Bible Strands
Genesis 7:20
The waters rose and covered the mountaintops to a depth of fifteen cubits.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records the peak of the flood event when the rising waters completely submerge the highest elevations of the earth. Moses writes this description as part of the chronological account of the deluge's progression.
The words — גָּבְרוּ (ga.ve.Ru) means they increased or prevailed, and אַמָּה ('a.mah) denotes a cubit, a standard unit of measurement. Combined with חֲמֵשׁ עֶשְׂרֵה (cha.Mesh es.Reh), they specify the exact depth of the inundation.
The thread — The motif of waters standing above mountains appears in Psalm 104:6, while Jeremiah 3:23 contrasts human deception rising from hills with divine salvation. Both passages use mountain-level waters as a boundary marker for divine action.
Why it lands — The text states that every high point was submerged to a measurable depth before listing the perishing of all life. It establishes the absolute geographic scope of the event to frame the subsequent description of total mortality.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 3:23 Surely deception comes from the hills, and commotion from the mountains. Surely the salvation of Israel is in the LORD our God.
- Psalms 104:6 You covered it with the deep like a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.