Is the story of Noah literal?

[Dan Clarkston]

Is the flood of Genesis story literal?

Why yes... yes it is.

There is evidence of a world wide flood not to mention all people groups have stories that have been handed down over the generations about the flood.

What's amazing is that some would listen to the devil and have doubts about what God says in His Word! Amazing!

 

[Ronald Nolette]

We agree on the definition of faith then. For the record, all I was getting at was that seeking proof of God's word should not be done lightly. For me, all the proof I need is in the bible and my lived experience.

As Thomas Jefferson wrote, "Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a god; because, if there be one, he must more approve the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear ... I repeat that you must lay aside all prejudice on both sides, and neither believe nor reject any thing because any other person, or description of persons have rejected or believed it. Your own reason is the only oracle given you by heaven, and you are answerable not for the rightness but uprightness of the decision."

For some as individuals yes that may be all that is needed. but to answer the sceptics and vulnerable believers, we can rely on true science and evidence.

Would you believe in the resurrection if there was no empty tomb for the apostles to proclaim or them seeing him alive?

Noahs flood has enormous scientific evidence to support it. Same as creation vs. evolution. Pau told timothy to beware of "science falsely so called" (knowledge) and we are to contend for th efaith against those who would lie about the facts of the faith.

 

[Dan Clarkston]

For some as individuals yes that may be all that is needed. but to answer the sceptics and vulnerable believers, we can rely on true science and evidence.

OK, so let's see your science and evidence that Jesus is real . . . .

It takes faith to believe! Only then can one see

 

[Ronald Nolette]

OK, so let's see your science and evidence that Jesus is real . . . .

It takes faith to believe! Only then can one see

Well when you prove Alexander the Great was real, I will show how Jesus was real.

 

[RLT63]

For some as individuals yes that may be all that is needed. but to answer the sceptics and vulnerable believers, we can rely on true science and evidence.

Would you believe in the resurrection if there was no empty tomb for the apostles to proclaim or them seeing him alive?

Noahs flood has enormous scientific evidence to support it. Same as creation vs. evolution. Pau told timothy to beware of "science falsely so called" (knowledge) and we are to contend for th efaith against those who would lie about the facts of the faith.

Since this thread is about the story of the flood can you share that evidence?

 

[Skovand]

We can know that the story of Noah is not literal for many reasons. I’ll try to list a few.

First we can look at the literature itself. Is it written like what we see in the histories? Or the autobiographies in the Bible? No. It’s stitched into the first eleven books of the Bible which is well
established by scholarship as being myths, not histories. It jumps through several characters and stories in just a few pages surpassing a thousand years while other parts spend 5 books and a hundred pages to span less than a hundred years or just three years. The entire story on those chapters contain clearly mythological aspects like a world of just water and darkness, talking flying snakes, mud men being split in half to make a woman , magical fruit that sustains immortality, boats that carries tons of animals and people living hundreds of years. Not mention flying invisible beings sleeping with woman birthing giants. Just clearly fantasy.

2. It’s scientifically impossible to happen in the ways it’s describes. First of all genetically we know there has never been less than several thousand humans and we know there has been roughly 20 species and subspecies of humans in the genus homo. Secondly we know that humans were not alive at the same time as animals like dinosaurs. We know there has been millions of species of animals. They would have had to have had so many animals that it would have been impossible to have all their food, and able to feed them and clean their waste everyday. When we look at the fossil record we see speciation through diverging traits developing within the basal forms resulting in morphological and genetic evolution. Thirdly for that much water to fall from the sky, or come up from the ground is impossible. If 2 miles of water was in the sky it would superheat hearth. If it was dusty chunks of ice it would have blocked so much light everything froze to death. If it came from underground geothermal heat and pressure would mean even in an ark everything would have been steamed to death in explosive geysers. The geological stratas are superimposed and stacked according to time verified through numerous ways of radiometric dating .

It’s bad theology and it’s even worse fake science to accept it .

 

[RLT63]

We can know that the story of Noah is not literal for many reasons. I’ll try to list a few.

