Genesis 6:8
“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Read Full Chapter →Context
This verse comes amid the account of humanity's deep corruption before the flood, immediately before God announces His plan to Noah.
What Does Genesis 6:8 Mean?
Genesis 6:8 means that in a world overcome by wickedness, Noah received God's favor, and through that favor a way of rescue would open. The single word "But" stands against everything described just before it -- a generation so corrupt that God grieved over the earth. Into that darkness this verse breaks like a turning point.
This is the first time the word "grace" appears in the Bible, and it is fitting that it arrives at humanity's low point. Noah "found grace in the eyes of the LORD" -- he became the object of God's favor and kindness. The verses that follow show Noah as a man who walked with God, yet the order here is significant: grace is named before Noah's righteousness is described, suggesting that God's favor is not earned but granted. Through this one man and his family, God would preserve life and begin again. The verse reminds the reader that even in the bleakest seasons, God is at work, and His favor can rest upon a person in a way that changes the course of history. Where sin abounds, grace can abound still more.
In the Original Language
The Hebrew "chen" (grace, favor) appears here for the first time in Scripture, describing the unearned kindness Noah received from the LORD.
Cross References
“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house.”
- Hebrews 11:7
“Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.”
- Genesis 6:9
“And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly.”
- 2 Peter 2:5
Application
When the world around you seems lost in wrong, take heart that God's favor can rest on those who walk with Him, and seek to be such a person yourself.