Transcript
A number of years ago, a man set out to build his own sailboat in his backyard. He worked diligently on the boat day after day, after his day job and on most weekends. After several months, the boat began to take shape.
People in the community began to take an interest in the sailboat and in their neighbor who had proven to be quite the craftsman.
All went well, until one day, someone asked him how he was going to get the boat to the ocean. But the man had never given a thought about how he planned to get his prized sailboat to the water. And, at that point, the boat was too big to be moved down a public street. The backyard shipbuilder had thought about everything, except this!
Later, after seeing an evening newscast telling of the man’s predicament, someone in the Department of the Navy offered to help. The Navy contacted the man and offered to airlift the boat with one of their giant helicopters and carry it to the ocean.
The man happily agreed. When the day came, many turned out to see the boat lifted out of the neighborhood and then lowered into the water. And people cheered and applauded as the captain took the wheel for the first time.
Noah built a large boat as well. And just like the man in that story, Noah’s boat wasn’t near the water, but rather than a helicopter taking the boat to the water, God brought the water to Noah, the waters of the worldwide flood.
Genesis 6:9-13: “These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God. And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
“The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”
These verses demonstrate the great contrast there was between Noah and those of his generation. Noah’s faith in God produced in him a lifestyle that was categorically different and separate from that of his contemporaries. He is an example to us of one who was not conformed to this world, as Romans 12:2 challenges the Church.
“Noah was a just [or righteous] man.” The Lord defines this righteousness as relating to Noah’s right relationship with Him. In Genesis 7:1, the Lord told Noah, “for thee have I seen righteous BEFORE ME in this generation.”
And Noah had a righteous standing before God because of his faith in Him. As Hebrews 11:7 states, “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of THE RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH IS BY FAITH.”
Noah was also “perfect in his generations.” The word “perfect” does not mean that he never sinned, but rather speaks of him being blameless and a man of integrity.
And not only that, “Noah walked with God.” Noah didn’t merely know about God, he knew God and walked with Him on a daily basis. He walked in fellowship with God, and he followed His will.
To have it written that he was one who “walked with God” was a high honor for Noah’s life, as Noah and Enoch (Gen. 5:24) are the only two men in the Bible of whom this is said.
The order of the description of Noah is one of increasing spiritual quality. Noah was just and righteous before God. And not only that he was blameless and a man of integrity in his generation. And not only that he walked with God as a way of life.
As it’s been said, “Noah was a bright shining light in the prevailing moral darkness. In an unrighteous world, he was righteous. In an impure world, he was pure. In a world that dismissed God, he walked with God.”
It’s interesting that the text here then repeats the names of Noah’s three sons. They had already been mentioned at the end of the previous chapter. They are repeated to remind us of the effect that Noah’s godly life had on them.
Though they lived in the midst of a godless, corrupt society, because Noah believed so deeply and walked so closely with God, as we know, his three sons got on the ark with their father, and they, with their wives, were also saved from judgment.
This reminds us of the powerful influence of a parent’s life and genuine testimony on their children, which can lead to their salvation.
Most people know that Noah built an ark, but what many don’t know is that he first built a godly character in himself, and this in turn led to him building a godly home.
Verses 11-12 then contrast Noah’s testimony with the world at that time, which “was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.” In contrast to Noah’s righteousness was man’s rottenness.
Noah walked WITH GOD, but the earth “was corrupt BEFORE GOD.” The word “corrupt” is a strong term that is also translated as “destroy” in the Bible. Mankind had corrupted and destroyed himself, morally and spiritually, by not following God’s will and His ways.
Man was corrupt BEFORE GOD, and then with his fellow man, the earth was filled with violence. God had commanded man to “fill” the earth. Mankind had done this, but he had also “filled” it with violence toward one another.
And one led to the other in verse 11. The inward corruption before God led to the expression of violence among men. A corrupt heart and a life that is at enmity with God often leads to a person’s cruelty toward another.
Having rejected God, mankind had sunk into a deep pit of violence, hatred, abuse, murder, dishonesty, and every conceivable ugly expression of the depravity of the human heart. And this condition of man dominated the whole earth.
The earth had forgotten God and turned from Him, but verse 12 says, “And God looked upon the earth.” In other words, God hadn’t forgotten man.
This teaches that God doesn’t just overlook sin and its consequences, and He intervenes in human history to deal with it. We see that with the flood, with the Cross, and with the seven-year Tribulation when His wrath will be poured out on this world.
When God looked upon the earth and upon all flesh, He only saw moral and spiritual corruption and the turning away from God’s ways.
Thus, God told Noah that “The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”
God told this to Noah with the intention of saving Noah and his family. In the midst of this pervasive corruption and judgment, there was also grace, because there is grace in every dispensation of God.
God telling Noah of His intended judgment on the world and all mankind demonstrates the “grace” that Noah found in the eyes of the Lord as verse 8 says.
And then by grace, God explained how He was going to preserve Noah and his family.
Genesis 6:14-16: “Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.
“And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.
“A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it.”
