Genesis 8

King James Version

Full text for Genesis Chapter 8

1¶ And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that [was] with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged;

2The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained;

3And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated.

4¶ And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat.

5And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth [month], on the first [day] of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.

6¶ And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made:

7And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth.

8Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground;

9But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters [were] on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark.

10And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark;

11And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth [was] an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.

12And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more.

13¶ And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first [month], the first [day] of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry.

14And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried.

15¶ And God spake unto Noah, saying,

16Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee.

17Bring forth with thee every living thing that [is] with thee, of all flesh, [both] of fowl, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth.

18And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him:

19Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, [and] whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.

20¶ And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

21And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart [is] evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

22While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

AI Analysis

AI Summaries

Short Summary

God remembered Noah and all living things in the ark, causing a wind to pass over the earth and the floodwaters to recede. The ark rested on the mountains of Ararat, and Noah sent out a raven and then doves to ascertain the earth's dryness, with the second dove returning with an olive leaf. Upon God's command, Noah, his family, and all the animals exited the ark onto the dry ground. Noah then built an altar and offered burnt offerings, prompting God to promise never again to curse the ground or destroy all living creatures by a flood, ensuring the continuation of seasons.

Medium Summary

After 150 days, God remembered Noah and all in the ark, causing a wind to dry the earth and the waters to recede as the fountains of the deep and windows of heaven were stopped. The ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat, and Noah, seeking to determine the earth's condition, first sent forth a raven, then a dove, which initially found no rest. After a week, the dove returned with an olive leaf, indicating abated waters, and a final week later, the dove did not return, confirming the earth's dryness. In the 601st year of Noah's life, God commanded Noah, his family, and all the animals to leave the ark to multiply upon the earth. Noah then built an altar and offered burnt offerings to the LORD. God, pleased with the offering, resolved in His heart never again to curse the ground for man's sake or smite all living things, promising the enduring cycle of seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.

Long Summary

Genesis chapter 8 details the abatement of the Great Flood and Noah's emergence from the ark. God remembered Noah and all living things within the ark, sending a wind to dry the earth and stopping the sources of the floodwaters. After 150 days, the waters significantly abated, and the ark came to rest upon the mountains of Ararat in the seventh month. The waters continued to decrease, and by the tenth month, the tops of the mountains became visible. After forty days, Noah opened a window of the ark and first sent forth a raven, which flew to and fro until the waters were dried. Next, he sent a dove to ascertain if the waters had receded from the ground. The dove returned, finding no dry place to rest, so Noah took it back into the ark. After waiting seven more days, Noah again sent forth the dove, which returned in the evening with a freshly plucked olive leaf, signifying that the waters had indeed abated. Noah waited another seven days and sent the dove a third time, and it did not return, confirming the earth was dry. In Noah's six hundred and first year, on the first day of the first month, the waters were dried from the earth, and Noah removed the ark's covering to see the dry ground. By the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the earth was completely dry. God then commanded Noah, his family, and all the animals to exit the ark, instructing them to be fruitful and multiply upon the earth. Noah, his family, and all the various kinds of creatures departed the ark. Subsequently, Noah built an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings of every clean beast and fowl. The LORD smelled the "sweet savour" of the sacrifice and declared in His heart that He would never again curse the ground because of man, despite man's inherent evil imagination from youth, nor would He again destroy all living things as He had done. God further promised the perpetual continuation of seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night for as long as the earth endures.

Core Concepts

  • Divine RemembranceGod actively remembered Noah and all living things in the ark, initiating the process of the floodwaters receding and the earth drying.
  • Abatement of WatersThe floodwaters gradually decreased over a period of 150 days, facilitated by God sending a wind and stopping the sources of the deep and the windows of heaven.
  • Noah's ReconnaissanceNoah employed a method of sending out birds, first a raven and then a dove, to determine the extent of the earth's dryness, with the dove's return with an olive leaf signaling the abatement of the waters.
  • Exiting the ArkUpon God's direct command, Noah, his family, and all the animals departed the ark onto the now dry earth, with the divine instruction to be fruitful and multiply.
  • Noah's Altar and SacrificeImmediately after exiting the ark, Noah built an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings of clean animals and fowl as an act of worship and thanksgiving.
  • God's PromiseIn response to Noah's offering, the LORD resolved in His heart never again to curse the ground for man's sake or to destroy all living things by a flood, despite the evil imagination of man's heart.
  • Continuity of Natural OrderGod promised that as long as the earth endures, the fundamental cycles of nature—seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night—shall not cease.