I have a question about Noah and the ark- can you help?

To the people that say the story is a parable, IT'S NOT.

To answer the question:

Sin effected everything on the planet, animals were to live forever but after Adam sinned the animals started to eat each other and so on.

When God creates something he creates it perfect and after sin was in the world the only choice was to save the animals already here, how could he introduce perfect creatures into a sinful world. Noah also needed to eat after the flood because there was no vegetation and he also needed sacrifices for God.

Note that it is 1/12th of the size, and they still did not float it on a canal. Find me a maritime engineer that can design a wooden boat the size of the ark that will not break up or leak like a sieve on a calm ocean swell and I will take the story slightly more seriously. Also I must have missed the bit about Noah making 6ft high panes of glass. The windows on the ark are described as a single window one cubit square. To provide adequate ventilation over the three decks Noah would have to design a system to move air though the window at about 200 mph. Finally, where did you get 40 days? That is how long it rained. Go back a re-read the passage. The animals were on the ark for one year.

I have thought about this, too. I think it is because God is merciful and kind. He knew that he could recreate everything, but that would mean killing everything that was alive. The animals had not done anything wrong. They were living and enjoying the life God gave them. It would be cruel to kill those who just happened to have been born about the same time that the Nephilim began to take over the land, as I'm sure that you read about. The main reasoning behind God's decision to bring a deluge was the wicked angels, or demons, came to earth and materialized when they saw how "good-looking" the women were (Gen 61-4) and the children born to these women were evil men. God decided to cause a great flood to rid the world of these evil giants, but he knew Noah was a righteous man and he and his family would be preserved because they were not worthy of destruction (Job 34:12; 2 Pet 3:9). He did not want to kill off every living thing, just the wicked (Gen 18:25; Deut 32:4). The animals were not wicked and so he preserved them through Noah's faith.

There have been theories that claim the Noachian flood killed off the remaining dinosaurs, too, but this is only a theory. But you can see it would make sense. None of the dinosaurs were brought onto the ark.

I think God was showing His wisdom through humans foolishness. People thought Noah was crazy when he started building that ark and rounding up animals. Imagine how foolish that must have looked to the people around him, or how silly it would look to people if one of us did that today. Noah had the faith though and knew God had spoken to him, so, he did what God asked even though it seemed stupid to his neighbors (and I''m sure he was laughed at a lot but did it anyway). Then, when the flood came, people were like 'oh crap, we should have believed in God and listened to Noah' while they were trying to get inside the ark. It's just another example that Christians may look like fools to some now, but they won't in the end. I think the rounding up of the animals was just another way for Noah to show his obedience and for God to 'make the wise seem foolish' as it says in the Bible.

Here are few reasons:

Genesis 2:1-3

"Thus the heavens and the earth and all their army came to their completion. And by the seventh day God came to the completion of his work that he had made, and he proceeded to rest on the seventh day from all his work that he had made. 3 And God proceeded to bless the seventh day and make it sacred, because on it he has been resting from all his work that God has created for the purpose of making."

So God had completed his creation and everything was perfect. He then entered the rest period. So no more creation.

Already prior to the Flood, animals were killed to provide clothing for man and for sacrificial purposes. (Ge 3:21; 4:4) also read Genesis 8:20,21

How would Noah made an appropriate burn offering if there were no animals available at that time?

However, not until after the Deluge did Noah and his family receive permission from God to add flesh to their diet, with the stipulation that it must be drained of its blood. (Ge 9:3, 4)

I hope that helps!

