The Flood — Inside the Classic

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In Category - Theology

Authors: Anonymous Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2004 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: Bible stories, English -- Old Testament -- Juvenile literature; Deluge -- Juvenile literature Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

Edition facts

Words 6,528

Reading time 29 min

Text sections 1

For The Flood — Inside the Classic, the stored edition analysis reports 6,528 words, 29 min estimated reading time, and 1 detected text section.

The text analysis averages about 21.8 words per sentence, while the detected sections provide another way to judge how the source is divided.

Project Gutenberg metadata also associates the work with “Bible stories, English -- Old Testament -- Juvenile literature,” connecting these edition facts with the source record’s subject description.

Source: Project Gutenberg record #11268

A 19th-century verse retelling of the Flood narrative for children, structured as 15 short poems. The work moves from human wickedness through the ark's voyage to the covenant rainbow, using recurring images of divine observation, water, and sacrifice.

Editorial Edition Score 4.3/5

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Description quality20 pts
Title & short description10 pts
Source metadata20 pts
Text length15 pts
Chapters / structure15 pts
EPUB file integrity20 pts

Total of 100 points, scaled to a 2.5-5.0 range. Editions with an empty description or a missing EPUB file are not scored.

Edition quality

File: pg11268

Read the Text

Who had transgressed His laws.

The hearts of men wax'd worse and worse, They disobeyed the Lord; They followed their own thoughts, nor walked According to His word.

And men were multiplied on earth, They spread both far and wide; And there were giants in those days, Who did God's law deride.

The Lord look'd down from Heaven to see If there were any good; Behold they all were turn'd aside, Sin tainted all their blood.

Yet still the Lord was good to them-- He gave them sun and rain, And every blessing, yet their hearts Were foolish, wicked, vain.

There is no sin so base as that We call ingratitude, To use those ill, with wicked hearts, Who seek to do us good.

And when the Great and Holy One With kindness stoop'd to bless The sorrows of a sinful world, And pity their distress;--

'Twas vile ingratitude in them To act so wickedly, And spurn the mercy of the Lord, The great, the good, the high.

God's goodness leads us to repent, And give our folly o'er;-- And if we use His kindness right, We'll go and sin no more.

But God is just as well as good, He will not always strive; He will assert His sovereign right, Nor let the sinner live.

He does not seek the death of one Of all the sinful race, Yet He will not forever bear With those who slight His grace.

His mercy is forever sure, His justice too must stand, And people must obedient be To what He does command.

So when the world so wicked proved, And wander'd from the Lord, And with most stubborn hearts refused To hear His sovereign word;--

He bore with patience long and kind, Their steady wickedness; But did at last withdraw His grace, And leave them in distress.

He gave them up to their own hearts, To work their own desire; He threatened them with judgment vast, And kindled was His ire.

"My spirit shall not always strive"-- Jehovah sternly said-- A Flood I'll bring which will destroy All things that I have made.

"Why should they live in guilt and wo, And all my words despise; Their every work, and every thought, Is loathsome to my eyes."

When God provoked, in anger speaks, Who can His word withstand? His heart is full of holiness, And strong is His right hand.

One righteous man was found on earth, And him Jehovah loved; His thoughts, his words, and all his deeds, Were by the Lord approved.

He kept himself away from sin, Nor walk'd with wicked men; He loved the God who reigns on high, Nor did he love in vain.

His family he train'd to know, And love and serve the Lord; And they were safe in keeping all The great Jehovah's word.

The Lord remembered Noah's walk, And did not him condemn, When, for the wickedness of men, He did aloud proclaim,--

That He would rain upon the earth An overwhelming flood; But choose him and his family-- And firm His counsel stood.

The Lord forever shows regard To those who love His ways, They vindicate His righteousness And ever show His praise.

So He would not destroy this man Who walk'd with Him in love, But promised him that He would give Protection from above.

Then Noah's fervent heart was fill'd With grief for sinful men; Yet though God's judgment was severe, He could not once complain.

He pitied the sad state of those Who had despised the Lord; He saw that God would punish them, According to His word.

NOAH COMMANDED TO MAKE AN ARK.

Jehovah unto Noah said:-- "I will destroy the earth, For violence is in the land, And wickedness and mirth.

"Men's hearts are full of laughter wild, Their lives are full of sin; And I will send destruction swift, And show my power divine.

"I'll rain upon the earth a flood, And drown men in the storm, And they shall find no arm to save, Amid their fearful gloom.