First we can look at the literature itself. Is it written like what we see in the histories? Or the autobiographies in the Bible? No. It’s stitched into the first eleven books of the Bible which is well
established by scholarship as being myths, not histories. It jumps through several characters and stories in just a few pages surpassing a thousand years while other parts spend 5 books and a hundred pages to span less than a hundred years or just three years. The entire story on those chapters contain clearly mythological aspects like a world of just water and darkness, talking flying snakes, mud men being split in half to make a woman , magical fruit that sustains immortality, boats that carries tons of animals and people living hundreds of years. Not mention flying invisible beings sleeping with woman birthing giants. Just clearly fantasy.

2. It’s scientifically impossible to happen in the ways it’s describes. First of all genetically we know there has never been less than several thousand humans and we know there has been roughly 20 species and subspecies of humans in the genus homo. Secondly we know that humans were not alive at the same time as animals like dinosaurs. We know there has been millions of species of animals. They would have had to have had so many animals that it would have been impossible to have all their food, and able to feed them and clean their waste everyday. When we look at the fossil record we see speciation through diverging traits developing within the basal forms resulting in morphological and genetic evolution. Thirdly for that much water to fall from the sky, or come up from the ground is impossible. If 2 miles of water was in the sky it would superheat hearth. If it was dusty chunks of ice it would have blocked so much light everything froze to death. If it came from underground geothermal heat and pressure would mean even in an ark everything would have been steamed to death in explosive geysers. The geological stratas are superimposed and stacked according to time verified through numerous ways of radiometric dating .

It’s bad theology and it’s even worse fake science to accept it .

I would tend to agree with you for reasons you stated as well as other reasons I pointed out in this thread but Jesus said the end times would be like the days of Noah's time and Peter mentions the flood when talking about Jesus preaching to the spirits in prison so it seems that they took it literally

 

[DJT_47]

I would tend to agree with you for reasons you stated as well as other reasons I pointed out in this thread but Jesus said the end times would be like the days of Noah's time and Peter mentions the flood when talking about Jesus preaching to the spirits in prison so it seems that they took it literally

Can't pick and choose what you believe and disbelieve from the bible. Believe it all or nothing

 

[Skovand]

I would tend to agree with you for reasons you stated as well as other reasons I pointed out in this thread but Jesus said the end times would be like the days of Noah's time and Peter mentions the flood when talking about Jesus preaching to the spirits in prison so it seems that they took it literally

Or they are referring back to the story just like we often do . Such as saying strong as herculeas… never implies he’s real.

 

[Wick Stick]

Can't pick and choose what you believe and disbelieve from the bible. Believe it all or nothing

Except everyone does.

 

[Skovand]

Can't pick and choose what you believe and disbelieve from the bible. Believe it all or nothing

A lot of yall are confused about what picking and choosing to believe means. Yall act like the only way to believe the Bible is to believe all of
It literally. That’s just not the case. I don’t take genesis 1-11 literally because it’s not meant to be read literally. It’s obvious. It’s talking snake, flying invisible beings getting women pregnant birthing giants, it’s mud people becoming flesh, it’s magical fruits that grant life and knowledge, it’s flying flaming swords, it’s giant arks with every known land animal, it’s men living hundreds of years…. And it all takes place on a flat work with a dome over it. Does not take much wisdom to realize it’s not literal.

 

[DJT_47]

Except everyone does.

Speak for yourself. I believe it all, 100% as I'm sure many others do

 

[Wick Stick]

Speak for yourself. I believe it all, 100% as I'm sure many others do

Even the contradictions? Especially the contradictions?

 

[Skovand]

Speak for yourself. I believe it all, 100% as I'm sure many others do

I believe all 100% of it too. Just not literally or factually.

 

[DJT_47]

Even the contradictions? Especially the contradictions?

Name 'em

 

[Jack]

The Bible confirms the Genesis Flood several times.

 

[Wick Stick]

Name 'em

True or False:
God wanted the Israelites to offer Him sacrifices

 

[JohnDB]

Is the flood of Genesis story literal? I have always thought that it was because Jesus referred to the days of Noah and AIG and YECs do a good job of presenting it as literal, what do y’all think? Are Noah’s ark and flood literal scientific facts? « SMR blog