In order to preserve both human and terrestrial animal life on the earth, God instructed Noah to build a bargelike structure called an ark, which would save its occupants from the destruction of the worldwide flood.
Noah received detailed instructions from God that he was to follow in building the ark.
The text is written as a literal, factual, historical account. And that is how we are to interpret and understand it by faith. This was no fairy tale. This really happened.
An ark was a hollow chest, basically a large box designed to float on water. The ark was designed by God for capacity and floating stability. Its primary purpose was just to stay afloat, not to travel from one destination to another.
The dimensions of the ark that God gave to Noah were 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high. A cubit is approximately 18 inches. Doing the math, this means that the ark was around 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. Thus, the ark was a flat-bottomed, rectangular vessel, the length of one and a half football fields.
Henry Morris states this about its dimensions, “It can be shown that a gigantic box of such dimensions would be exceedingly stable, almost impossible to capsize. Even in a sea of gigantic waves, the ark could be tilted through any angle up to just short of 90 degrees and would immediately thereafter right itself again.”
It’s also been stated of these dimensions that “Modern ocean-going tankers and aircraft carriers have a similar scale of dimensions.”
The internal volume of the ark was 1.5 million cubic feet. This is equal to the freight capacity of 522 standard livestock cars which are used on American railroads.
God instructed Moses further details for the ark’s construction, that it was to have three stories, and each story was to be 10 cubits, or 15 feet high. Each of these stories was to be divided into various “rooms” or stalls to separate the animals for safety and cooperation.
The ark was to be made waterproof with “pitch” or a tar-like substance, inside and outside, to seal the ark against leaks. The ark was to have a door on its side, but just one door for embarkation and debarkation.
The ark was also to have a “window,” or an 18-inch opening all the way around the top of the ark under the roof for light and ventilation. And that window reminds me of a joke: What kind of lights were on the ark? Floodlights!
Genesis 6:17-20: “And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee.
“And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female.
“Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive.”
Though implied by the instructions for the ark, for the first time, God tells Noah exactly what form His coming judgment on mankind would take: a flood of waters upon the earth.
And God emphasizes His personal role in the flood, that “I, even I, do bring a flood of waters.” This flood did not happen by natural means. It was brought on the world by God as a judgment against sin and the wickedness of its inhabitants.
Like with Adam and Eve, the earth and nature would again suffer because of human sin.
The flood stands as a stark reminder that no one gets away with sin forever and that God must punish sin. And the unbelieving sinner will be judged for their sins ultimately when they are sentenced to everlasting torment in the lake of fire.
This was to be no local flood. The language of this verse allows for nothing less. All flesh: man and animal, was to be destroyed by the flood. All that had the breath of life under heaven, or the sky above, would perish. “Everything that is in the earth shall die.”
Universal terms like “all flesh” and “every thing” are used 30 times in describing this catastrophic event which reinforces that it was a global flood.
But in contrast to all those who would die, God told Noah, “But with thee will I establish my covenant.” Despite the dramatic judgment of death that was coming, God made a covenant with Noah that he and his family would be saved and would live.
And God also covenanted with Noah to save a male and female of each land-dependent, air-breathing animal “kind” so the earth could be repopulated with them after the flood.
It’s important to note that verse 20 states, “Of fowls after their KIND, and of cattle after their KIND, of every creeping thing of the earth after his KIND…”
An animal kind is a group of related animals not related to any other animals. A good measure of a kind is that if 2 things can breed together, then they are of the same created kind. A “kind” is a broader category than a species, and usually includes many species.
It’s been said that “According to estimates published in 2014, there are fewer than 1.8 million documented species of organisms in the world. Over 98% of these species are fish, invertebrates, and non-animals (like plants and bacteria). This means that there are fewer than 34,000 species of known, land-dependent vertebrates in the world today.”
Noah did not need to build an aquarium for the ark! There was plenty of water outside the ark. Excluded from the ark were fish and other sea creatures.
However, as we can see from the fossil record, much of the world’s marine life also perished in the flood.
Eliminating the marine life species, now we’re talking about the ark needing to house the ancestors of fewer than 34,000 land-dependent species. But it was much less than this even, since the biblical “kind” is broader than the “species” category of modern biology.
From chipmunks to elephants, the average size of a land animal is around a sheep or smaller. Many, many are smaller. And even with the larger animals, we can safely assume that the young, small, healthy ones of these kinds were sent by God to the ark.
Going back to the analogy of the standard livestock cars used on American railroads, 240 sheep can be transported in one car. The ark had the capacity of 522 standard livestock cars. Thus, the ark could carry 125,000 sheep-size animals.
So there was plenty of room on the ark for two of each of the flying creatures and land-dependent, air-breathing animal “kinds” of the earth. Genesis 7:2 adds that for food and acceptable sacrifices, Noah also had to bring seven pairs of each kind of clean animal.
But even adding these extra animals and even extinct animal kinds, the ark was probably not even half full of animals and had more than enough room for Noah and his family, and all the food, water, and provisions that were needed for them and the animals.