"But thee I have found true and good, A follower of my ways; And I will save thee from the flood, And lengthen out thy days.

"Now therefore build thyself an ark, According to my word; To save thyself and family, For ye have fear'd the Lord.

"For every thing that now has life, And all things that have breath, Even for the wickedness of man, I do devote to death.

"I am the Lord, the mighty one, I, even I, do speak; The flood upon the earth I'll bring, And nought my word shall break."

Noah prepared to build the ark, The tidings did him grieve; Yet it was just, and every word He did at once believe.

Continue Reading →

The Flood presents the biblical deluge as a sequence of fifteen verse sections, each headed by a descriptive title such as 'The Wickedness of Man' or 'The Bow in the Clouds.' The poem opens with a direct address to the reader's sense of gratitude: 'Behold how kind and merciful / Our heavenly Father was.' This initial posture of moral instruction recurs throughout, as the narrative alternates between scenes of human sin and divine response. The structure is deliberately episodic, moving from the spread of wickedness and the rise of giants who 'did God's law deride' to the building of the ark, the flood itself, and the eventual covenant. Each section functions almost as a standalone lesson, yet together they trace a clear arc from judgment to mercy.

Moral Framing and Direct Address

The poem consistently breaks the narrative frame to speak directly to the reader. In the opening section, after describing humanity's corruption, the verse shifts to a general moral: 'There is no sin so base as that / We call ingratitude.' This technique appears repeatedly, turning the story into a series of ethical exempla. The narrator does not simply recount events but interprets them, drawing explicit lessons about obedience, gratitude, and repentance. For instance, when Noah offers sacrifice, the text instructs: 'O! sacrifice to God in faith, / And all your sins confess.' This pedagogical voice is the work's dominant structural feature, shaping every episode into a moral tableau.

Recurring Images of Divine Observation

A striking pattern in the poem is the emphasis on God looking down upon the earth. The first section states, 'The Lord look'd down from Heaven to see / If there were any good.' Later, after the flood, the same motif returns: 'Behold the wondrous hand of God, / How matchless is His skill, / Who works in heaven and on the earth.' This vertical gaze—from heaven to earth—structures the reader's understanding of divine justice and mercy. The ark itself becomes a vessel of this observed world, floating between the opened 'windows of heaven' and the broken 'fountains of the deep.' The poem thus creates a cosmos where every human action is visible to a watching deity.

Movement from Judgment to Covenant

The poem's fifteen sections trace a deliberate movement from wrath to reconciliation. Early sections emphasize sin and punishment: 'The hearts of men wax'd worse and worse' and 'Sin tainted all their blood.' The flood itself is described in stark terms—'the drowning World'—yet the narrative quickly pivots. After Noah's sacrifice, God declares, 'I will no more, / Destroy or curse the ground.' The final section, 'The Bow in the Clouds,' solidifies this shift, celebrating the rainbow as a 'covenant' that 'Jehovah keeps, / Forever faithful, true.' This arc from judgment to grace is the poem's central theological movement, reinforced by the repeated image of God's 'loving-kindness' toward the preserved remnant.

Verse Form and Repetitive Structure

The poem employs a consistent metrical form: alternating lines of eight and six syllables, with an ABAB rhyme scheme. This ballad-like meter gives the narrative a rhythmic, almost chant-like quality. Repetition is a key structural device: phrases such as 'Behold how kind and merciful' and 'How great, how awful, and how just' recur across sections, creating verbal echoes that bind the work together. The final section mirrors the opening's exclamatory tone, ending with 'He gives the sun to warm the earth; / He sends the healthful shower.' This circularity reinforces the theme of divine constancy. The form itself—short, rhymed stanzas—makes the story accessible to young readers while imposing a strict order on the chaotic events of the flood.

Readers approaching The Flood should attend to its dual nature: it is both a narrative poem and a series of moral lessons. The work's brevity—fifteen short sections—invites reading aloud or memorization. Pay particular attention to how the poem uses repetition and direct address to shape its theological argument. The shift from the flood's destruction to the rainbow's promise is the emotional and doctrinal center, and the verse's steady meter underscores this movement from judgment to hope.

Holding The Flood — Inside the Classic again, I remembered how the small poems felt both strange and comforting—that watchful stillness. It brought to mind the gentle pacing of the Bible Stories — Reading Companion, where the same old waters seem to calm rather than threaten. There is a familiar quietness in both, like the hush after rain.