1. A large percentage of the world’s fauna, including, for example, dodos, sloths, penguins, kangaroos, koalas and many other species, are not native to the Middle East (assuming that was the location of Noah’s ark). How did they travel there to board the ark?
2. Island species are particularly vulnerable to predators — when predators have been introduced to an island, they often drive indigenous species to extinction (as has happened in Australia, Hawaii, the Galapagos and numerous other islands). Thus such species would not have been able to survive in the Middle East, away from their naturally protected habitats.
3. The total mass of on-board animals would have been some 400,000 kg, if only yearlings were taken, or some 5 million kg, if adults were taken. Either figure is far more than could be accommodated in the ark as described in the Bible and reconstructed in Kentucky.
4. The figures in the previous item do not include food and water for a one-year sojourn, which would multiply the weight by at least 10 times if not more. Further, many animals require special diets — silkworms require mulberry leaves, Pandas require bamboo, and snakes, for example, require fresh food. How could fresh food be provided for a full year?
5. How could large numbers of animals be protected from the many on-board predators, such as lions and tigers?

Noah, animals were not on the ark for one year....a total of three and a half years. (However long a year was) it's stated in Hebrew poetic language similar to other passages but essentially "a time, two times, and half a time." But in a completely difficult fashion. (Ancient Hebrew....go figure eh)

And yes, it was a tremendous feat of engineering to accomplish.

BUT

You are forgetting something. That everyone lived several hundreds of years and all spoke the same language. If you go back 500 years from today to when the first printing press was just being invented.....how different technology is today from then?

Okay,
So the truth is we don't know how technologically advanced Noah and his family really was. My guess is pretty advanced and post flood, without any infrastructure in place, things regressed a LOT.

 

[Jay Ross]

Noah, animals were not on the ark for one year....a total of three and a half years. (However long a year was) it's stated in Hebrew poetic language similar to other passages but essentially "a time, two times, and half a time." But in a completely difficult fashion. (Ancient Hebrew....go figure eh)

From Scripture we are told when the flood ended, and Noah and all of the animals then came out of the Ark: -

Genesis 8:13-19: - 13 And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry. 14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried.​

​

15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 "Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons' wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you: birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth." 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him. 19 Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, according to their families, went out of the ark.​

NKJV​

From scripture we are also told when the Flood began in the following scripture: -

Genesis 7:10-12: - 10 And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were on the earth. 11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. 12 And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.​

NKJV​

So from scripture we can calculate the duration of the Flood: -

The year month and day of the month that the flood ended: -

In the Year 601, of Noah’s life, in the second month and on 27th day of that month​

The year month and day of the month that the flood started: -

In the Year 600, of Noah’s life, in the second month and on 17th day of that month​

Subtracting the year, month and day of the month that the flood started from the year month and day of the month that the flood ended we can see that the actual length of the flood was one year and ten days long.

How people can arrive at a different duration for the flood is beyond my ability to comprehend.

 

[David in NJ]

Is the flood of Genesis story literal? I have always thought that it was because Jesus referred to the days of Noah and AIG and YECs do a good job of presenting it as literal, what do y’all think? Are Noah’s ark and flood literal scientific facts? « SMR blog

1. A large percentage of the world’s fauna, including, for example, dodos, sloths, penguins, kangaroos, koalas and many other species, are not native to the Middle East (assuming that was the location of Noah’s ark). How did they travel there to board the ark?
2. Island species are particularly vulnerable to predators — when predators have been introduced to an island, they often drive indigenous species to extinction (as has happened in Australia, Hawaii, the Galapagos and numerous other islands). Thus such species would not have been able to survive in the Middle East, away from their naturally protected habitats.
3. The total mass of on-board animals would have been some 400,000 kg, if only yearlings were taken, or some 5 million kg, if adults were taken. Either figure is far more than could be accommodated in the ark as described in the Bible and reconstructed in Kentucky.
4. The figures in the previous item do not include food and water for a one-year sojourn, which would multiply the weight by at least 10 times if not more. Further, many animals require special diets — silkworms require mulberry leaves, Pandas require bamboo, and snakes, for example, require fresh food. How could fresh food be provided for a full year?
5. How could large numbers of animals be protected from the many on-board predators, such as lions and tigers?

Were you there?

Any videos?

What about pictures?

What about the fossils - how did they form???

How did fish and sea creatures become fossils on top of very high mountains???

How did Jesus multiply the five loaves and fishes to feed THOUSANDS???

Did the same Word that was God in the Beginning do the same with BOTH the space inside the Ark and with the necessary food???