בראשית, פרק ו׳, פסוק א׳

The rapid expansion of humanity at the dawn of history brought a tremendous demographic blessing, yet it also sowed the seeds for the most severe moral crisis the world had ever seen. As the human race as a collective whole began this process of rapid multiplication [אבן עזרא, ביאור יש"ר, מחוקקי יהודה, רד"ק, שטיינזלץ, ברכת אשר, קאסוטו], a unique dynamic unfolded regarding the birth of women. Since human survival obviously depends on females, their specific emergence during this population boom carries deeper meaning. The primary approach among commentators is that a unique natural or providential phenomenon occurred in which significantly more females were born than males. This abundance allowed men to take multiple wives, dramatically accelerating the settlement of the world [העמק דבר, מלבי"ם, תורה תמימה]. Alternatively, this demographic shift can be viewed simply as a natural continuation of earlier family lineages, serving to set the stage for the tragic events that soon followed [שד"ל, קאסוטו].

This sudden surge in the female population created a dual reality. On one hand, it fueled massive reproduction; on the other, it introduced widespread strife and conflict into the world [תורה תמימה, צאינה וראינה]. As the global population swelled, groups of people who had previously lived far apart began to encounter one another and mix [שד"ל]. This convergence triggered a steep moral decline. The lineage of humanity that had preserved the image of God began to intermingle with a corrupt and lawless lineage. Men started choosing wives based entirely on outward physical beauty, completely disregarding their moral character or background [רש"ר הירש].

This intense physical attraction unleashed a wave of lust and immorality, which acted as a springboard for even darker crimes. Powerful and forceful men began to kidnap beautiful women through violence, not hesitating to steal married women away from their husbands [רלב"ג, צרור המור]. These sexual offenses inevitably paved the way for robbery, deceit, and bloodshed, as people consumed by lust proved willing to commit any crime to satisfy their desires [ביאור יש"ר]. Thus, the very moment humanity began to multiply, they also began to corrupt their ways. This grim reality ultimately led God to limit the days of that generation and decree their destruction, though He granted them a long period of grace in the hope that they would turn back from their evil path before their time ran out completely [רמב"ן].