The old testament had 40 authors over a thousand years and was redacted and amended many times. Israel and Judah had different creation stories that were cobbled together during the time of king omri.Your “ question” was so absurd, I presumed you were kidding.
“So they would be spared the wicked evil world of that time, and be taken to a place where there is no death, no evil, no suffering. Is that something a big old meanie God would do?”
Understand what is clearly delineated in the Bible. Read the genesis fable.
Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. 12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth”
No children were spared. They died a slow, traumatic death like everyone else. Men, women and children across the globe who had never heard of the Christian god were killed. There is nothing in genesis that claims your god would whisk children away to a “…place where there is no death, no evil, no suffering”.
Noah was 601 years old when this took place? Fascinating.