The Old Testament is about the Israelites and speaks to their history. There were other humans on Earth at the time but God was dealing with only the Israelites. They were the only ones made in His Image, meaning they had souls. When the flood occurred, it happened only in the area where they were living at the time. The animals were not corrupt and there was not going to be another creation period. If that were the case, Noah also would have perished in the flood. Important fact to note; Adam, Noah, Moses, Jesus. Two of them, Adam and Noah, preserve lineage for the Israelites from the Creation to the flood. Moses and Jesus provide Salvation for the Israelites and the World. Moses could not lead the Children of God to the Promised Land because of sin but Jesus can and will. Praise be to God.

apparently the flood of Noah and the example shown how Noah and his family were saved out of the world of the wicked and also lots being saved out of Sodom is a warning and an example (2 peter 2:5-12)of what is yet to happen again to cleanse the earth of the unrepentant wicked except this time the flood will consist of a lake of fire (2 peter 3:10-13)

it appears this lake will be small to start with (revelation 19:20) but eventually after the 1000 years are completed(revelation 20:5)the size will increase until the whole face of the planet becomes a fireball that evaporates the oceans and atmosphere boiling them off into space(revelation 21:1)

those of us that are left alive will no longer be humans but rather immortals and become part of the Creators family ,the reason we were formed in the first place; but no sinners will be there to make the rest of us miserable.

no more Satan's or fallen angels will be allowed to inhabit eternity.

I think that God had done all the creating He was going to do. So He had Noah take two of every animal inside the ark. I heard a Pastor preach on this and he said that they were baby animals that they were not full grown. Makes sense too.

I would pray about it and ask the Lord for He will always tell us what we need to know. That is how I do it. He knows best. :)

The purpose of the building of the ark was so that men would understand that judgment was coming. The Bible says that the earth was filled with evil in those days, and in the 120 years that it took for Noah to build the ark and make his preparations for entering it, God was giving men a chance to repent of their sins. Had they done so, He may have stayed His judgment, just as He did when the inhabitants of Nineveh repented at the preaching of Jonah. But they would not repent, and so they perished.

Jesus taught that, "as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be when the Son of Man comes" (Matthew 24:37-38). In other words, as the world was during the time when Noah was building the ark (full of evil, see Genesis 6-7), so it will be again just before Christ returns. Again, the warning goes out that judgment is coming, and again, God is giving men time to repent and turn to Him for forgiveness before that judgment falls.

For this reason, the incident with Noah becomes a lesson for all time, and flood stories have indeed made their way into every culture in the world. God has shown that those who heed Him will be saved, but those who do not will be destroyed. The ark is a picture of salvation. The one door through which it was entered is a picture of Christ. In John 10:9, Jesus actually said, "I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture." In John 14:6, He said something similar when He taught that, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

As to why He saved the animals as He did, rather than creating new ones, the Bible does not specifically tell us. But I think we can make some educated guesses.

First, Genesis tells us that He was pleased with His creations, so I don't believe that He wanted to eradicate everything He had made, just the evil men that filled the world of that time. Second, IIRC, Noah and his family were in the ark for a little over a year, and tending the animals would have given them something with which to occupy themselves during that time (along with providing such things as eggs and milk, which were edible). Third, in Job and the Psalms in particular, we read that God cares for the animals and provides for them. His compassion extends even to them, and He chose to save some. It's not that the rest of the animal kingdom was somehow corrupt (animals are amoral), but more likely that the animals that boarded the ark represented the healthiest and hardiest of their kind in the world. They would be most fit to use in repopulating the planet following the flood.

The lesson to be taken from Noah's story is that God hates sin and will judge sinners, but that He also has great compassion (even for "dumb animals") and will save and spare even through the worst judgment.

If you've not turned to Him to spare you from the coming judgment, you can do so today. Repent of your sins (turn away from them), ask God for forgiveness through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and from then on walk in His ways. The following provides more detail:

http://www.oasischristianchurch.org/saved.html

Noah and his family had their food [ of the 7 each ], with them and the wild animals for the earth that they would be on, all others of violence were gone with the part of the animals that would have belonged to them. Mankind must show some effort in saving mankind, as for Jesus at his 2nd coming, he has firstfruits, 1Cor.15:22-28,51-53; Rev.14:1-6, 7; first resurrected as priest of God and Christ, a very special crew redeemed from earth to reign with Christ 1000 years, Rev.20:1-6, with Satan in the pit, Rev.20:7-10, to no Satan, then the saints are on the earth, joined by Rev.21:1-5, all is made new. Man making an effort to save mankind are with Jesus.