In the previous post we looked at the enigmatic beginning of Genesis 6. We saw that the problem God identified with humans was the increased violence. This is cemented in the first verses of the next portion of Genesis where we clearly read that God considers human violence to be the problem. We also saw that Genesis 6.8 gives a ray of hope by stating that Noah had found favor with God. Now we move on to the account of the flood.
Hebrew text:
This is a large chunk of text. For the parallel Westminster Leningrad Codex and NIV texts click here.
Transliteration:
Chapter 6
9 ’êl·leh tō·wl·ḏōṯ nō·aḥ, nō·aḥ, ’îš ṣad·dîq tā·mîm hā·yāh bə·ḏō·rō·ṯāw; ’eṯ- hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm hiṯ·hal·leḵ- nō·aḥ.
10 way·yō·w·leḏ nō·aḥ šə·lō·šāh ḇā·nîm; ’eṯ- šêm ’eṯ- ḥām wə·’eṯ- yā·p̄eṯ.
11 wat·tiš·šā·ḥêṯ hā·’ā·reṣ lip̄·nê hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm; wat·tim·mā·lê hā·’ā·reṣ ḥā·mās.
12 way·yar ’ĕ·lō·hîm ’eṯ- hā·’ā·reṣ wə·hin·nêh niš·ḥā·ṯāh; kî- hiš·ḥîṯ kāl- bā·śār ’eṯ- dar·kōw ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ. s
13 way·yō·mer ’ĕ·lō·hîm lə·nō·aḥ, qêṣ kāl- bā·śār bā lə·p̄ā·nay, kî- mā·lə·’āh hā·’ā·reṣ ḥā·mās mip·pə·nê·hem; wə·hin·nî maš·ḥî·ṯām ’eṯ- hā·’ā·reṣ.
14 ‘ă·śêh lə·ḵā tê·ḇaṯ ‘ă·ṣê- ḡō·p̄er, qin·nîm ta·‘ă·śeh ’eṯ- hat·tê·ḇāh; wə·ḵā·p̄ar·tā ’ō·ṯāh mib·ba·yiṯ ū·mi·ḥūṣ bak·kō·p̄er.
15 wə·zeh ’ă·šer ta·‘ă·śeh ’ō·ṯāh; šə·lōš mê·’ō·wṯ ’am·māh, ’ō·reḵ hat·tê·ḇāh, ḥă·miš·šîm ’am·māh rā·ḥə·bāh, ū·šə·lō·šîm ’am·māh qō·w·mā·ṯāh.
16 ṣō·har ta·‘ă·śeh lat·tê·ḇāh, wə·’el- ’am·māh tə·ḵa·len·nāh mil·ma‘·lāh, ū·p̄e·ṯaḥ hat·tê·ḇāh bə·ṣid·dāh tā·śîm; taḥ·tî·yim šə·nî·yim ū·šə·li·šîm ta·‘ă·śe·hā.
17 wa·’ă·nî, hin·nî mê·ḇî ’eṯ- ham·mab·būl ma·yim ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ, lə·ša·ḥêṯ kāl- bā·śār, ’ă·šer- bōw rū·aḥ ḥay·yîm, mit·ta·ḥaṯ haš·šā·mā·yim; kōl ’ă·šer- bā·’ā·reṣ yiḡ·wā‘.
18 wa·hă·qi·mō·ṯî ’eṯ- bə·rî·ṯî ’it·tāḵ; ū·ḇā·ṯā ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh, ’at·tāh ū·ḇā·ne·ḵā wə·’iš·tə·ḵā ū·nə·šê- ḇā·ne·ḵā ’it·tāḵ.
19 ū·mik·kāl- hā·ḥay mik·kāl bā·śār šə·na·yim mik·kōl tā·ḇî ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh lə·ha·ḥă·yōṯ ’it·tāḵ; zā·ḵār ū·nə·qê·ḇāh yih·yū.
