Right before His death, Jesus told His disciples key details about His return saying:
“For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” Matthew 24:37-39
This Scripture is important for several reasons.
First, not only does Jesus know the catastrophic historical events recorded in Genesis 6 and 7, but He also knows His audience is familiar with them. Their prior understanding of the flood’s unexpected, total destruction is the basis for His comparison.
Second, Jesus describes the normal actions of the people living in Noah’s day as “unaware” that a flood was coming. This is how we hear people describe natural disasters; they are consistently surprised by them. It is an interesting note of historical authenticity that plays into His comparison.
Third, Jesus says the flood swept them all away. The fact that Jesus is linking an event where “all flesh died that moved on the earth, birds, livestock, beasts, all swarming creatures that swarm on the earth, and all mankind” to His eventual return, means something about that return. It’s going to be big, and it’s going to affect everyone.
According to Jesus, Noah, the ark, and a global flood that killed all the birds, beasts, and people on the earth, were as historically real as His second coming. They are a historical preview of coming attractions that everyone would be wise to remember regarding their timing and scope.
This is one of the many reasons the idea that Noah’s flood was local somewhere in the Middle East is a misguided interpretation. It does not fit the language of Genesis, which is well-known to both Jesus and His disciples and is central to His comparison. Were the flood recorded in Genesis just local, it would make Jesus’ comparison be that ‘my return is going to be local, and it’s going to affect a few living creatures.’ But that’s not what either Jesus or Genesis says.
The fact that Jesus was well acquainted with the actual words of Genesis and knew them to be real history is why it is such a powerful statement. If Noah was not real, or if everyone in the world was not killed, or if the flood was not global, then Jesus’ comments make no sense. Jesus would say to a modern audience debating Noah and the extent of the flood, “Have you not read what I said about them?”
How Large Was Noah’s Ark? The length of the ark 300 cubits, its breadth 50 cubits, and its height 30 cubits. (Genesis 6:15) Unlike many whimsical drawings that depict the ark as some kind of overgrown houseboat (with giraffes sticking out the top), the ark described in the Bible was a huge vessel. Not until the late 1800s was a ship built that exceeded the capacity of Noah’s ark.
The dimensions of the ark are convincing for two reasons: the proportions are like that of a modern cargo ship, and it is about as large as a wooden ship can be built. The cubit gives us a good indication of size.1 Using the most likely cubit length, an ancient royal cubit of at least 20.4 inches (0.518 m), we know that the ark must have been no less than 510 feet (155 m) long, 85 feet (26 m) wide, and 51 feet (16 m) high. In the Western world, wooden sailing ships never got much longer than about 330 feet (100 m), yet the ancient Greeks built vessels at least this size 2,000 years earlier. China built huge wooden ships in the 1400s that may have been as large as the ark. The biblical ark is one of the largest wooden ships of all time—a mid-size cargo ship by today’s standards.
A Korean study was performed at the world-class ship research center (KRISO) in 1992. The team of nine KRISO researchers was led by Dr. Hong, now the research center’s director-general. The study confirmed that the ark could handle waves as high as 98 feet (30 m) and that the proportions of the biblical ark are near-optimal—an interesting admission from Dr. Hong, who believed in evolutionary ideas. The study combined analysis, model wave testing, and ship standards, yet the concept was simple: compare the biblical ark with 12 other vessels of the same volume but modified in length, width, or depth. Three qualities were measured—stability, hull strength, and comfort.
The Biblical verse below tells us Noah didn’t have to search or travel to faraway places to bring the animals on board. The world map was completely different before the flood, and based on Genesis 1, there may have been only one continent. The animals arrived at the ark as if called by a “homing instinct” (a behavior implanted in the animals by their Creator) and marched up the ramp themselves.
“But I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female. Of the birds according to their kinds, and of the animals according to their kinds, of every creeping thing of the ground, according to its kind, two of every sort shall come in to you to keep them alive.” Genesis 6:18-20
Juveniles of even the largest land animals do not present a size problem, and, being young, they have their full breeding life ahead of them. Even most dinosaurs were not very large — some were the size of a chicken (although absolutely no relation to birds, as many evolutionists are now saying). Most scientists agree that the average size of a dinosaur is actually the size of a bison. As far as the number of different types of dinosaurs, it should be recognized that, although there are hundreds of names for different varieties (species) of dinosaurs that have been discovered, there are probably only 60–80 different kinds.
Was Noah’s Flood Global? “And the waters prevailed so mightily on the earth that all the high mountains under the whole heaven were covered. The waters prevailed above the mountains, covering them fifteen cubits deep.” Genesis 7:19–20
Noah’s flood was much more destructive than any 40-day rainstorm ever could be. Scripture says that the “fountains of the great deep” broke open. In other words, earthquakes, volcanoes, and geysers of molten lava and scalding water were squeezed out of the earth’s crust in a violent, explosive upheaval. These fountains were not stopped until 150 days into the flood—so the earth was literally churning underneath the waters for about five months! The duration of the flood was extensive, and Noah and his family were aboard the ark for around a year.
