6 ¹ WHEN MANKIND BEGAN TO INCREASE and to spread all over the earth and daughters were born to them, 6 ² the sons of the gods saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; so they took for themselves such women as they chose. 6 ³ But the LORD said, 'My life-giving spirit shall not remain in man for ever; he for his part is mortal flesh: he shall live for a hundred and twenty years.' 6 ⁴ In those days prob. rdg, Heb adds and also afterwards (cp Num. 13. 33), when the sons of the gods had intercourse with the daughters of men and got children by them, the Nephilim Or giants were on earth. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.

6 ⁵ When the LORD saw that man had done much evil on earth and that his thoughts and inclinations were always evil, 6 ⁶ he was sorry that he had made man on earth, and he was grieved at heart. 6 ⁷ He said, 'This race of men whom I have created, I will wipe them off the face of the earth—man and beast, reptiles and birds. I am sorry that I ever made them.' 6 ⁸ But Noah had won the LORD's favour.