20 mê·hā·‘ō·wp̄ lə·mî·nê·hū, ū·min- hab·bə·hê·māh lə·mî·nāh, mik·kōl re·meś hā·’ă·ḏā·māh lə·mî·nê·hū; šə·na·yim mik·kōl yā·ḇō·’ū ’ê·le·ḵā lə·ha·ḥă·yō·wṯ.
21 wə·’at·tāh qaḥ- lə·ḵā, mik·kāl ma·’ă·ḵāl ’ă·šer yê·’ā·ḵêl, wə·’ā·sap̄·tā ’ê·le·ḵā; wə·hā·yāh lə·ḵā wə·lā·hem lə·’āḵ·lāh
22 way·ya·‘aś nō·aḥ; kə·ḵōl ’ă·šer ṣiw·wāh ’ō·ṯōw ’ĕ·lō·hîm kên ‘ā·śāh. s
Chapter 7
1 way·yō·mer Yah·weh lə·nō·aḥ, bō- ’at·tāh wə·ḵāl bê·ṯə·ḵā ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh; kî- ’ō·ṯə·ḵā rā·’î·ṯî ṣad·dîq lə·p̄ā·nay bad·dō·wr haz·zeh.
2 mik·kōl hab·bə·hê·māh haṭ·ṭə·hō·w·rāh, tiq·qaḥ- lə·ḵā šiḇ·‘āh šiḇ·‘āh ’îš wə·’iš·tōw; ū·min- hab·bə·hê·māh ’ă·šer lō ṭə·hō·rāh hî šə·na·yim ’îš wə·’iš·tōw.
3 gam mê·‘ō·wp̄ haš·šā·ma·yim šiḇ·‘āh šiḇ·‘āh zā·ḵār ū·nə·qê·ḇāh; lə·ḥay·yō·wṯ ze·ra‘ ‘al- pə·nê ḵāl hā·’ā·reṣ.
4 kî lə·yā·mîm ‘ō·wḏ šiḇ·‘āh, ’ā·nō·ḵî mam·ṭîr ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ, ’ar·bā·‘îm yō·wm, wə·’ar·bā·‘îm lā·yə·lāh; ū·mā·ḥî·ṯî, ’eṯ- kāl- hay·qūm ’ă·šer ‘ā·śî·ṯî, mê·‘al pə·nê hā·’ă·ḏā·māh.
5 way·ya·‘aś nō·aḥ; kə·ḵōl ’ă·šer- ṣiw·wā·hū Yah·weh.
6 wə·nō·aḥ ben- šêš mê·’ō·wṯ šā·nāh; wə·ham·mab·būl hā·yāh, ma·yim ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ.
7 way·yā·ḇō nō·aḥ, ū·ḇā·nāw wə·’iš·tōw ū·nə·šê- ḇā·nāw ’it·tōw ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh; mip·pə·nê mê ham·mab·būl.
8 min- hab·bə·hê·māh haṭ·ṭə·hō·w·rāh, ū·min- hab·bə·hê·māh, ’ă·šer ’ê·nen·nāh ṭə·hō·rāh; ū·min- hā·‘ō·wp̄, wə·ḵōl ’ă·šer- rō·mêś ‘al- hā·’ă·ḏā·māh.
9 šə·na·yim šə·na·yim bā·’ū ’el- nō·aḥ ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh zā·ḵār ū·nə·qê·ḇāh; ka·’ă·šer ṣiw·wāh ’ĕ·lō·hîm ’eṯ- nō·aḥ.
10 way·hî lə·šiḇ·‘aṯ hay·yā·mîm; ū·mê ham·mab·būl, hā·yū ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ.
11 biš·naṯ šêš- mê·’ō·wṯ šā·nāh lə·ḥay·yê- nō·aḥ, ba·ḥō·ḏeš haš·šê·nî, bə·šiḇ·‘āh- ‘ā·śār yō·wm la·ḥō·ḏeš; bay·yō·wm haz·zeh, niḇ·qə·‘ū kāl- ma‘·yə·nōṯ tə·hō·wm rab·bāh, wa·’ă·rub·bōṯ haš·šā·ma·yim nip̄·tā·ḥū.
