william chiu

Genesis 6-9 tells of the story of the great flood which is familiar to many. However to people such as myself, the exact details of the story are unknown. After reading the passages, it is apparent that the story is meant to invoke a sense of morality into human beings. It forces the readers to wonder how they can achieve mercy from the almighty god the way Noah was spared from the flood. what duties should one perform? what attributes or characteristics should one posses or strive to posses? I was also able to see a similarity in the method of using a natural disaster to carry out a certain purpose in these passages and films and even the extinction of the dinosaurs. Many times have I seen films where a natural disaster strikes an area or earth. But all is well in the end when the natural disaster has cleared leaving the those who survived with a bright future in store. The extinction of the dinosaurs left the earth barren and uninhabitable. However out of such despair arose life forms which blossomed into the world we live in today. Perhaps the moral of genesis 6-9 is to always have faith and hope for the best.
Although the story is easy to follow along, I could not find the link between the ending of part 9 and the rest of the story. Why did Noah curse canaan? What is the significance of Noah's nakedness in the presence of his son?

While I was reading the Bible; Genesis 6-9, I got curious about Noah’s inner-mind. How would he have felt when he realized God wants him to build the ark? Even though I’m a Christian, I wish the Bible could have more of people’s emotion in its verses. In that way, it might be more like a novel, but the readers and believers will be able to understand the Bible a lot easier. And also, I could not quite understand the motif after the flood. Noah got drunk and ended up cursing his descendants. To understand that part, I guess I have to ask my pastor or to do Bible study more by myself. It was definitely interesting to read these verses for class, and I got to discover new thoughts of myself towards the Bible.

I am quite familiar with genesis, but i have never taken apart the story such as we did in the classroom. I found it interesting how repetitive the story was, which we established was a way to make the story stick. It was also interesting to see God transform from this angry God to a more forgiving God which many individuals now know and accept him to be today which he reminds them of through the symbolic rainbow. As I read the passage I wondered, why it was accepted to drink wine and become drunk, as Noah did, but so many other things are deemed sinful?

Genesis 6-9,Santigui Tounkara

I was very unfamiliar with the story of Noah.I understood that Noah was a big part of what christian's beleives. I think that the story was really interesting and also made me learned something new about an aspect of christianity. Altough I was raised under Muslim beleives, I thought it was interesting to know a bit more about Christianity. I also didn't know that the Bible is considered to be a cultural artifact because it discuss about civilizations over time.

A question I might have after reading the Genesis is: What is the major difference between the Old-Testament and the New Testament.

Laurence Chan, Genesis 6-9

This was my second time reading Genesis. I don't remember my initial impressions but I was surprised at how God had seemingly "human" characteristics: anger and resentment. His want to rid the world of all humans was never put into action, but because of Noah's goodness, the story of Noah's Ark was created. This is an interesting point. Noah was spared and encouraged to have many children to ideally spread goodness. Therefore, man's way of thinking was filtered while we are still encouraged to have free will.

Looking at this book as strictly as a book of origins, I stop to think about the choice of a flood to "cleanse" the earth. Water, while capable of great destruction, is more known as a symbol of life. This huge flood could have been seen as a renewal of good, much like baptism involves water. I guess you can say it was the world's first and only world-wide baptism.

Laura Flower, Genesis 6-9

The story of Noah and the flood is actually one of the few stories in the bible that I find to be interesting. I find it appealing for all of its details, but mostly for the characteristics that it gives to God throughout the story. That God could become vengeful and seek to destroy the entirety of the human race and then, following his actions, to realize what he has done and repent, makes God an intriguing figure. These human characteristics that are attributed to God, however, do not diminish his power in any way; it is still very evident that he is more then capable of bringing about anything he desires. Although God is presented as this all-mighty and potentially terrifying being in this story I like the fact that he steps in and takes charge to cleanse the earth of all the evil and corruption.

Question to ponder:
What is the underlying message(s)/purpose(s) of this story?

What i think about the Bible and its story.

