659. Genesis 6:17. "And I — yes, I — am bringing a flood of water on the earth, to destroy all flesh (all that has the breath of life in it) from under the heavens; all that is on the earth will pass away."

The flood symbolizes a deluge of evil and falsity. To destroy all flesh (all that has the breath of life in it) from under the heavens means that all the descendants of the earliest church destroyed themselves. All that is on the earth will pass away symbolizes the people who were part of that church and who adopted its nature.