12 way·hî hag·ge·šem ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ; ’ar·bā·‘îm yō·wm, wə·’ar·bā·‘îm lā·yə·lāh.
13 bə·‘e·ṣem hay·yō·wm haz·zeh bā nō·aḥ, wə·šêm- wə·ḥām wā·ye·p̄eṯ bə·nê- nō·aḥ; wə·’ê·šeṯ nō·aḥ, ū·šə·lō·šeṯ nə·šê- ḇā·nāw ’it·tām ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh.
14 hêm·māh wə·ḵāl ha·ḥay·yāh lə·mî·nāh, wə·ḵāl hab·bə·hê·māh lə·mî·nāh, wə·ḵāl hā·re·meś hā·rō·mêś ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ lə·mî·nê·hū; wə·ḵāl hā·‘ō·wp̄ lə·mî·nê·hū, kōl ṣip·pō·wr kāl- kā·nāp̄.
15 way·yā·ḇō·’ū ’el- nō·aḥ ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh; šə·na·yim šə·na·yim mik·kāl hab·bā·śār, ’ă·šer- bōw rū·aḥ ḥay·yîm.
16 wə·hab·bā·’îm, zā·ḵār ū·nə·qê·ḇāh mik·kāl bā·śār bā·’ū, ka·’ă·šer ṣiw·wāh ’ō·ṯōw ’ĕ·lō·hîm; way·yis·gōr Yah·weh ba·‘ă·ḏōw.
17 way·hî ham·mab·būl ’ar·bā·‘îm yō·wm ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ; way·yir·bū ham·ma·yim, way·yiś·’ū ’eṯ- hat·tê·ḇāh, wat·tā·rām mê·‘al hā·’ā·reṣ.
18 way·yiḡ·bə·rū ham·ma·yim way·yir·bū mə·’ōḏ ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ; wat·tê·leḵ hat·tê·ḇāh ‘al- pə·nê ham·mā·yim.
19 wə·ham·ma·yim, gā·ḇə·rū mə·’ōḏ mə·’ōḏ ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ; way·ḵus·sū, kāl- he·hā·rîm hag·gə·ḇō·hîm, ’ă·šer- ta·ḥaṯ kāl- haš·šā·mā·yim.
20 ḥă·mêš ‘eś·rêh ’am·māh mil·ma‘·lāh, gā·ḇə·rū ham·mā·yim; way·ḵus·sū he·hā·rîm.
21 way·yiḡ·wa‘ kāl- bā·śār hā·rō·mêś ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ, bā·‘ō·wp̄ ū·ḇab·bə·hê·māh ū·ḇa·ḥay·yāh, ū·ḇə·ḵāl haš·še·reṣ haš·šō·rêṣ ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ; wə·ḵōl hā·’ā·ḏām.
22 kōl ’ă·šer niš·maṯ- rū·aḥ ḥay·yîm bə·’ap·pāw, mik·kōl ’ă·šer be·ḥā·rā·ḇāh mê·ṯū.
23 way·yi·maḥ ’eṯ- kāl- hay·qūm ’ă·šer ‘al- pə·nê hā·’ă·ḏā·māh, mê·’ā·ḏām ‘aḏ- bə·hê·māh ‘aḏ- re·meś wə·‘aḏ- ‘ō·wp̄ haš·šā·ma·yim, way·yim·mā·ḥū min- hā·’ā·reṣ; wa·yiš·šā·’er ’aḵ- nō·aḥ wa·’ă·šer ’it·tōw bat·tê·ḇāh.
24 way·yiḡ·bə·rū ham·ma·yim ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ; ḥă·miš·šîm ū·mə·’aṯ yō·wm.
Chapter 8
1 way·yiz·kōr ’ĕ·lō·hîm ’eṯ- nō·aḥ, wə·’êṯ kāl- ha·ḥay·yāh wə·’eṯ- kāl- hab·bə·hê·māh, ’ă·šer ’it·tōw bat·tê·ḇāh; way·ya·‘ă·ḇêr ’ĕ·lō·hîm rū·aḥ ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ, way·yā·šōk·kū ham·mā·yim.
