For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die. - Genesis 6:17
Story of the Flood
The Lord resolves to destroy all flesh through a flood
The Lord saw man's great wickedness and regretted making man on the earth, setting out to make an end of all flesh through a flood. He found a righteous man, Noah, blameless in his generation, and tells him to make an ark to preserve himself, his family, and two of every animal and bird.
(Genesis 6)
The flood falls, but Noah and groups of beasts, livestock, and birds are preserved in the ark
In the 600th year of Noah's life, the second month, 17th day of the month, the fountains of the great deep burst, the windows of the heavens opened, and 40 days and 40 nights of rain fell on the earth. The waters were so great they covered 15 cubits over the mountains and killed all flesh on earth apart from those who were with Noah in his ark.
God remembers Noah and ends the flood, resolving to never again strike down every living creature as He had done
God remembered Noah and all the beasts and livestock in the ark, and He made a wind blow over the earth. The waters subsided. The fountains of the deep and the windows of the heavens were closed, the rain from the heavens was restrained, and the waters receded from the earth continually. At the end of 150 days the waters had abated.
On the 1st day of the 10th month, the mountaintops were seen. At the end of 40 days, Noah found his raven and dove had no place to rest on the earth. 7 days later, the dove returned in the evening with an olive leaf. 7 days later, she did not return. On the 1st day of the 1st month of Noah's 601st year, the waters were dried from off the earth. On the 27th day of the 2nd month, the earth had dried out, and God sent everyone out of the ark.
Noah built an altar and offered burnt offerings of some of every clean animal and bird. When the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, he said, "I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease."
(Genesis 8)
Noah's covenant
God set the rainbow in the clouds as a sign of the covenant that He will never again destroy all flesh with a flood.
God told Noah, "I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”
(Genesis 9)