Did the Holy Spirit act as a judge?
This passage is a difficult one in many respects. The one hundred-twenty years probably refers to a period of grace God was giving mankind before the Flood would come and destroy them all (except for Noah and his family). The word “contend” is variously interpreted as rule, judge, shield, abide in, or act in. The translation “abide in” chosen by some modern versions (including the Revised Standard Version) as well as by a number of ancient versions is a pure guess. There seems to be nothing in the Hebrew to give any grounds for it. Yet many scholars still accept it, taking the verse to mean that God’s Spirit (as a vital principle or as the breath of Genesis 2:7) would not continue to abide (or be established) in man because of his sin and weakness. But most who take this view are quite hesitant and uncertain about it.
The translation rule is an application of the meaning “to judge.” (The fact that the judges judged came to mean that they ruled.) Shield is another aspect of “judge” in the sense that a judge should be a protector of the weak. This meaning has some support from related Semitic languages.14 Most modern interpreters take “my Spirit” to mean the spirit God breathed into man. This may be possible, but it is a usage not found elsewhere in the Bible. Everywhere else, “my Spirit” means the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God.15
Actually, the simplest meaning of the verb translated “contend with” is “judge among.” The name Dan (“judge”) is derived from the same root (Genesis 49:16). Though not the most common word for judge, it is used of the Lord judging and vindicating Israel (Deuteronomy 32:36; Psalms 50:4; 72:2; 135:14) as well as judging the world (1 Samuel 2:10; Psalm 110:6). This seems to fit better than any of the other proposed meanings.
In a sense, “to judge” also corresponds with the traditional interpretation of “to contend with.” As Leupold points out, mankind before the Flood was not without the Word of God given through godly men such as Enoch and Noah. The Holy Spirit would act as judge, using the Word given up to that time to instruct, exhort, reprove, and convict men. In this sense, the judging of the Spirit would truly be a striving with men “to restrain them from their evil ways.
Another question arises when some writers attempt to tie this passage with Jude 6 and make angels that sinned have a part in the cause of the Flood. This raises more problems because of the great emphasis on mankind and on flesh (weak, frail, unregenerate human flesh) here. At least, it has little bearing on the Spirit’s ceasing to judge here.
Horton, S. M. (2005). What the Bible Says about the Holy Spirit (pp. 22–23). Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House.
