And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of Man was great on the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart only evil continually.
Before the flood, God reads the human race — not its behaviour alone, but the hidden springs behind it. Does that verdict cover one wicked generation, or every one of us? (Where the writers quote the older wording "imagination," the ESV reads "intention.")
The Verdict Reaches the Source
The verse works in layers. Each one goes deeper than the last:
How piercing verse 5 is! Man's wickedness became great, or abundant, for he was wholly evil in the deepest springs of his being. His heart was evil; the thoughts of his heart were evil, and the imagination, which lay behind and prompted his thoughts, was evil. And all this was only evil — not one trace of good — and that continually. So before the flood we have the very same verdict about man that Romans 3:10-18 gives us. That passage quotes Scriptures which describe the condition of men after the flood.
Two Grounds for the Flood
God's judgment did not rest on one ground alone:
The Spirit of God has been pleased to state two grounds on which God brought the judgment of the flood on man. First, because of what he had done: "The wickedness of man was great in the earth." Further on we read that this took two forms, corruption and violence. They are the parent sins of Genesis 3 and 4... Second, because of what he was: "Every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Or, as the margin reads, "The purposes and desires of his heart" were such.
Three Words That Leave No Exception
One writer weighs each word of the verdict in turn:
"Every imagination" — without exception. "Only evil" — without any mixture of good. "Continually" — without a pause. What a picture!
The verdict weighs more because of who reached it:
It would be hard to find a more solemn verdict. "Every imagination" of them was before Him. He loves to credit the least thought or feeling that is good, yet He saw nothing but evil all the day. He is surely the God of judgment, and after due testimony He will not be slow to carry it out.
A Nature That Cannot Be Repaired
If the evil lies in the nature itself, effort cannot reach it. One writer answers the obvious objection:
There is nothing good at all in our sinful nature. Even the most advanced believer said, "I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh" (Romans 7:18). But can it not be improved by diligence in prayer and watchfulness? No, never: it is wholly incurable... We may not be able to bend a bar of iron, yet it may be beaten out until it becomes quite flexible, but it is the same iron still. Its appearance has changed, but its nature is the same.
The Same Verdict on Us
Does this describe only the people of Noah's day?
Was it true then? Is it true today? What does God see in the men of this day? What is the difference between the men of that day and this day? There is none. Man is man. You cannot change him. "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots?" (Jeremiah 13:23). No, and you cannot change man either. Take a drunkard, an unsaved man. Reform him and polish him up. He is still an unsaved man... There must be a work of God in his soul. Note the force of Scripture. Man is wrong at heart. "Out of the heart come evil thoughts" (Matthew 15:19). Men can read what is outside, but God reads the heart.
Grace in the Same Chapter
Sin ran its course, yet one man stood in a different relation to God. Where this writer says Noah "found grace," the ESV reads that he "found favor in the eyes of the LORD":
But "Noah found grace in the eyes of Jehovah." That is, God's favour rested on him. He was righteous himself, no doubt, but it all came through grace... But the earth was completely filled with violence. Every imagination of the thoughts of man's heart was only evil continually; if sin comes in, it is sure to ripen up.
Summary
- Sight — God's verdict starts with what He sees. He sees the wickedness on the earth, and behind it every intention of the heart. He would credit any good He found there, and He found none.
- Source — The verdict moves inward through three layers: heart, thoughts, and the imagination behind them. The problem is what man is, not only what he does.
- Sweep — "Every," "only," and "continually" leave no exception, no mixture of good, and no interval of relief.
- Stubbornness — Polish cannot change a nature like this. Iron beaten flexible is iron still. Only a work of God in the soul changes a man.
- Salvation — In the same dark chapter, Noah found favour in the eyes of the LORD. That favour rested on him as a gift, not as a reward.