Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Genesis 6:5 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 5. 5And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
The LORD sees that human wickedness is great and that every shaping inclination of the heart's thoughts is only evil continually. The judgment begins with God's comprehensive moral assessment, not with fascination over the Nephilim.
Read It With
- Genesis 6:1–8
Read verses 5–8 together and compare 8:21. Verse 5 supplies the explicit diagnosis; verse 6 shows divine regret and grief; verse 7 announces judgment; verse 8 introduces Noah's favor.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The LORD's seeing supplies the explicit human moral diagnosis that explains the grief and judgment in verses 6–7.
Read Genesis 6:5–8 together
Why these verses belong together: The LORD's moral assessment, regret and grief, judgment announcement, and Noah's favor form the complete flood-prologue turn from corruption to preservation.
Verse 5. 5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
Verse 6. 6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
Verse 7. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
Verse 8. 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
Follow the Context
- Humanity multiplies; the sons of God see human daughters, take wives from those they choose, and the LORD declares a disputed limit of 120 years (6:1–3).
- The narrator locates the Nephilim in those days and also afterward and connects the unions with ancient mighty men of renown, though the exact relationships remain disputed (6:4).
- The LORD sees comprehensive human wickedness and inward evil, regrets making humanity, and is grieved to the heart (6:5–6).
- The LORD announces the blotting out of humanity together with land creatures and birds, but Noah finds favor in the LORD's eyes (6:7–8).
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“the LORD saw”
In plain language: God perceives and evaluates humanity's condition.
The wording reverses earlier creation scenes in which God saw what was good.
Why it matters: Judgment follows moral assessment, not arbitrary impulse.
How certain? strong“imagination of the thoughts”
In plain language: The forming or shaping design behind the heart's thoughts.
The diagnosis reaches inward purposes and plans.
Why it matters: Evil is portrayed as a persistent orientation, not only scattered acts.
How certain? strong“only evil continually”
In plain language: The inward moral direction is described in comprehensive, repeated terms.
This extreme diagnosis prepares divine grief and judgment.
Why it matters: The text emphasizes systemic depth without answering every later anthropological question.
How certain? very strongWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
The verse does not say that women, bodies, sexuality, one ethnicity, or one family line are the exclusive source of human evil.
The comprehensive diagnosis does not by itself settle every later debate about inherited sin, moral ability, infants, or the precise scope of human responsibility.
What Remains True
God evaluates not only visible acts but the inward designs that repeatedly shape a community's life.
How It Can Shape Life
- Examine recurring patterns of thought, desire, and planning—not merely isolated public incidents—when confronting entrenched harm.
Teach It Back
Explain Genesis 6:5's contribution to Genesis 6:1–8. Include why the nearby verses are required, what the verse clearly says, and one conclusion it does not justify.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 6:1–8 — Human Corruption Grieves God, but Noah Finds FavorSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Reader-facing Scripture wording, verse numbering, paragraph data, and supplied-word markup.
Exact location: Pinned eBible/CrossWire standardized 1769 KJV corpus, Genesis 6:1–8
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Sons-of-God phrase, yadon and flesh wording, 120 years, Nephilim and mighty men, heart inclination, divine regret and grief, blotting out, and Noah's favor.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 6:1–8
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Major translation alternatives for sons of God, yadon, flesh, 120 years, Nephilim, heart, regret, grief, and favor.
Exact location: NET Bible, Genesis 6:1–8 translator notes
Open NET Genesis 6 ↗modern open whole book commentary
Genesis
T. Desmond Alexander
The Gospel Coalition Bible Commentary, 2023
Supports: Final-form transition from Adam's line through comprehensive human wickedness, judgment, Noah's favor, and preservation.
Exact location: Genesis commentary, sections Genesis 6:1–8 and 6:9–9:17
Open source ↗