Scientists once understood the fossils buried in water-carried sediments of mud and sand—to be mostly the result of the great flood. Wanting to debunk the Bible and the worldwide flood of Noah’s day, Charles Lyell of Darwin’s era introduced the ideal of slow gradual change over millions, now billions of years. Geologists now realise the evidence for catastrophism is everywhere. It can be seen all over the earth, from seabeds to mountaintops. Whether you travel by car, train, or plane, the physical features of the earth’s terrain clearly indicate a catastrophic past, from canyons and craters to coal beds and caverns. Some layers of strata extend across continents, revealing the effects of a huge catastrophe. The earth’s crust has massive amounts of layered sedimentary rock, sometimes miles (kilometers) deep! These layers of sand, soil, and material—mostly laid down by water—were once soft like mud, but they are now hard stone. Encased in these sedimentary layers are billions of dead things (fossils of plants and animals) buried very quickly. The evidence all over the earth is staring everyone in the face.
There are hundreds of stories and legends about a worldwide flood. Why do diverse cultures share a strikingly similar story? Did you know that stories about a worldwide flood are found in historic records all over the world? According to Dr. Duane Gish in his popular book Dinosaurs by Design, there are more than 270 such stories, most of which share a common theme and similar characters. So many flood stories with such similarities surely come from the flood of Noah’s day.
Stories of the flood—distorted though they may be—exist in practically all nations, from ancient Babylon onward. This evidence must not be lightly dismissed. If there never was a worldwide flood, why are there so many stories about it?
The reason for these flood stories is not difficult to understand. When we turn to the history book of the universe, the Bible, we learn that Noah’s descendants stayed together for approximately 100 years until God confused their languages at Babel (Genesis 11:1–9). As these people moved away from Babel, their descendants formed nations based on the languages they were given by God. Through those languages, the story of the flood was shared until it became embedded in their cultural history.
The Bible declares that the earth-covering cataclysm of Noah’s day is an obvious fact of history. People “deliberately overlook this fact, that . . . the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished” (2 Peter 3:5–6). The flood left much evidence—from the fact that over 70% of the rocks on continents were laid down by water and contain fossils to the widespread flood legends. Both of these evidences provide compelling support for this historical event.
God clearly sent a worldwide flood to punish humankind for their evil and corrupt ways (Genesis 6:5, 11). Even though flood-affirming evidence from geology and other areas of study is abundant, we don’t need this evidence to know what happened. Starting with the Bible and the history that God faithfully recorded there, Christians have a tool to interpret the evidence that evolutionists and non-Christians do not. We have the record of what happened from the one who was there.
Get all this information and more in a free booklet, Noah’s Ark – A Biblical and Scientific look at the Genesis account produced by Answers in Genesis (www.answersingenesis.org)
The sense of this verse spoken by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse is that the unrighteous will be taken by complete surprise at the coming of Jesus.
“But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be” Matthew 24:37-39
Jesus also gave us this reference to Noah’s flood as a picture of His wrath to come. Noah’s flood was the first occasion when God poured out His wrath upon a wicked and unrepentant world. Sadly, because of acceptance of evolution, the world does not believe Noah’s worldwide flood, and yet it is the only historical account that provides the best explanation for the geology and geomorphology that we see in the world today.
“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, ‘I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.’ But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” Genesis 6:5-8
The reason for His wrath being poured out in Noah’s day is that the hearts of the unrighteous conceived evil continually. Therefore, if Jesus words are to be believed, this will also be the state of the earth at His Second Coming.
The prophet Daniel also talks of the growth of evil in men’s hearts in the last days.
“And in the latter time of their kingdom, When the transgressors have reached their fullness (when their sin are coming to the full), A king (Antichrist) shall arise, Having fierce features, Who understands sinister schemes. His power shall be mighty, but not by his own power; He shall destroy fearfully, And shall prosper and thrive; He shall destroy the mighty, and also the holy people. “Through his cunning He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule; And he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes; But he shall be broken without human means (on Jesus return with the Saints).” Daniel 8:23-25
Note the Antichrist arises when the sins of his followers “have reached their fullness”.
Johan Huibers’s replica of Noah’s Ark is 130 metres long, 29 metres wide and 23 metres tall.
The rainbow is a reminder God will never again judge the wickedness of man with a global flood—next time the world will be judged by fire.
In 2016, Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis urged Christians to reclaim the rainbow and teach young people its true meaning.
“The rainbow itself wasn’t designed to be a symbol of freedom, love, pride or the LGBTQ movement. God created this beautiful, colourful phenomenon and designated it as a sign of His covenant with Noah and his descendants forever.”
“Sadly, people ignore what God intended the rainbow to represent and proudly wave rainbow-coloured flags in defiance of God’s command and design for marriage. Because of this, many Christians shy away from using the rainbow colours. But the rainbow was a symbol of God’s promises before the LGBTQ movement—and will continue to be after that movement has ended. As Christians, we need to take the rainbow back and teach our young people its true meaning.”
The 500-foot-long ark is the centrepiece of the biblical theme park based in Williamstown, Kentucky. Hundreds of thousands of visitors have toured the replica of Noah’s ark.
“The ark is lit permanently at night with a rainbow to remind the world that God owns it and He decreed it’s a sign of His covenant with man after the Flood—Christians need to take back the rainbow as we do at the Ark Encounter,” Ham said.
Critics denounced the decision—accusing him of stealing the rainbow colours from the LGBT community.
“This is Ken Ham’s sad attempt to take back the rainbow symbol from the LGBTQ community,” read a headline in the Orlando Weekly.
“It makes the ark look incredibly gay,” Kentucky Fairness Campaign’s Chris Hartman told USA Today.
“Knowing this first: scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, ‘where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.’ For this they wilfully forget… by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded by water.” 2 Peter 3:3-4
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