2 way·yis·sā·ḵə·rū ma‘·yə·nōṯ tə·hō·wm, wa·’ă·rub·bōṯ haš·šā·mā·yim; way·yik·kā·lê hag·ge·šem min- haš·šā·mā·yim.
3 way·yā·šu·ḇū ham·ma·yim mê·‘al hā·’ā·reṣ hā·lō·wḵ wā·šō·wḇ; way·yaḥ·sə·rū ham·ma·yim, miq·ṣêh ḥă·miš·šîm ū·mə·’aṯ yō·wm.
4 wat·tā·naḥ hat·tê·ḇāh ba·ḥō·ḏeš haš·šə·ḇî·‘î, bə·šiḇ·‘āh- ‘ā·śār yō·wm la·ḥō·ḏeš; ‘al hā·rê ’ă·rā·rāṭ.
5 wə·ham·ma·yim, hā·yū hā·lō·wḵ wə·ḥā·sō·wr, ‘aḏ ha·ḥō·ḏeš hā·‘ă·śî·rî; bā·‘ă·śî·rî bə·’e·ḥāḏ la·ḥō·ḏeš, nir·’ū rā·šê he·hā·rîm.
6 way·hî miq·qêṣ ’ar·bā·‘îm yō·wm; way·yip̄·taḥ nō·aḥ, ’eṯ- ḥal·lō·wn hat·tê·ḇāh ’ă·šer ‘ā·śāh.
7 way·šal·laḥ ’eṯ- hā·‘ō·rêḇ; way·yê·ṣê yā·ṣō·w wā·šō·wḇ, ‘aḏ- yə·ḇō·šeṯ ham·ma·yim mê·‘al hā·’ā·reṣ.
8 way·šal·laḥ ’eṯ- hay·yō·w·nāh mê·’it·tōw; lir·’ō·wṯ hă·qal·lū ham·ma·yim, mê·‘al pə·nê hā·’ă·ḏā·māh.
9 wə·lō- mā·ṣə·’āh hay·yō·w·nāh mā·nō·w·aḥ lə·ḵap̄- raḡ·lāh, wat·tā·šāḇ ’ê·lāw ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh, kî- ma·yim ‘al- pə·nê ḵāl hā·’ā·reṣ; way·yiš·laḥ yā·ḏōw way·yiq·qā·ḥe·hā, way·yā·ḇê ’ō·ṯāh ’ê·lāw ’el- hat·tê·ḇāh.
10 way·yā·ḥel ‘ō·wḏ, šiḇ·‘aṯ yā·mîm ’ă·ḥê·rîm; way·yō·sep̄ šal·laḥ ’eṯ- hay·yō·w·nāh min- hat·tê·ḇāh.
11 wat·tā·ḇō ’ê·lāw hay·yō·w·nāh lə·‘êṯ ‘e·reḇ, wə·hin·nêh ‘ă·lêh- za·yiṯ ṭā·rāp̄ bə·p̄î·hā; way·yê·ḏa‘ nō·aḥ, kî- qal·lū ham·ma·yim mê·‘al hā·’ā·reṣ.
12 way·yî·yā·ḥel ‘ō·wḏ, šiḇ·‘aṯ yā·mîm ’ă·ḥê·rîm; way·šal·laḥ ’eṯ- hay·yō·w·nāh, wə·lō- yā·sə·p̄āh šūḇ- ’ê·lāw ‘ō·wḏ.
13 way·hî bə·’a·ḥaṯ wə·šêš- mê·’ō·wṯ šā·nāh, bā·ri·šō·wn bə·’e·ḥāḏ la·ḥō·ḏeš, ḥā·rə·ḇū ham·ma·yim mê·‘al hā·’ā·reṣ; way·yā·sar nō·aḥ ’eṯ- miḵ·sêh hat·tê·ḇāh, way·yar wə·hin·nêh ḥā·rə·ḇū pə·nê hā·’ă·ḏā·māh.
