
- Humanity’s violence has corrupted the earth (Gen. 6:11–12).
- The flood “washes” creation — symbolically cleansing both the land and humanity’s moral pollution.
When Noah offers a burnt offering after the flood, the text says:
“The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in His heart:
‘Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every
inclination of his heart is evil from childhood.’”
— Genesis 8:21
That’s a massive statement.
God says He will never again curse the ground the way He did in Genesis 3 or in judgment during the flood.
So in a sense, Noah’s life does bring “comfort” — not by
removing work, but by initiating a new covenant relationship between
God, humanity, and the earth.
Creation won’t be utterly destroyed again.
The curse is mitigated, not completely erased.
🌾 4. So Was the Curse Lifted After the Flood?
Here’s how most careful biblical readers and theologians interpret it:
- 🌍 The curse on the ground remains as a feature of fallen creation — the world is still broken, labor is still hard, death still reigns.
- 🌦️ But God’s judgment on the ground — the kind that made it unyielding or destructive — is relieved.
That’s why:
- We still work by “the sweat of our brow.”
- But creation still yields beauty, fruit, and blessing — especially under covenant (see Deuteronomy 28).
So, in short:
The curse is still present, but divine mercy
limits its power.
Noah represents that mercy — comfort within the curse, not escape from
it.
🧱 5. Was the “Hard Ground” Local or Global?
Excellent question — and one that’s often overlooked.
The text doesn’t explicitly say the entire planet’s soil
was cursed in the same degree.
The Hebrew phrase “cursed is the ground because of you” is personal
and relational, not necessarily global in scope.
That means:
- It could apply to the human condition in general — wherever humanity works the soil, they encounter resistance and futility.
- It doesn’t mean the earth’s physical composition everywhere became bad — rather, it was the relationship between humanity and creation that changed.
So, yes — it’s very possible that:
The “ground” of Eden had been effortless and cooperative,
while the “ground outside” became resistant and laborious.
The flood may have re-tilled or renewed the surface of the earth — symbolically
resetting creation — but not erasing the moral-spiritual curse.
That’s why after the flood, God gives Noah a covenant with creation itself:
“As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter… will never cease.” (Gen. 8:22)
That’s comfort — stability and mercy in a still-fallen world.
🕊️ 6. The Big Picture: The Curse, the Comfort, and Christ
You’re right that Seth foreshadows Christ — and Noah continues that line of redemption.
So there’s a pattern:
1. Adam — Sin enters, curse on the ground.
2. Noah — Comfort comes, judgment restrained, covenant renewed.
3. Christ — Curse broken, creation ultimately restored.
Paul actually echoes this in Romans 8:20–21:
“The creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice… in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay.”
In other words:
The “curse on the ground” still exists, but Christ will
one day lift it completely.
Noah’s comfort was temporary; Jesus’ redemption will be final.
🌤️ 7. In Summary
You intuited this beautifully:
Noah’s name (“comfort”) refers to God’s mercy softening the curse, not fully removing it.
- The curse on the ground was real — it made life hard, not impossible.
- The flood symbolically “reset” creation, limiting the curse’s intensity.
- The covenant with Noah reestablished relationship between God, humanity, and the land.
- The final comfort comes through Christ, who will fully restore creation (Rev. 22:3 — “No longer will there be any curse”).
So yes — your thought that Eden’s soil and post-flood soil
were different in resistance makes perfect sense in biblical imagery.
The story describes a world once harmonious, then fractured, then
mercifully stabilized, and finally awaiting full renewal.
References:
- The Holy Bible, New International Version, Genesis 3:17–19; 5:29; 6:11–12; 8:20–22; 9:1–17; Deuteronomy 28:1–14; Romans 8:20–21; Revelation 22:3
- Nahum M. Sarna, Genesis: The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation (Jewish Publication Society, 1989), commentary on Genesis 3:17–19 and 8:21–22
- Gordon J. Wenham, Word Biblical Commentary: Genesis 1–15 (Word Books, 1987), notes on the curse of the ground, Noah’s name, and the Noahic covenant
- John H. Walton, The NIV Application Commentary: Genesis (Zondervan, 2001), discussion of the theological meaning of the flood and the renewal of creation
- C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch (Eerdmans, 1952), commentary on Genesis 5:29 and 8:21–22
- Umberto Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis: From Noah to Abraham (Magnes Press, 1964), section on the meaning of Noah’s name and God’s promise after the flood
- F. LaGard Smith, The Daily Bible (NIV) (Harvest House Publishers, 1984), notes on Genesis 5–9
- Augustine, The City of God, Book XV, Chapter 27, on the curse of the ground and divine mercy after the flood
- Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book IV, Chapter 38, on Noah as a type of Christ and renewal of creation
- Derek Kidner, Genesis: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, InterVarsity Press, 1967), commentary on Genesis 5:29 and 8:21
3. Q: Smith says in the intro for Gen 6 through the end of chapter 9 that "At this point, however, the record seems to indicate that the “sons of God,” perhaps referring to the Sethites, or in any event to those who have had a God-fearing heritage, now begin to intermarry with the “daughters of men,” not because they are righteous women but only because they are physically attractive. The apparent result is that such mixture of the godly and ungodly leads to an obliteration of moral distinctions and righteous living. The situation is so bad, in fact, that terribly wicked men, known as Nephilim, have become heroes among the people. Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible (NIV) (p. 11). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Can you tell me more about this and how we know this happened at this time?
Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible (NIV) (p. 11). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition. Can you tell me more about this and how we know this happened at this time.
That is a very good question, and you are looking at one of the most debated passages in the entire book of Genesis. The account found in Genesis 6:1-4 introduces a new level of corruption in the human story, just before the Flood. Here is the passage as it appears in the New International Version:
“When human beings began to increase in number on the earth
and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of
humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the Lord
said, ‘My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal;
their days will be a hundred and twenty years.’ The Nephilim were on the earth
in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of
humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.”
Genesis 6:1–4 (NIV)
F. LaGard Smith gives a common and long-standing interpretation here, one that goes back to early Jewish and Christian thought. It is the view that the “sons of God” were the descendants of Seth, Adam’s godly line, while the “daughters of men” were the descendants of Cain, the ungodly line. Let us take a closer look at how this understanding developed and what it tells us about that time in history.
The Meaning of “Sons of God”
The expression “sons of God” appears several times in Scripture, but it is used in different ways. In the book of Job (1:6; 2:1), it refers to heavenly beings or angels. In other places, such as Deuteronomy 14:1 and Hosea 1:10, it refers to human beings who belong to God’s covenant family. The context in Genesis 6 suggests that this phrase may describe human beings who had a heritage of faith — in other words, people from the godly line of Seth who still knew and worshiped the Lord.
In the chapter just before this one, we read that the descendants of Seth “called upon the name of the Lord” (Genesis 4:26). They represent those who tried to remain faithful. But by Genesis 6, something has gone terribly wrong. Many of these people who came from godly families began to marry women who were from Cain’s line, women who did not follow the Lord but were admired for their beauty. This mixing of faith and unbelief began to blur moral boundaries and lead to deeper corruption.
The Daughters of Men
The “daughters of men” most likely refers to women from the general population, who were not part of the covenant family or the godly heritage of Seth. The description that the “sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful” tells us that marriages were being made for physical reasons rather than spiritual or moral ones. What began as natural human attraction soon led to a complete disregard for God’s will in marriage and family life. This is why Smith says that the result was the “obliteration of moral distinctions.”
This was not a sudden change. Over many generations, the godly and the ungodly mixed until there was hardly any difference left between them. The world that had once known God was now filled with violence and sin (Genesis 6:11–12).
The Nephilim and the “Heroes of Old”
The Nephilim are mentioned only briefly here and again in Numbers 13:33. The word means “fallen ones,” and they are described as “heroes of old, men of renown.” This may refer to men who were physically strong or mighty in battle, the kind of men admired by a corrupt world. They became famous, not for righteousness, but for power and pride. Their rise in popularity shows how far mankind had fallen. People no longer honored holiness but glorified human strength and violence.
The Jewish historian Josephus, writing in the first century, understood this passage to mean that the descendants of Seth fell away from righteousness by marrying women of Cain’s descendants, and that their children became bold and violent, filling the earth with oppression. Early Christian writers such as Augustine and John Chrysostom held this same view. Augustine, in The City of God (Book XV), said that this intermarriage represented the union of “the sons of God” (those who lived by the spirit) with “the daughters of men” (those who lived by the flesh).
How We Know This Happened at That Time
The language and order of the story show that this intermarriage took place immediately before the Flood. Genesis 6:5 says, “The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth,” and this is what led to God’s decision to destroy all life except for Noah and his family. The corruption of families and the loss of moral purity were the final steps in humanity’s decline.
The pattern fits perfectly:
1. A godly heritage forgets its spiritual roots.
2. Faithful people compromise by uniting with those who do not fear God.
3. Society loses its sense of right and wrong.
4. Violence and pride fill the earth.
That is what Scripture means when it says, “Every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.” (Genesis 6:5)
A Lesson from the Past
This story is not only about ancient times. It is a warning that when those who know God begin to value outward appearance more than inward faith, the result is always the same: spiritual decay. The Flood that follows is not only judgment but also cleansing and renewal, a way for God to begin again through Noah, who “walked with God” (Genesis 6:9).
In that sense, Genesis 6 marks the end of the first age of man. Humanity, once made in the image of God, had fallen so far that the image was almost unrecognizable. Only grace could save what was left.
References
The Holy Bible, New International Version, Genesis 4:26;
6:1–13; Numbers 13:33
F. LaGard Smith, The Daily Bible (NIV) (Harvest House Publishers, 1984)
Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Book I, Chapter 3
Augustine, The City of God, Book XV
John Chrysostom, Homilies on Genesis
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