Millions of people drowned in the deluge God brought upon the earth in the days of Noah. The Flood destroyed the flourishing but corrupt civilization that mankind had built apart from God, and only Noah and his family survived. It was a colossal event in history, remembered in various cultural legends and myths. The account of the Flood serves as a significant illustration of sudden and unexpected destruction, as later referenced by Jesus Christ and others for moral and prophetic instruction. Jesus Christ alludes to the days of Noah, indicating that people will be involved in their normal activities, unaware of the momentous event about to occur. Similarly, the Flood came suddenly and unexpectedly, breaking the natural cycle of life, just as the return of Christ will be a snare to those unprepared.

In the days before the Flood of Noah, humanity had over 1658 years to develop a civilization that was remarkably advanced. People lived for nearly a millennium, with lifespans reaching up to 969 years, as exemplified by Methuselah, allowing them immense time to accumulate knowledge and skills. They were fresh from creation, possessing strong minds and bodies, potentially using greater brain capacity than modern humans. This era saw significant progress in agriculture, arts, and metalworking, with figures like Jabal, Jubal, and Tubal-Cain pioneering industries and crafts, including working with bronze and iron. Civilization advanced not only technologically but also culturally and philosophically over these centuries. When the Flood came, it did not erase all pre-Flood knowledge. Noah and his sons carried forward tools, records, and intelligence through the Ark, enabling rapid redevelopment of civilizations along the Tigris, Euphrates, and Nile Rivers shortly after the deluge. The pre-Flood world may have been a golden age of civilization, with achievements possibly as impressive as those post-Flood, including multi-story buildings, running water, and advanced techniques like electroplating. Jesus Christ, in His Olivet Prophecy, likened the time of His return to the days of Noah, emphasizing the unexpectedness of the Flood. People were engaged in normal routines—eating, drinking, marrying—when the catastrophe struck, sweeping them away without warning. They ignored signs and did not anticipate a worldwide deluge or judgment for their actions, living under the assumption that life would continue as it always had. This uniformitarian mindset, believing natural processes remain unchanged since creation, mirrors attitudes expected in the last days, contrasting with the biblical reality of catastrophic interventions by God, such as the Flood. Moreover, Jesus Christ hinted at deeper corruption in Noah's time, with terms suggesting gluttony, excess, and improper marriage practices. The pre-Flood world had become so fleshly, divorced from spiritual values, that it faced divine judgment. This corruption, influenced heavily by spiritual forces under satan, aimed to derail God's purpose by perverting humanity on a massive scale, affecting billions. Only Noah found grace in God's eyes, and with his family of eight, survived the Flood, while all others perished in the catastrophe that reshaped the earth.

In the days of Noah, as recorded in Genesis 6:5, the Lord observed the great wickedness of mankind, a condition that had deteriorated over 1,650 years from a state of being "very good" at creation to total depravity. God scrutinized humanity's behavior over an extended period, witnessing a steady moral decline from the time Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden until the waters of the Flood took them away. This wickedness was not merely present but multiplied, growing exponentially worse, with no chance of revival short of total annihilation. The corruption was universal, pervading every area of the earth, with no region spared from the destruction sin brings. God's solution to this universal sin was a universal punishment, a Flood that covered the whole earth to destroy the pervasive wickedness. Genesis 6:5 further reveals that every intent of the thoughts of man's heart was only evil continually, indicating a ceaseless, endless state of corruption in every person, with no good mixed in. Even after the Great Flood, as seen in Genesis 8:21, man's heart remained just as corrupt and evil as before, showing that the Flood changed nothing regarding human character, only executing judgment on the sinners and reducing humanity to eight people. The chronology of the Flood, detailed in Genesis 7 and 8, shows that it began in the second month, likely mid-November, and the ark rested on the mountains of Ararat on the 17th day of the seventh month, after 150 days, marking the start of the waters receding. This resting occurred in mid-to-late April, and the ark was likely grounded near the top of the highest peak of Ararat. The waters decreased over the following months, with surrounding mountain peaks becoming visible about two and a half months later, around late June. Noah and his family, along with the animals, remained in the ark for a total of 370 days, enduring a year of confinement until God gave permission to leave on the 27th day of the second month of the following year, around late November. During the receding of the waters, Noah sent out a raven after 40 days from seeing the mountain tops, around mid-August, and it did not return, suggesting it found sustenance. Subsequently, he sent a dove three times at seven-day intervals through August and September. The first time, the dove returned, finding no suitable place; the second time, it returned with a fresh olive leaf, indicating life had begun again in lower valleys; the third time, it did not return, signaling the earth was ready for habitation. After waiting another 29 days, Noah removed the covering of the ark to view the dry ground, and after an additional 57 days, God commanded them to leave the ark, using words of blessing to be fruitful and multiply, mirroring the command given at creation. The area where the ark rested is near the borders of Armenia, Turkey, and Iran, with Greater Ararat, rising to 16,945 feet, believed to be the landing site. The Flood's aftermath left Noah and his family as the sole survivors, rewarded with a new, pristine earth to inhabit and populate, having waited patiently on God through the judgment that cut off the wicked.