The Flood
The worldwide flood presents a problem for those viewing a world spanning billions of years. A worldwide cataclysmic deluge as described in Gen 6-9 would have destroyed all the evidence of the geologic ages and so it as well as the Creation account must be explained away or altered so that the theory of long age for the earth and evolution can remain intact. Of course, on the other hand, the Biblical Flood of Noah can also explain all the sedimentary layers, canyons, gullies, fossils, continent movement, climatic changes, etc.
Nearly every anti-Christian system or movement (communism, racism, humanism, etc.) would be deprived of their pseudo-intellectual foundation if they accepted a worldwide flood as described in scripture.
Many scholars explain away a global flood by claiming it was local. The only other type of flood would have been something that gently rose and then fell — not much chance of that happening.
What does Scripture teach about the flood?
1. Height & Duration of Flood — Gen 7:19-20 The flood covered the tops of the highest mountains. Gen 8:5 This lasted 10 months. (If the mountains were the same height as now (uniformitarianism), the local flood at Mt Ararat would have been 17,000 feet high — this would be a flood 3 miles high that didn’t spread out too far.
2. The Need for an Ark — Gen 7:3 If the flood was local an ark would not have been necessary to preserve living things. The ark carried the equivalent of 522 railroad stock cars based on the dimensions in Gen 6:15 (that was twice the size needed to accommodate 2 of every species of known land animal). What sense was there for Noah to build an ark for many years if there was only going to be a local flood.
3. Destruction of the Earth — Gen 6:13 God said He was going to destroy the earth — local flood wouldn’t accomplish that. Gen 7:11 describes the fountains of the deep burst forth, floodgates of heaven were opened (may have been no rain before the flood — Gen 2:15); Job 12:15 if He lets the waters loose they devastate the land; after the flood God provided a rainbow Gen 9:13
4. God’s unbroken promise — In Gen 9:11, God promises not to send a flood like this again — if it were only local, then He would have broken His promise many times (those who teach a local flood, have God breaking His promise many times)
5. Testimony of Christ and the Apostles — 2 Peter 2:5, 3:6, Heb 11:7 and Luke 17:27 show that the apostles and Christ taught that the flood had to have killed all of mankind except Noah’s family. People would certainly have been distributed around the earth by the time of the flood (modern geology and archaeology believe they would have been distributed by that time) so if one were to accept a local flood then they would need to reject Jesus’, Peter’s, and the author of Hebrews testimonies about the flood.
6. Characteristic of the Flood — In the New Testament, the term for the flood is kataklusmos or a cataclysm. The Bible describes it as torrents of water from the sky, reservoirs from the deep erupting, universal destruction of land animals, mankind, etc. This would include violent tidal action, great winds, rising mountains, sinking basins, and many other geological disruptions, etc.
7. Timing of the events detailed — 600th year of Noah’s life, 2nd month, 17th day. Around 2000 BC, almost 4000 years ago. Rain lasted 40 days. After 150 days water had receded, 7th month, 17th day the ark rested somewhere on the mountains of Ararat. On the 10th month, 1st day the tops of the mountains were visible. 40 more days raven and dove then 7 more days and the dove and another 7 and the dove brings back olive leaf. 601st year, 1st month, 1st day, water had dried up, earth completely dry by 2nd month, 27th day, then he disembarks. (How much more factual an eyewitness account can be recorded in terms of event and timeframe?)
8. Preparation for the Flood — God gave Noah specific size, wood type, etc. and time to make the ark.
9. Message of the Flood — God is patient and loves mankind and gave them a long time to see, hear and repent while Noah built the ark -- but will punish sin. Sin not only offends but grieves or pains God’s heart. The righteous will be blessed and preserved while the wicked will receive punishment. Now is the time to get right with God because when the rain began to fall, it was too late. God made a promise after the flood — He has kept His promise and sends a reminder every so often — a rainbow. He has given mankind a spiritual ark of safety — the opportunity thru Jesus Christ to experience the greatest gift of all — eternal life.
Interesting points, questions, issues
1. Ark — means box, similar term used for small box put in Nile with Moses.
2. Gopher Wood — scholars not certain but could refer to lamination since he was instructed to use pitch within and without.
3. Pitch — modern pitch is from coal tar, however before the discovery of that source of pitch, pine tree resin and charcoal were used to make pitch for 1000 yrs in Europe. Coal tar probably only became available after the flood.
4. Cubit — elbow to tip of middle finger ~ 18. Ark ~ 437’6:L x 72’11W x 43’9H
5. Building Tools — People of Noah’s day had at least the same intellect (perhaps greater) and could have made needed tools such as the use of running waterwheel and sawmill. Elephants, oxen and block and tackle could move heavy objects (maybe even a dinosaur).
6. Fitting the animals — There are far fewer kinds than species and variations and young or baby animals of those that get very large were probably put on the ark. There was plenty of room. (200 species of dogs today could have come from 2 dogs).
7. Types of animals — Clean: 7 of each kind taken, unclean: 2 of each kind taken, 7 of each bird kind.
8. Source of water — fountains of the deep and floodgates of heaven. It is interesting to note that 75% of what spews out of volcanoes is water (steam).
9. Evidence for the Flood — millions of fossils around the world, layers of silt/rock can be seen, fossil fuels (oil, gas, coal, tar sands, etc.)
10. Where are the remains of the ark? — Two locations in the Mtns of Ararat are believed by scholars — one high up on Ararat where snow, ice and weather make it extremely difficult to study — it had a few eye witnesses and a piece of wood taken from it. Another where the outline of the ship is seen and much is petrified — in this location, studies have found laminated wood, metal fasteners, and what possibly could be titanium slag used as ballast. Both locations are in Turkey and the govt. is not too cooperative and the area is dangerous for foreigners to do research so exploration is limited.
As you watch current media you will see a strong bias for local flooding. You will also see a bias that states that all fossils and fossil fuels were laid down over millions of years. Like the big bang theory having no explanation for going from black hole to expanding homogenous universe, there is no plausible explanation for finding fossils and fossil fuels around the globe, the same or similar to modern organisms, so deep in the earth, on the tops of mountains, etc. Since fossils don’t form if animals decay on the surface of the earth, almost all had to be formed by catastrophic burial. We don’t see many being formed today. If they had been forming over millions of years the chance that living things would have survived is rare since each time fossils were formed it required a major catastrophic action (remember that some fossil fuels are 5000’ deep).
It is far easier to believe Noah’s eye witness account, quoted and believed by Jesus Christ and many of the writers of other books of the Bible.
™ Version 4.2