The story of Noah's ark and the flood is widespread that even if you are not a Christian, you probable have heard about it at least once. The book of Genesis tells stories of God and his unbelievable miracles such as the Creation, and the story Noah and the flood is one of them. Since other religious text contains similar story, and many scientists have found evidences of the existence of the flood, it is current trend to accept that there was a great flood in the history of Earth.
Regardless of the truthfulness of the flood, I think Noah and the Flood serves more than just a story but has greater purpose. As a little child when I first heard this story from a Church, the only impression was simple and obvious, “wow! How great God is and how much he loves us!” Now I grew older and read this, I tend to think more philosophically. If the Great Flood really happened and it was intended, we as human beings, have to accept the fact that greater or ultimate being really exists, we call him God. As we read from the story, God has power to punish humans for our own sins and because we know that God is watching our behaviors, this story sets pressures to have some kind of codes of conducts for us to follow. To prevent any other disasters like the Flood, the Bible is suggesting certain commandments for us to obey.
However, many questions arose in my head. Why am I getting a feeling that the Bible is using human’s fear of miracles and disasters to make us obey God? As God’s point of views, we might be very naive and insignificant which Bible denied to agree on. But he created human beings and made us obey him by performing remarkable miracles and disasters. Why doesn't he just program us to obey him automatically? According to Bible, God respects our free will. Then what other greater purposes can he possibly have for creating us when we don’t believe in him, then we are considered exempt from Jesus’ salvation or abandoned from heaven? I once asked a pastor what are God's purposes of creation and he answered, "We won't ever know his purpose like when you are talking to a newborn baby, he won't understand what you are telling him." What a great excuse!

PS. no offense for all the Christians who will be reading this note. This is just what I think.

John Torres "Genesis 6-9"

The Genesis chapters discuss God’s message to Noah. God wanted to start a new civilization around the Noah’s virtues. Chapter six states that God feels like there is too much corruption and violence in the world. Since God created the earth and all its creatures he feels that he has the power to destroy the earth and its foul creatures. When God sees how Noah is living a virtuous life he decides to use Noah almost as a model to help him re-create the world. This reminds me a lot of George Lucas’s Star Wars trilogies because both stories encompass a character that is used as a “savior”.

Questions to think about:
1. Did Noah abuse God’s trust in him?
2. What is the significance of lines 21-29 in ch.9? (Noah’s son uncovering him and seeing him naked)
3. Why is the gates of heaven opening before the rain comes significant?

Emily Clarke, Genesis Ch 6-9

Along with some of my fellow classmates, this is my first time actually reading out of the Old Testament in English. The only other time I have read the Old Testament was when I was making my Bat Mitzvah, where I read the story about sibling rivalry between Jacob and. Esau. Now, as a 19 year old woman, I was able to appreciate the beauty of the language and meaning behind the stories compared to when I was a young 13 year old child.
The power of G-d does not surprise me as I read the texts. Just from my everyday knowledge of religion and my own beliefs, G-d is one of the most, if not the most, authoritative and dependable characters in literature. I never understood the reason for the flood until I read Chapter 6 of Genesis. A line that caught my attention was "And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.” I finally was able to understand the reason behind the flood and read why G-d was so angry. I also pictured in my mind an actual flood that encompasses all the mountains and moreover the entire Earth. Not that I would ever want myself or any person to be on Earth at the time of a flood but to watch from afar would be a pretty spectacular site. In my opinion, water is the more powerful object on Earth, which makes sense as to why G-d would choose water as a means of destruction. I also thought about other symbolic characteristics of water, such as water as a cleansing material, or water as a purifying material. A literary tool that caught my eye was how the author used precise numbers to describe a length of time. For example,“In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.” I feel this technique adds detail to a short story. “Less is more” would be the phrase I would use to describe this literary technique.

Jenelle Fiori

The Book of “Genesis” from the Bible, specifically chapters six through 7, is a story about Noah’s ark and the flood story. “Genesis” is a very renowned story because it is a very old tale that has been passed from generation to generation. However, the key reason why the Book of Genesis is so popular is because of the story’s purpose, which is to give a meaning to the beginning of life and to give human beings moral ethics. The story of Noah is the first to tell of a God whole allows His subjects to have free will, which is evident when humans on earth having and corrupting their power, seen in Genesis 6.6 “his heart was only evil”. After using Noah as a vessel to renew Earth, commanding Noah to build an arc as seen in chapter 7, the Lord begins the rain for “forty days and forty nights” to cleanse Earth, symbolic of baptism, so it may begin anew. Noah being used as a vessel instead of a servant to God is evident in chapter 8 when he send forth a Raven, the a dove two times who comes back with an olive branch and burns this as an offering to God to prove his loyalty. In return God gives Noah the Earth, made a covenant or promise that he will no longer destroy mankind as long as they “be fruitful and multiply”, as repeated several times throughout chapter 9, and as long as they do not unlawfully shed the blood of other men. Ideally, through this cleansing the Lord is seen as loving and forgiving throughout this passage, making the “Book of Genesis” a world renowned tale.

