洪水消退

上帝眷顾挪亚及方舟里的野兽和牲畜,使风吹在大地上,水便开始消退。 深渊的泉源和天上的水闸都关闭了,大雨也停了。 地上的洪水慢慢消退,过了一百五十天,水退下去了。 七月十七日,方舟停在亚拉腊山上。 水继续消退,到十月一日,山顶都露出来了。

又过了四十天,挪亚打开方舟的窗户, 放出一只乌鸦。它一直在空中飞来飞去,直到地上的水都干了。 后来,挪亚放出一只鸽子,以便了解地面的水是否已经消退。 但遍地都是水,鸽子找不到歇脚的地方,就飞回了方舟,挪亚伸手把鸽子接进方舟里。 10 过了七天,挪亚再把鸽子放出去。 11 到了黄昏,鸽子飞回来,嘴里衔着一片新拧下来的橄榄叶,挪亚便知道地上的水已经退了。 12 等了七天,他又放出鸽子,这一次,鸽子没有回来。

13 挪亚六百零一岁那年的一月一日,地上的水干了。挪亚打开方舟的盖观望,看见地面都干了。 14 到了二月二十七日,大地完全干了。 15 上帝对挪亚说: 16 “你与妻子、儿子和儿媳可以出方舟了。 17 你要把方舟里的飞禽走兽及爬虫等所有动物都带出来,让它们在地上多多繁殖。” 18 于是,挪亚与妻子、儿子和儿媳都出了方舟。 19 方舟里的飞禽走兽和爬虫等所有地上的动物,都按种类出了方舟。

挪亚献祭

20 挪亚为耶和华筑了一座坛,在上面焚烧各种洁净的牲畜和飞鸟作为燔祭。 21 耶和华闻到这燔祭的馨香,心想:“虽然人从小就心存恶念,但我再不会因为人的缘故而咒诅大地,再不会毁灭一切生灵。 22 只要大地尚存,播种收割、夏热冬寒、白昼黑夜必永不停息。”

The Flood Subsides

But (A)God remembered Noah and all the animals and all the livestock that were with him in the ark; and (B)God caused a wind to pass over the earth, and the water subsided. Also (C)the fountains of the deep and the [a]floodgates of the sky were closed, and (D)the rain from the sky was restrained; and the water receded steadily from the earth, and at the end (E)of 150 days the water decreased. Then in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, (F)the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat. And the water decreased steadily until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains became visible.

Then it came about at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the (G)window of the ark which he had made; and he sent out a raven, and it [b]flew here and there until the water was dried up [c]from the earth. Then he sent out a [d]dove, to see if the water was low on the [e]surface of the land; but the dove found no resting place for the sole of its foot, so it returned to him in the ark, for the water was on the [f]surface of all the earth. Then he put out his hand and took it, and brought it into the ark to himself. 10 So he waited another seven days longer; and again he sent out the dove from the ark. 11 And the dove came to him in [g]the evening, and behold, in its [h]beak was a fresh olive leaf. So Noah knew that the water was low on the earth. 12 Then he waited another seven days longer, and sent out (H)the dove; but it did not return to him again.

13 Now it came about in the (I)six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first of the month, that the water was dried up [i]from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the [j]surface of the ground had dried up. 14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry. 15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 “Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you, birds and animals and every crawling thing that crawls on the earth, that they may [k](J)breed abundantly on the earth, and (K)be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him. 19 Every animal, every crawling thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out [l]by their families from the ark.

20 Then Noah built (L)an altar to the Lord, and took some of every kind of (M)clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered (N)burnt offerings on the altar. 21 The Lord (O)smelled the soothing aroma, and the Lord said [m]to Himself, “I will never again (P)curse the ground on account of man, for (Q)the [n]intent of man’s heart is evil from his youth; (R)and I will never again [o]destroy every living thing, as I have done.

22 While the earth remains,
Seedtime and harvest,
Cold and heat,
(S)Summer and winter,
And (T)day and night
Shall not cease.”

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 8:2 Or windows of the heavens
  2. Genesis 8:7 Lit went out, going and returning
  3. Genesis 8:7 Lit from upon
  4. Genesis 8:8 Lit dove from him
  5. Genesis 8:8 Lit face
  6. Genesis 8:9 Lit face
  7. Genesis 8:11 Lit the time of evening
  8. Genesis 8:11 Lit mouth
  9. Genesis 8:13 Lit from upon
  10. Genesis 8:13 Lit face
  11. Genesis 8:17 Or swarm
  12. Genesis 8:19 Or according to their kind
  13. Genesis 8:21 Lit to His heart
  14. Genesis 8:21 Or inclination
  15. Genesis 8:21 Lit strike