Genesis 6:9

This is the account of Noah. ¹  Noah was a godly man; he was blameless ²  among his contemporaries. ³  He ⁴  walked with ⁵  God.

This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.

These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God.

This is the history of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless man living on earth at the time. He consistently followed God’s will and enjoyed a close relationship with him.

This is the story of Noah: Noah was a good man, a man of integrity in his community. Noah walked with God.

These are the generations of Noah. Noah was an upright man and without sin in his generation: he went in the ways of God.

These are the descendants of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God.

This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God.

This is the account of Noah. ¹  Noah was a godly man; he was blameless ²  among his contemporaries. ³  He ⁴  walked with ⁵  God.

¹ sn There is a vast body of scholarly literature about the flood story. The following studies are particularly helpful: A. Heidel, The Gilgamesh Epic and the Old Testament Parallels; M. Kessler, “Rhetorical Criticism of Genesis 7,” Rhetorical Criticism: Essays in Honor of James Muilenburg (PTMS), 1-17; I. M. Kikawada and A. Quinn, Before Abraham Was; A. R. Millard, “A New Babylonian ‘Genesis Story’,” TynBul 18 (1967): 3-18; G. J. Wenham, “The Coherence of the Flood Narrative,” VT 28 (1978): 336-48.

² tn The Hebrew term תָּמִים (tamim, “blameless”) is used of men in Gen 17:1 (associated with the idiom “walk before,” which means “maintain a proper relationship with,” see 24:40); Deut 18:13 (where it means “blameless” in the sense of not guilty of the idolatrous practices listed before this; see Josh 24:14); Pss 18:23, 26 (“blameless” in the sense of not having violated God’s commands); 37:18 (in contrast to the wicked); 101:2, 6 (in contrast to proud, deceitful slanderers; see 15:2); Prov 2:21; 11:5 (in contrast to the wicked); 28:10; Job 12:4.

³ tn Heb “Noah was a godly man, blameless in his generations.” The singular “generation” can refer to one’s contemporaries, i.e., those living at a particular point in time. The plural “generations” can refer to successive generations in the past or the future. Here, where it is qualified by “his” (i.e., Noah’s), it refers to Noah’s contemporaries, comprised of the preceding generation (his father’s generation), those of Noah’s generation, and the next generation (those the same age as his children). In other words, “his generations” means the generations contemporary with him. See BDB 190 s.v. דוֹר.

⁴ tn Heb “Noah.” The proper name has been replaced with the pronoun in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁵ tn The construction translated “walked with” is used in Gen 5:22, 24 (see the note on this phrase in 5:22) and in 1 Sam 25:15, where it refers to David’s and Nabal’s men “rubbing shoulders” in the fields. Based on the use in 1 Sam 25:15, the expression seems to mean “live in close proximity to,” which may, by metonymy, mean “maintain cordial relations with.”