NOAH'S ARK
(Message by Tanny Keng)
1. Was the ark big enough to hold all the animals?
a) Scoffers of the Genesis flood story often show Noah's ark as a small vessel, complete with the giraffe's head sticking out the front and the elephant's tail sticking out the back, sinking under the weight of an overloaded cargo of millions of animals. However, is this TRUE? Could someone build a ship more than 4,000 years ago, that would be big enough for ALL the animals? Could only eight people have fed the ark's animals? By clearing up a few misconceptions regarding the flood we will be able to find the answers to these questions.
b) Was Noah's ark required to carry representatives of ALL the animals on the planet? No. The Bible does NOT state that Noah would have to take representatives of EVERY living creature. For starters, all the creatures currently living in or could live in water (e.g. many types of snakes, alligators, etc.) could survive the flood and therefore did not need to be saved from the flood. Insects, worms, and other animals could survive as well in the water and therefore did not need to be "saved."
c) Animals had to fulfill three requirements for inclusion on the ship: 1) air breathing, 2) terrestrial (land-based), 3) could interbreed (see Genesis 6:17,19-20, 7:22). Therefore, how many animals did the ark save from the flood? There are several different estimates for the number of animals saved from the floodwaters. The book The Genesis Flood estimated that approximately 35,000 animals were on board the ship. In another book, Noah's Ark - A Feasibility Study by John Woodmorappe, it states that only about 2,000 animals would need saving.
d) Was Noah's ship then big enough for the task? If we assume the Biblical cubit used for measurement is conservatively 18 inches (45.7 centimeters), the ark would have been 450 feet (137.2 meters) long, 75 feet (22.9 meters) wide and 45 feet (13.7 meters) high. The total volume of the ship, given such dimensions, would be 1,518,000 cubic feet (42,985 cubic meters). The ark's floor space, divided over three decks, would total over 101,000 square feet (9,383 square meters) - more than 21 standard college basketball courts.
e) For the sake of argument, let us use a conservative value of 40,000 animals that needed saving. Many biologists state that the average size of most vertebrates is the size of a sheep. The living space each sheep would need is 11.12 cubic feet. When we multiply 40,000 by 11.12 cubic feet, we arrive at 445,000 cubic feet total or only about 30% of capacity taken up! The ark could EASILY carry the animals God wanted saved and STILL have lots of room to spare!
f) Lastly, could only eight people have fed the ark's animals? Yes. Noah's ark undoubtedly made use of self-cleaning, self-feeding, and self-watering technologies. An eight person crew could have easily kept the animals fed and STILL be able to rest on the Sabbath day.
The End ...
1. Was the ark big enough to hold all the animals?a) Scoffers of the Genesis flood story often show Noah's ark as a small vessel, complete with the giraffe's head sticking out the front and the elephant's tail sticking out the back, sinking under the weight of an overloaded cargo of millions of animals. However, is this TRUE? Could someone build a ship more than 4,000 years ago, that would be big enough for ALL the animals? Could only eight people have fed the ark's animals? By clearing up a few misconceptions regarding the flood we will be able to find the answers to these questions.
b) Was Noah's ark required to carry representatives of ALL the animals on the planet? No. The Bible does NOT state that Noah would have to take representatives of EVERY living creature. For starters, all the creatures currently living in or could live in water (e.g. many types of snakes, alligators, etc.) could survive the flood and therefore did not need to be saved from the flood. Insects, worms, and other animals could survive as well in the water and therefore did not need to be "saved."
c) Animals had to fulfill three requirements for inclusion on the ship: 1) air breathing, 2) terrestrial (land-based), 3) could interbreed (see Genesis 6:17,19-20, 7:22). Therefore, how many animals did the ark save from the flood? There are several different estimates for the number of animals saved from the floodwaters. The book The Genesis Flood estimated that approximately 35,000 animals were on board the ship. In another book, Noah's Ark - A Feasibility Study by John Woodmorappe, it states that only about 2,000 animals would need saving.
d) Was Noah's ship then big enough for the task? If we assume the Biblical cubit used for measurement is conservatively 18 inches (45.7 centimeters), the ark would have been 450 feet (137.2 meters) long, 75 feet (22.9 meters) wide and 45 feet (13.7 meters) high. The total volume of the ship, given such dimensions, would be 1,518,000 cubic feet (42,985 cubic meters). The ark's floor space, divided over three decks, would total over 101,000 square feet (9,383 square meters) - more than 21 standard college basketball courts.
e) For the sake of argument, let us use a conservative value of 40,000 animals that needed saving. Many biologists state that the average size of most vertebrates is the size of a sheep. The living space each sheep would need is 11.12 cubic feet. When we multiply 40,000 by 11.12 cubic feet, we arrive at 445,000 cubic feet total or only about 30% of capacity taken up! The ark could EASILY carry the animals God wanted saved and STILL have lots of room to spare!
f) Lastly, could only eight people have fed the ark's animals? Yes. Noah's ark undoubtedly made use of self-cleaning, self-feeding, and self-watering technologies. An eight person crew could have easily kept the animals fed and STILL be able to rest on the Sabbath day.
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