Courtney Lum

What is most striking about Genesis sections 6 through 9 is the notion that the earth and human populations had become so corrupt that God himself deemed it necessary to cleanse the earth. This divine intervention in terms of a flood creates a fearful atmosphere, in which readers along with the characters in the story are struck with a sense of helplessness and inferiority compared to this great, all-powerful being. However, I feel as if this story also creates the mood of hope and rebirth, with this idea that all evil and sin can be washed away leaving a brand new, clean slate. Disregarding the religious connotations of the story, Genesis can simply be understood as a second chance to go about life.

Kevin Capps, Genesis 6-9

This was my first time actually reading the story of the Great Flood in Genesis, and pretty much any story from the Bible. However, I’ve seen plenty of movies and heard about this particular story several times. I found the repetitious verses to be interesting and precise descriptions of the written text to be rather peculiar. The directions God gives to Noah about dimensions of the Ark seem insignificant to the story, yet they are still included. I do understand the repetitive nature of the verses though; they are meant to reinforce and canonize the myth, allowing readers to hold onto the story.

I’ve seen a documentary about Biblical Literalists that were searching for any remaining evidence of the Ark on Mount Ararat in Turkey. It was remarkable how much effort has been put forth to try and find proof in its existence. To think of the Ark in a literal sense is rather fascinating, as the Ark represents the only link to the pre-Flood time, before God decided to cleanse the world, and would be quite the artifact to discover.

Overall, I think this story will remain a popular over time because of it's powerful message and great significance to many cultures.

Genesis 6-9, Irene Bunnell

I agree that it was really interesting reading the bible from a literature perspective. I noticed how things like time and quantity are irrelevant and exaggerated in the story. Noah is 600 hundred years old, but lifetimes and years don't really matter to this story which happened thousands of years ago. The actual size of the ark is pretty small for the task it is undertaking, apparently the quantity and actual space taken up by two of every single animal isn't important either. Neither of these things matter to the moral and lesson of the story. It also seems like it is grossly over exaggerated that every single person on the earth except Noah was an awful evil person. If we take this story as absolutely true, maybe he decided that only Noah was doing specific things to please God, not that everyone else was actually partaking in evil activities. After the flood God feels remorseful, maybe the moral of this story was meant for God, to be forgiving and benevolent instead of just killing everybody off who displeases him. This is actually a theme the bible teaches throughout, to forgive rather take your anger out on someone who has wronged you.

Jordan Hernandez: Genesis 6-9

The story that ensued in Genesis 6-9 has several themes, one being divine retribution. As humanity became consumed with corruption, God bestowed upon earth a great flood in retribution for mans sins. However in order to preserve humanity, God designated Noah to build an arc to house his family along with one male and one female of each species. While reading genesis it becomes clear that rain is symbolic of a purification or cleansing process. When the flood ended and earth became dry, all evil had disappeared and man was given a second chance and allowed to proliferate. Although the story helps to convey Gods wrath and power, I feel that it is also important to note that he is also portrayed as a benevolent god. When god decided to end the flood, he established a covenant with man and said that he would never again smite man. This marked a transition from a feared god to a more respected god. I was confused, however, about why Noah cursed Canaan just for seeing him naked. I did not really understand its relevance to the story of Gods punishment and his forgiveness.

Finally, I think the fear instilled by story of the flood has been instrumental in its global acceptance or perception, which is why even now the story continues to be told.

Margaret Yoon: Genesis 6-9

Although I am well-acquainted with the book of Genesis, I had only read the stories from a religious point of view. Thus, it was interesting for me to study it as world literature, instead of solely as a spiritual doctrine.

I felt that because God loved Noah and saved him from the flood, along with the family members and animals that went with him into the ark, it showed God’s love for those who please Him and lead righteous lives. However, for the rest of the world, which was filled with sin, He destroyed, revealing God’s strength and wrath.

Since God sent Jesus to the earth to become man, I see qualities in him that are quite human. For instance, after the floods, God declares that He will never curse mankind and every living thing again. It seems that God is remorseful for His actions and thus, He blesses Noah and his sons to lead prosperous lives.

After the flood, Noah plants a vineyard and becomes drunk. It was puzzling to me that he cursed Canaan, even though it seemed like Ham was simply trying to help him become clothed again. Is it not Noah’s fault that he is naked in the first place? Why is it such a big matter, and why can he not find forgiveness? I feel that Noah’s actions were unjust and could have been less severe.

The most recent flood movie I saw was an international film called Haewundae, and while reading the text I was reminded of the terror and agony that seized the victims in the movie. Although the Bible does not venture deeply into those who actually suffer the floods, I was able to picture the terrible experience. It also gives light to God’s vengeance, punishing the sinful and saving those who are pleasing to Him.

