⁷ By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen,^(A) in holy fear built an ark^(B) to save his family.^(C) By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith.^(D)

⁸ By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance,^(E) obeyed and went,^(F) even though he did not know where he was going. ⁹ By faith he made his home in the promised land^(G) like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents,^(H) as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.^{(I) 10} For he was looking forward to the city^(J) with foundations,^(K) whose architect and builder is God.^{(L) 11} And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age,^(M) was enabled to bear children^(N) because she^[a] considered him faithful^(O) who had made the promise. ¹² And so from this one man, and he as good as dead,^(P) came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.^(Q)

¹³ All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised;^(R) they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance,^(S) admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.^{(T) 14} People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.^{(U) 16} Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one.^(V) Therefore God is not ashamed^(W) to be called their God,^(X) for he has prepared a city^(Y) for them.

¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice.^(Z) He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, ¹⁸ even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”^{[b](AA) 19} Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead,^(AB) and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.

²⁰ By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.^(AC)

²¹ By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons,^(AD) and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.

²² By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones.^(AE)

²³ By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born,^(AF) because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.^(AG)

²⁴ By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.^{(AH) 25} He chose to be mistreated^(AI) along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. ²⁶ He regarded disgrace^(AJ) for the sake of Christ^(AK) as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.^{(AL) 27} By faith he left Egypt,^(AM) not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. ²⁸ By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer^(AN) of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.^(AO)

²⁹ By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.^(AP)

³⁰ By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days.^(AQ)

³¹ By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.^[c](AR)

³² And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon,^(AS) Barak,^(AT) Samson^(AU) and Jephthah,^(AV) about David^(AW) and Samuel^(AX) and the prophets, ³³ who through faith conquered kingdoms,^(AY) administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,^{(AZ) 34} quenched the fury of the flames,^(BA) and escaped the edge of the sword;^(BB) whose weakness was turned to strength;^(BC) and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.^{(BD) 35} Women received back their dead, raised to life again.^(BE) There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. ³⁶ Some faced jeers and flogging,^(BF) and even chains and imprisonment.^{(BG) 37} They were put to death by stoning;^[d](BH) they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword.^(BI) They went about in sheepskins and goatskins,^(BJ) destitute, persecuted and mistreated— ³⁸ the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves^(BK) and in holes in the ground.

³⁹ These were all commended^(BL) for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised,^{(BM) 40} since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us^(BN) would they be made perfect.^(BO)

Wickedness in the World

6 When human beings began to increase in number on the earth^(A) and daughters were born to them, ² the sons of God^(B) saw that the daughters^(C) of humans were beautiful,^(D) and they married^(E) any of them they chose. ³ Then the Lord said, “My Spirit^(F) will not contend with^[a] humans forever,^(G) for they are mortal^[b];^(H) their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”

⁴ The Nephilim^(I) were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans^(J) and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.^(K)

⁵ The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth,^(L) and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.^{(M) 6} The Lord regretted^(N) that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. ⁷ So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth^(O) the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.^(P)” ⁸ But Noah^(Q) found favor in the eyes of the Lord.^(R)

Noah and the Flood

⁹ This is the account^(S) of Noah and his family.

Noah was a righteous man, blameless^(T) among the people of his time,^(U) and he walked faithfully with God.^{(V) 10} Noah had three sons: Shem,^(W) Ham and Japheth.^(X)

¹¹ Now the earth was corrupt^(Y) in God’s sight and was full of violence.^{(Z) 12} God saw how corrupt^(AA) the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways.^{(AB) 13} So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy^(AC) both them and the earth.^{(AD) 14} So make yourself an ark of cypress^[c] wood;^(AE) make rooms in it and coat it with pitch^(AF) inside and out. ¹⁵ This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.^{[d] 16} Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit^[e] high all around.^[f] Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. ¹⁷ I am going to bring floodwaters^(AG) on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish.^{(AH) 18} But I will establish my covenant with you,^(AI) and you will enter the ark^(AJ)—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. ¹⁹ You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you.^{(AK) 20} Two^(AL) of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind^(AM) of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive.^{(AN) 21} You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.”

²² Noah did everything just as God commanded him.^(AO)

God’s Covenant With Noah

9 Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.^{(A) 2} The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creature that moves along the ground, and on all the fish in the sea; they are given into your hands.^{(B) 3} Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you.^(C) Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.^(D)

⁴ “But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it.^{(E) 5} And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting.^(F) I will demand an accounting from every animal.^(G) And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being.^(H)

⁷ As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.”^(K)

⁸ Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: ⁹ “I now establish my covenant with you^(L) and with your descendants after you ¹⁰ and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. ¹¹ I establish my covenant^(M) with you:^(N) Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.^(O)”

¹² And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant^(P) I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come:^{(Q) 13} I have set my rainbow^(R) in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow^(S) appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant^(T) between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.^{(U) 16} Whenever the rainbow^(V) appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant^(W) between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

¹⁷ So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant^(X) I have established between me and all life on the earth.”

The Sons of Noah

¹⁸ The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham and Japheth.^(Y) (Ham was the father of Canaan.)^{(Z) 19} These were the three sons of Noah,^(AA) and from them came the people who were scattered over the whole earth.^(AB)

²⁰ Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded^[a] to plant a vineyard. ²¹ When he drank some of its wine,^(AC) he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. ²² Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked^(AD) and told his two brothers outside. ²³ But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.

²⁴ When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, ²⁵ he said,

²⁶ He also said,

²⁸ After the flood Noah lived 350 years. ²⁹ Noah lived a total of 950 years, and then he died.^(AL)