Genesis 6:5 Meaning and Explanation
“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.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →God sees how deeply wrong the human heart has gone, all the way down to its hidden thoughts.
The Context of Genesis 6:5
Just before the flood. The narrator has shown the earth growing crowded and corrupt, and now gives God's own assessment of it. The next verse tells us this grieved God to His heart, which sets the tone for everything this verdict means.
What Does Genesis 6:5 Mean?
This is one of the most sobering lines in all of Scripture. God sees, and what He sees reaches past wicked deeds into the inner spring they flow from: the imagination of the thoughts of the heart, bent only toward evil, and that without pause. It reaches into the secret places where actions begin. The verse is painfully honest about how far things had fallen, and about how thoroughly sin can sink into a person. God does not look away from this. He sees clearly, and the seeing grieves Him deeply.
And yet the very next verse shows a God who feels this to His heart and is moved by it. He grieves over a world gone wrong, and that grief is the seed of rescue. The same chapter finds Noah and preserves a remnant, and the long story moves toward Christ, who would deal with sin at its very root, giving us new hearts. The God who saw the worst of us came to save us from it.
Genesis 6:5 in the Original Language
yetser (יֵצֶר), 'imagination' -- the shaping or framing of thought, the bent of the inner mind.
How to Apply Genesis 6:5 Today
This verse lets us be honest about how deep our own faults run, past our actions into our thoughts, without despair. The God who sees all of it is the same God who grieved over it and came to heal it. In Christ He offers both forgiveness and a renewed heart.
Frequently Asked Questions About Genesis 6:5
What does Genesis 6:5 mean?
God sees how deeply wrong the human heart has gone, all the way down to its hidden thoughts.
What is the context of Genesis 6:5?
Just before the flood. The narrator has shown the earth growing crowded and corrupt, and now gives God's own assessment of it. The next verse tells us this grieved God to His heart, which sets the tone for everything this verdict means.
How can I apply Genesis 6:5 today?
This verse lets us be honest about how deep our own faults run, past our actions into our thoughts, without despair. The God who sees all of it is the same God who grieved over it and came to heal it. In Christ He offers both forgiveness and a renewed heart.