14 ū·ḇa·ḥō·ḏeš haš·šê·nî, bə·šiḇ·‘āh wə·‘eś·rîm yō·wm la·ḥō·ḏeš; yā·ḇə·šāh hā·’ā·reṣ. s
15 way·ḏab·bêr ’ĕ·lō·hîm ’el- nō·aḥ lê·mōr.
16 ṣê min- hat·tê·ḇāh; ’at·tāh wə·’iš·tə·ḵā ū·ḇā·ne·ḵā ū·nə·šê- ḇā·ne·ḵā ’it·tāḵ.
17 kāl- ha·ḥay·yāh ’ă·šer- ’it·tə·ḵā mik·kāl bā·śār, bā·‘ō·wp̄ ū·ḇab·bə·hê·māh ū·ḇə·ḵāl hā·re·meś hā·rō·mêś ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ [hō·w·ṣê ḵ] (hay·ṣê q) ’it·tāḵ; wə·šā·rə·ṣū ḇā·’ā·reṣ, ū·p̄ā·rū wə·rā·ḇū ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ.
18 way·yê·ṣê- nō·aḥ; ū·ḇā·nāw wə·’iš·tōw ū·nə·šê- ḇā·nāw ’it·tōw.
19 kāl- ha·ḥay·yāh, kāl- hā·re·meś wə·ḵāl hā·‘ō·wp̄, kōl rō·w·mêś ‘al- hā·’ā·reṣ; lə·miš·pə·ḥō·ṯê·hem, yā·ṣə·’ū min- hat·tê·ḇāh.
NIV:
This is a large chunk of text. For the parallel Westminster Leningrad Codex and NIV texts click here.
Study:
Noah is introduced as a righteous man who walked faithfully with God. The text also introduces us to his three sons – Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Verse 11 goes back to the problem that was presented in the previous section of text by stating, “Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence.” This is repeated in verse 13, where God declares, ““I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them.” So twice we are told that the main problem is violence. The violence characterized by Cain and institutionalized by his descendant Lamech, had become the norm for human societies as practiced especially by the ‘sons of God’.
The text then recounts God’s instructions to Noah for building the ark. The material used for the ark was גֹ֔פֶר (go’-fer) wood. This is the only occurrence of the word and quite frankly there is little consensus concerning its meaning.1 We are then given the dimensions of the ark in cubits. By most estimates, a cubit was about 18 inches (about 45 centimeters). This would give us the following dimensions for the ark: Length – 450 feet (137 meters); Width – 75 feet (23 meters); Height – 37.5 feet (11.5 meters).2
The ark has fascinated humans for many centuries now. The are three lines of objections. First, was it capable of floating despite the weight of all its occupants? This is a question of buoyancy and a recent study at the University of Leicester concluded that the ark with the dimensions given in Genesis 8 would have been able to float even if it held over 2 million sheep.3 Of course, whether this means that it could hold two members of each of the millions of terrestrial and avian species is another matter. Second, was it large enough to accommodate all the occupants? Some claim that it just was not large enough to accommodate all the animals.4 Others point out that we must also consider corridors which the animals used while embarking and disembarking5 though, of course, with a creative ordering, it could have been possible to use all the space in the ark by loading the largest animals first and the smallest last. Third, there are issues of logistics related to feeding, cleaning and climate control. The ark’s occupants would have needed to be fed and the space they occupied would have needed to be cleaned. And there were animals from tropical climates in the same ark as those from frigid climates. Temperature control itself would have been a remarkable feat of engineering.6 And how just eight persons would have been able to do all of this for a period of a year just boggles the mind.
I would raise some additional objections related to food. How did Noah and his family keep the animals from fighting over the limited food rations? And how were carnivores like lions, tigers, coyotes, and hyenas fed during this time? Did their food supplies consist of additional animals not counted among the ones who entered the ark ‘according to their kinds’? And how did Noah manage to keep vegetative food from rotting for so many months in the humid environment created by the flood?