Ralph Monfort Genesis 6-9

In the Great Flood in Genesis, it showed how wrathful God can be. When God saw the wickedness of man, he became angered and decided to kill off the whole world. However, he wanted to restart the world again with the values of his choosing. So, God called upon Noah, a person whose values that he felt was worthy enough to be instilled in the "new" descendants. This concept make me feel that God is always watching over us and judging our every move like it a game. For every deed we get a point and every bad action we lose a point.

However, when God said, "I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake... neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.". it makes me feel that I don't have to worry much about sinning because it shows that he is forgiving if i am willing to repent.

Lastly, I disagree with the fact that Noah cursed his youngest son, Ham,and his descendants for looking at him naked when he was drunk. Because as a "good son" he got his brothers to help cover Noah up. I feel that this is a major flaw in a character that God deemed as the foundational stepping stone of the his followers.

Anna Tsukroff

The story of the Flood in Genesis has remained a powerful one throughout many years. This is due, in my opinion, to its simplicity and clarity. The story itself is concise and easily understood: God is an all-powerful being who decided to destroy all life on Earth on a whim because he felt men were not obeying him and were acting in a cruel, evil manner. The only one he saved, Noah, was saved because he was obeying God and therefore found favor with him. The message of the Flood is that actions have consequences. If you act in an evil manner, God will punish you. If you are good and righteous, God will reward you.

It is interesting that God has a change of heart after the Flood. He makes a covenant with Noah stating he'll never destroy all life on Earth again. There is a transition here from an angry, vengeful God to a more forgiving figure. I feel that at this point, God becomes more reliable in the eyes of the reader because he is saying that no matter what man does and how evil and corrupt he is, he will never kill everyone on Earth in a great catastrophe again. Personally, when I read this, this doesn't seem like a completely comforting statement. God is saying he won't kill humanity as a whole again, but he's not saying he won't kill or punish individuals. The message of understanding the effects and consequences of your actions still applies even through God's covenant with Noah.

What I find hypocritical about Noah, however, is the incident with his son Ham seeing him naked. It is never stated or even implied in the text that his son purposefully spies on him or really wants to see Noah naked. In fact, he does a nice thing by going and getting his brothers Shem and Japheth to cover his father up when he's too much in a drunken stupor to keep himself clothed. Instead of thanking his son for taking care of him, however, Noah curses his son and all of his son's descendants, the Canaanites. This seems a completely unforgiving and spiteful act for someone who is supposed to be so righteous.

Felicia Ooi; Genesis 6-9

I feel that the story of Noah and the ark is one that is very compelling in the sense that it shows the power of God and that He is definitely capable of destroying what He first created. Noah and his sons are portrayed as the ones who are righteous among all the evil men of the world, "blameless", in fact. And so they were ordered to build the ark and to bring with them pairs of animals so that the new world would be one that was righteous and "clean", so to speak.

Despite the massive destruction that the flood caused, wiping out all traces of evil in the world, I was awed by the remorse that God showed after the flood had receded. So much so that He made a covenant with Noah to never again send a flood to destroy the living creatures of the world.

The one part I wasnt too clear about was why Noah cursed Canaan rather than Ham. My perspective on it is that Noah was angry that Ham had seen him naked and inebriated and rather than covering him up, Ham instead told his brothers (Shem and Japheth) who then proceeded to cover their father's nakedness. Perhaps Noah felt that a stronger way of cursing his son was to instead curse his son's son, which would probably make Ham feel even more remorseful as his innocent son had to take the blame for his wrongdoing.

Genesis 6 through 9

The story of Noah is a very scary and powerful story to me. One part of the story that is very interesting to me is that it seems that God feels remorse for flooding the earth. In it he says he will never flood the earth again. One aspect that I enjoyed from it was that the wicked people of the earth had to pay for their actions. I also liked how direct and simple it was to read. One part I did not understand is why Noah cursed his son and grandson just because they saw him naked when he was drunk.

Matt Egan

The story featured in genesis focuses on the main character of Noah, and his mission to preserve life, while God takes on a mission in order to destroy all the evil and corruption he sees in man. Noah builds an arc, and takes on two of all the living things on the earth, bringing with him his family and food in order to survive the ordeal. After the flood, a dove sent by Noah finds an olive branch and brings it back to Noah, suggesting that the flood is indeed over and that dry land is finally available to land upon.

The olive branch in this story is an interesting addition, since for millennia after the publication of the bible the olive branch has, and continues to stand as a symbol of peace. A possible interpretation of this passage could be that Noah left civilization due to the violence mentioned in Genesis six, and found peace a number of days later after whatever strife had passed, and chose to rejoin society.