Really, all the genesis creation accounts all revolve around one word: obedience. This is especially highlighted in Genesis three, as we read about God’s shame in his creation of humanity. This shame stems from humans acting against both their own and God’s judgement. Even though, as we read in Genesis 3, humans possess knowledge of judgment however they lack the tools and virtue to carry out what they know as good. They are obedient to their own judgment. Because previously only God had this knowledge, they became more godlike; yet they are still inflicted with the flaws of humanity. In other words, they have the tools to do right but not the ability. The problem with corruption of godly qualities with humanity is continued throughout Genesis. God is ashamed with his creation of humanity and wishes to destroy it because they lack obedience. One of the reasons they lack this virtue is because the more “God-like” line of Seth mixed with the more humanist line of Cain. As said earlier, this combination always leads to sin. Although God wanted to destroy the Earth, he was given hope when he saw Noah, an obedient and godly man (so he is good). He is different because he did not perceive himself at divine. The other humans expected eternal life and this expectation almost made them perceive themselves as god-like. However, when Adam died, this perception dissolved and instead of using this to improve their ways, they became bitter. In the other Genesis account it was established that though humans gained knowledge they would ignore this judgment. Noah however, was favorable in God’s eyes because he was obedient to God and built the ark and was fruitful and multiplied. The story of Noah and the ark is also interesting because like Genesis one, it imitates the Enuma Elish. Like Genesis 1, it is almost a protest to the Babylonians highlighting how their religion is better because God is in control and he destroyed the world without conflict. So in conclusion, although this is a different account of creation, it continues the theme of obedience, it also illustrates a new truth about creation and ourselves.
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Ciara Fitter's Blog 
I thought you made a very interesting point when you mention that “God is ashamed with his creation of humanity and wishes to destroy it because they lack obedience.” I agree that when God decided he wanted to flood the world, saving only Noah, he was ashamed with how humanity was acting. An interesting thing to think about, however, is how patient and forgiving God truly is. God created humans as moral agents, wanting them to choose obedience to Him. When Adam and Eve were not obedient, he did not destroy his creation and start over. God gave humanity many chances to prove obedient to Him, and even showed His faith in humanity by selecting a faithful and pure Noah to be the father to all generations of earth.
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I liked your focus on obedience and how humanity is corrupted by their disobedience to God and their pursuit of godliness. One point that I would suggest is that God’s destruction of his creation was not simply because humankind was disobedient to his orders, but also because humans had developed undesirable and harmful qualities that God did not feel reflected their creation in His image.
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I understood the text of Genesis 4-11 very similar to how you did in that it is the humans’ inability to see good and evil as they truly are, as God does, that causes so many problems for them. Like you said, their poor decipherment of good and evil combined with the intermixing of Cain and Seth’s lines made God ashamed of what he had created. I wonder, though, do you think that the line of Cain, as it was supposedly less divine and more human, would have fallen into sin without meeting Seth’s line of descendants?
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