The reason for the Flood

Question:

Why did God cause the world to be overflowed by a flood in the time of Prophet Noah (as)?

Answer:

Abd-us-Salam Al-Harawi reported that he asked Imam Ar-Rida (a.): “For what reason did God let the whole world drown in the time of Noah (a.), although there were children and innocent people among them?” He said: “There were no children among them, for Allah caused the loins of the people of Noah (a.) and the wombs of their wives to become barren for forty years, after which their line was severed and they drowned while no child was among them. God does not destroy with His punishment anyone, who has not commited any sin. As for the survivors among the people of Noah (a.), they drowned because they declared Noah, the prophet of God (a.), to be a liar, and the rest of them drowned because they were satisfied with the accusation of the lie of the deniers, and he who was absent on a matter but was satisfied with it is like the one who witnessed it and like the one who has commited it.” [Ilal-ush-Shara’i from As-Saduq, page 36]

حدثنا أحمد بن زياد بن جعفر الهمداني رضي الله عنه قال: حدثنا علي ابن إبراهيم بن هاشم، عن أبيه، عن عبد السلام بن صالح الهروي، عن الرضا عليه السلام قال: قلت له لأي علة أغرق الله عز وجل الدنيا كلها في زمن نوح سلام الله عليه وفيهم الأطفال ومن لا ذنب له؟ فقال ما كان فيهم الأطفال لان الله عز وجل أعقم أصلاب قوم نوح وأرحام نسائهم أربعين عاما، فانقطع نسلهم فغرقوا ولا طفل فيهم، ما كان الله تعالى ليهلك بعذابه من لا ذنب له، وأما الباقون من قوم نوح سلام الله عليه فأغرقوا لتكذيبهم لنبي الله نوح سلام الله عليه وسايرهم أغرقوا برضاهم تكذيب المكذبين، ومن غاب عن أمر فرضى به كان شاهده وأتاه