Despite these objections, it is possible that the animals were categorized ‘according to their kinds’ in ways that made the voyage possible. Of course, this would require that, subsequent to the flood, there has been sufficient time to allow for the huge variety of species that have arisen since the voyage. And we could invoke a miracle for the preservation of the food.
Of course, all of these issues arise when we try to interpret the text literally. The text has cues that it is not intended to be read literally. It uses hyperbole in many places like when it refers to ‘every living creature’.7 Another example is the claim that “all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered.” (Genesis 7.19) For this to happen, the amount of water needed would be more than twice the total amount of water that exists on earth right now!8
Further, the numbers of animals do not add up. In Genesis 6.19-20 two of every kind of animal is specified, while in Genesis 7.2-3 seven pairs of clean animals are required. Robert Cargill argues cogently that the account we are dealing with is constructed from two distinct sources, which gives rise to the different discrepancies in the accounts. Despite these, he also asserts, “It is time for Christians to concede that ‘inspiration’ does not equal ‘inerrancy,’ and that ‘biblical’ does not equal ‘historical’ or even ‘factual.’”9
Rather than attempt to interpret the narrative in a literal manner, we should attempt to understand its role in the larger body of text within which it is found. The narrative of the ark and the flood is the solution to the problem presented by widespread human violence – so widespread that only one man was found not given to violence. It is a stark and shocking wake-up call the humans the world over about our propensity for violence and our ability to justify it as Cain and Lamech did. The narrative serves to show how God wiped the slate clean and started again.
We must also recognize what humans violence is in the context of the larger body of text. In an earlier post we saw that the first account of creation is a polemic against other Ancient Near Eastern creation accounts in which the world and humans are the products of violence on the part of the gods. The testimony of the entire narrative is that the true God abhors violence. Hence, the widespread violence on the part of humans is simply another way in which their idolatry and worship of false gods manifests itself. God’s decision to start afresh is because humans had gone so far down the rabbit hole of idolatry, manifested in their rampant violence, that there was no other option than giving humans a true shock treatment.
Prayer:
Our loving, heavenly Father.Thank you for the reminder that you are a God who rejects violence. Thank you for the reminder that the only time you were on the verge of annihilating all of creation was when humans had descended into untold depths of violence. We ask you to empower us to remain strong against the temptation to use violence to solve our problems. We ask you to help us to rely on the guidance of your Spirit and in so doing to find favor in your eyes. We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
1. See for example Emil G. Hirsch, Henry Hyvernat. Gopher-Wood. (Accessed on 12 October 2019)↩
2. Cynthia Astle. Conversion of Biblical Measurements. (Accessed on 12 October 2019). The dimensions of the biblical ark can be compared with those of the Babylonian ark by reading Paul Haupt. (1888). The Dimensions of the Babylonian Ark. The American Journal of Philology, 9(4), 419-424. doi:10.2307/287191 (Accessed on 12 October 2019)↩
3. Helen Thompson. Could Noah’s Ark Float? In Theory, Yes. (Accessed on 12 October 2019). See also Sarah Knapton. Scientists: Noah’s Arc Would Have Floated With 70,000 Animals If Built By Dimensions In The Bible. (Accessed on 12 October 2019)↩
4. The Physical Impossibility of Noah’s Ark. (Accessed on 12 October 2019)↩
5. Robert Moore. The Impossible Voyage of Noah’s Ark. (Accessed on 12 October 2019)↩
6. ibid.↩
7. How Should We interpret the Genesis Flood Account? (Accessed on 12 October 2019)↩
8. The radius of earth is around 6371 km. The crest of Mount Everest is just over 8 km above sea level. Using the formula for the volume of a sphere, we obtain the volume of water needed to be just over 3 billion cubic kilometers. The earth is estimated to have about 1.4 billion cubic kilometers of water, which includes the water in the atmosphere. For more information visit How Much Water is There on Earth? (Accessed on 12 October 2019) which contains a remarkable pictorial that shows the amount of water relative to the earth.↩
9. Robert Cargill. Forget about Noah’s Ark; There Was No Worldwide Flood. (Accessed on 12 October 2019)↩
Purposes Crossed 