Or, giants. The word means the fallen ones. The illegal marriage between fallen angels and the human race produced Nephilim, giants, “the mighty men who were of old the men of renown” (cf. Num. 13:32-33). God sent the flood to exterminate Noah’s generation because that generation had become impure. For the sake of the fulfillment of His purpose, God could not allow such a human race to exist.

In man’s first fall man did not exercise his spirit (see note Gen. 3:6¹); in the second fall he over-exercised his soul, inventing a new religion (see note Gen. 4:3¹). In the third fall man abused the fallen body and became flesh, full of lusts, fornication, and violence (vv. 2, 5, 11). The fallen flesh is the strongest and most evil enemy of God (Rom. 7:5-25; 8:1-13) and is thoroughly and absolutely hated by God. At the time of the third fall the entire human race became flesh. Thus, God stepped in and told His servant Noah that He would destroy that whole generation (vv. 7, 13). This is a prefigure of the age immediately preceding the Lord’s coming back (Matt. 24:37-39).

This is the second mentioning of the Spirit in this book (cf. Gen. 1:2). Before this time God’s Spirit was graciously working and striving with man to counter man’s rebellion and fall. Nevertheless, here a point was reached when the Spirit of God would strive with man no longer, signifying God’s forsaking of man.

At the time of man’s third fall, a number of the fallen angels in Satan’s principality came down to the earth, took human bodies, and used these bodies to form illegal marriages with the daughters of men, thus polluting the human race by mixing it with the fallen spirits. According to Jude 1:6-7 (see note Jude 1:6¹ and note Jude 1:7¹ there) the example set up by the fallen angels in committing fornication with different flesh was followed by Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:4-9; Rom. 1:27).

The sons of God here are the fallen angels (cf. Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7) who joined Satan in his rebellion against God (Rev. 12:4) and became the rulers and authorities in Satan’s dark kingdom (Matt. 12:26; Eph. 6:12).

The numbers three and five, seen here as components of the ark’s dimensions, are basic numbers of God’s building (cf. Exo. 27). The number three signifies the Triune God in His dispensing of Himself into man (Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; Eph. 3:16-19). The number five is composed of four, signifying man as one of God’s creatures (Rev. 4:6-7 and note Rev. 4:6^2c), plus one, signifying the one unique God (Deut. 6:4; Isa. 45:5; 1 Cor. 8:4). The significance of the numbers three and five is the mingling of the Triune God with man. This is God’s building.

The dimensions of the ark are composed of three and five multiplied by either ten or one hundred. The number ten signifies completeness (Dan. 1:12, 20) and the number one hundred signifies fullness (Matt. 13:23). This signifies that God’s building is the mingling of the Triune God with man in completeness and fullness.

Noah built the ark not according to his own imagination but absolutely according to God’s revelation. Cf. Exo. 25:9; 1 Chron. 28:11-19; 1 Cor. 3:10-12; Eph. 2:20a and note Eph. 2:20^2b.

The root of the words pitch in this verse and expiation elsewhere in the Old Testament means primarily to cover. The pitch here is a type of the redeeming blood of Christ, which covers God’s building within and without (Lev. 4:5-7; 6:30; 16:14-19; Heb. 9:21). The pitch within the ark was for the peace of Noah and his family (cf. Heb. 9:14), whereas the pitch without was for God’s satisfaction (cf. Exo. 12:13). Noah and his family were saved from the judgment of the flood by the pitch on the ark, signifying that the believers in Christ are saved from God’s judgment by the redeeming blood of Christ (Rom. 5:9).

In order for the pitch on the ark to be effective, Noah and his family had to be in the ark, i.e., in union with the ark. Likewise, in order to apply the redemption through Christ’s blood, we must be in Christ, i.e., in union with Him by believing into Him (John 3:16; 1 Cor. 1:30; Eph. 1:7). See note Gen. 3:21^2a, note Exo. 12:22², and note 1 John 2:2².

A kind of cypress, a resinous wood that can withstand the attack of water. It is a figure of the crucified Christ, who can withstand the waters of death (Acts 2:24).

The ark is a type of Christ (1 Pet. 3:20-21), not only the individual Christ but also the corporate Christ, the church, which is the Body of Christ and the new man (1 Cor. 12:12; Eph. 2:15-16; Col. 3:10-11). The building of the ark typifies the building of the corporate Christ, with the element of Christ’s riches as the building material, by those who work together with God (1 Cor. 3:9-12a; 2 Cor. 6:1; Eph. 3:8-10; 4:12). By building the ark and entering into it, Noah was not only saved from God’s judgment on the evil generation through the flood, but was also separated from that generation and ushered into a new age (1 Pet. 3:20 and note 1 Pet. 3:20³). Likewise, by building the church and entering into the church life, we will be saved from God’s judgment on today’s evil generation through the great tribulation (Matt. 24:37-39; Luke 17:26-27; 1 Thes. 5:3) and will be separated from that generation (Luke 21:36; Rev. 3:10) and ushered into a new age, the age of the millennium.

Like his great-grandfather Enoch (Gen. 5:22-24), Noah walked with God by faith (Heb. 11:7), which was God’s divine element transfused and infused into him to be his believing ability (Rom. 3:22 and note). As a result, he became heir of God’s righteousness (cf. Rom. 4:3, 9) and a herald of righteousness (2 Pet. 2:5) as a protest against the evil generation. Noah’s righteousness strengthened God’s standing to execute His judgment upon that ungodly generation.

Or, grace. Noah was able to walk with God (v. 9) in that crooked, perverted, and adulterous generation because he found grace (cf. Heb. 4:16). Grace is God coming to us to be our life supply, our strength, and our everything (see note 1 Cor. 15:10^1a). Such grace enabled Noah to overcome the flesh and to live a righteous life (Ezek. 14:14; cf. Rom. 5:17-21 and notes).

Satan had corrupted man to the uttermost, and God had determined to destroy the man whom He had created for His purpose. Thus, it appeared that God was defeated. But Noah points to the sovereign factor that provided God a way to continue to carry out His original purpose with man. Through Noah’s life and work God gained the victory over His enemy and changed the age. Cf. note Dan. 1:8¹ and note Eph. 2:4¹.

Or, purpose, desire.

There is only one door, one entrance into the ark. This one door typifies Christ (John 10:9).

From the same root as the Hebrew word for noon. In the ark there was only one window, toward the heavens, signifying that in the church, God’s building, there is only one revelation and one vision (Acts 2:42a; 1 Cor. 4:17; 1 Tim. 1:3-4) through the one New Testament ministry (2 Cor. 3:6-9; 4:1). The light comes from above (Acts 26:13-19).

A cubit is approximately eighteen inches.

The three stories of the ark signify the Triune God according to our experience of Him: the Spirit, signified by the lower story, reaches us first and brings us to the Son (1 Pet. 1:2; John 16:8, 13-15), and the Son brings us higher in our experience, to the Father (John 14:6; Eph. 2:18 see note 1 John 4:8^2c).

See note Gen. 9:9^1a.