In verse 20, God told Noah that “two of every sort shall come unto thee” at the proper time. Noah didn’t need to be out on trapping expeditions or out rounding up these animals, because God would supernaturally send them to him.
When the time came, the animals moved and migrated at God’s urging and impelling them toward the ark and then they were gathered into the ark by Noah.
Genesis 7 tells us this about the flood: “In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
“And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark…And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.
“And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters…
“And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man…and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.”
In verse 1, the ark having been completed by Noah according to God’s design, God invited Noah and his family to enter the ark.
Noah did so with his family (vv. 7,13). Then the animals that had migrated unto the ark, “went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh” (v. 15).
Once all were inside, verse 16 says that “the Lord shut him in.” The Lord shut the single door of the ark and sealed it without the help of any human hands. This provided assurance to its occupants that they were under God’s protective hand.
And then on the specific, historical day of the 600th year of Noah’s life, in the second month, and the 17th day of that month, “the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.”
In Genesis 1, during the creation week, we learn how God divided the waters that had covered the earth on day 1 of creation.
He collected the waters into a vapor canopy above and around the whole earth, created the atmosphere between, and then the lower waters He gathered together into the seas.
We learn here by the account of the flood that the lower waters from the creation were also gathered into subterranean reservoirs or deep-seated sources in or below the earth’s crust. 2 Peter 3:5 describes this as “the earth standing out of the water and in the water.”
Water was above the earth, under the earth, on the earth, and around the land mass of the earth in the seas. With the water that was above the earth AND the water that was in the subterranean part of the earth, God destroyed the earth.
Suddenly, on that fateful day, water came from those two directions from below and above. God broke up the surface of the earth and the fountains of the great deep erupted and came bursting forth and escaped to the surface.
And at the same time, the windows of heaven opened. God stopped His suspension of the water above. God condensed and precipitated the waters above the firmament from the vast blanket of water vapor, and they fell on the earth. And the rain came in torrents.
Because of the great amount of water from the canopy that went around the whole earth, it rained on and around the entire earth for 40 days.
Thus, when the time came for the destruction of the world, God brought the waters He had separated at the beginning together again.
And all this water covered and drowned the entire world. Waters stood above all the hills, and the water level was 15 cubits or 22 1/2 feet higher than the highest mountain.
And all flesh died. Every single land animal died. Every single person in the world drowned and died; every single person and all flesh, that is, except those who were in the ark.
When those waters burst forth from below and came crashing down from above, the waters increased greatly and came to the ark and lifted the boat.
And the ark safely floated on the waters, freely floating over the mountains, stably keeping those inside secure from the judgment of the worldwide flood.
Over 70% of the globe is water. These waters and the fossil record are a continual reminder of the truth of the flood. It’s been said that “If Earth’s surface were completely level, with no deep oceans and no high continents, the oceans would cover the entire globe to a depth of about a mile and a half.”
The waters prevailed on the earth for a total of 150 days (7:24) and then subsided over a period of months. Five months after the flood commenced the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat (8:4; cf. 7:11). Seven months and 10 days after that, or a little more than a year after the flood began, God told Noah and his family to disembark.
While the flood brought destruction and death to the world, the ark was designed by God for salvation and life. And thus, that ark is a picture of Christ.
Like the ark, our salvation in Christ was designed by God, planned from eternity past.
Like Noah and his family were saved from God’s judgment against sin in the worldwide flood, Christ is the Ark of our salvation that delivers us from God’s judgment against sin.
Being in the ark is a picture of being “in Christ.” Those “in” the ark were safe from judgment and death, and likewise, those who are “in Christ” are safe from God’s judgment and eternal death in the lake of fire.
The ark saved everyone who entered. And everyone who comes to Christ and believes in Him will be saved.
That ark was a place of total security. No matter how strong the wind blew, how hard it rained, or how high the waters and waves rose, those inside the ark were safe. The watertight ark was strong and preserved everyone in it. And it’s the same way with being in Christ; no matter the spiritual danger we are safe and kept by Him.
God invited Noah and his family to come to the ark and when they responded and entered voluntarily by faith, God shut that door and sealed them inside, giving assurance that they were under His protective hand.
And for those who respond to God’s invitation to come to Christ to find life and deliverance, once we are in Christ, we have the assurance that we are sealed in Him and are kept by the power of God.
In October 2017, our family visited the Ark Encounter in Williamstown, Kentucky. We toured the impressive full-size ark.
I appreciated the testimony of faith that this ark is to the truth of God’s Word. But of all the things we saw, what hit me in the heart the most was the door.
The door of the ark is a type of Christ as well. He is the door by Whom we enter into salvation. As the Lord taught Israel in His earthly ministry, and is a truth that pertains to us in the Body of Christ too: “I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved…” (John 10:9).
The way of salvation in Noah’s day was the wooden ark with its single door, and the way of salvation today is through the wooden cross upon which Christ died. And as the ark had only a single door, it teaches that Christ is the one way, the only way to safety.