Genesis 9:6-8

New Catholic Bible

⁶“Whoever spills human blood,
    that person’s blood will be shed;
    for in the image of God
    has God made man.

⁷And as for you, be fruitful and multiply; become numerous upon the earth and have dominion over it.”

Covenant of Mercy.^[a] ⁸God said to Noah and his sons,

Genesis 9:8 God’s intention as enunciated in the Yahwist tradition (8:21-22) is rethought in this Priestly passage as a covenant between God and Noah, analogous to that which will later be established between God and Abraham (Gen 15; 17) and then between God and the Israelite people (Ex 19–24). The imagery brings out the unqualified steadfastness of the divine intention. The Covenant is freely made on God’s part, that is, it does not depend on the future behavior of human beings, for the Lord does not ask Noah to fulfill any particular requirement.

New Catholic Bible (NCB)