every living substance] Except the fishes, which perished not; for the judgement being inflicted for the sinne of man, those creatures were destroyed, who lived on and in the same element with him; that is, those of the earth and aire, and with which he had most to doe, and not the fishes who lived out of all communion with him in that element out of which they could not, and in which man could not live: unlesse then the flood had beene made up of such raine as fell upon Sodome and Gomorrah (as some Jewes faine somewhat like it, viz. that it was a raine of scalding water) they might survive the destruction of other creatures. And of those that were destroyed, the first were men, women, and children; then beasts, and birds last of all, who might flie above that danger when they could neither by going (though it were climbing) nor by swimming deferre their drowning any longer. This generall and deepe inundation may serve to make sinne abominable, and the Justice of God terrible to all man-kind; if the creatures (besides man) who are alive were apprehensive of the destructiō of those which the flood hath swallowed up, they would be very fearefull to provoke his iudignation any more; the more should man beware of incurring his displeasure, since his sinne involveth the unreasonable and insensible creatures under a curse as well as himself, Exodus 9:19. Josh. 7. 24, 25. Jonah 4:11. Noah onely remained, &c.] 2 Peter 2:5. Now it was evident to the surviving part of the world (and that they that were overtaken with the waters before they were overwhelmed with them might see it and acknowledge it) that it was safer to goe against the streame with a few godly persons, then with a multitude of ungodly ones to be carried along with it, and overwhelmed by it.