Genesis 6:14-16 KJV – 14 Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. 15 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. 16 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.
Boat or Box
The word for “ark” (Hebrew: תֵּבָה) means box. It doesn’t mean “boat”, which would be אֳנִיָּה.
There were no sails. There were no oars. There was a window, a door, and rooms on three stories inside. It was 300 cubits long. It was 50 cubits wide. It was 30 cubits high. It was a box. It was not built to go anywhere. It was built to float until it grounded after the flood waters retreated.
Many folk think that the global flood never happened. Many folk think the Bible repeated tales that were already well known. Many folk think all kinds of stuff.
The global flood occurred. The biblical account is accurate. Walt Brown offered the hydroplate theory describing what happened during the flood. One can read his book, In the Beginning: Compelling Evidence for Creation and the Flood, at the Creation Science Center. I find it compelling, although not all creationists do.
So When Did the Flood Occur?
Based on his textual reconstruction of the Genesis 5 and 11 genealogies, Henry B. Smith, Jr. estimates it occurred in 3298 BC.
Walt Brown estimates the flood occurred in 3290 BC based on the orbits of the comets Halley and Swift-Tuttle. See pages 580-583 of In the Beginning.
Based on Dodwell’s obliquity of the ecliptic data, John Hartnett estimates it occurred in 3154 ± 191 BC.
Those estimates put creation at about 7600 years ago. This clearly conflicts with the 6000 year age of the Earth in the James Ussher chronology. Although I think this longer biblical chronology is more accurate, not all creationists agree.
What Is Your Biblical Chronology?
I know of no one who agrees with me on every point of this biblical chronology. If you don’t, you are one among everyone else.
When I reference “Smith, Jr.”, see his paper, The Case for the Septuagint’s Chronology in Genesis 5 and 11, presented at the 2018 International Conference on Creationism. When I reference “Petrovich”, see his book, Origins of the Hebrews, New Creation, 2021. Rows without a reference refer to an earlier post I made, Patching Together Two Messianic Chronologies, which I still think is accurate.
| Date | Event | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| 5554 BC | Creation | Smith, Jr. |
| 3298 BC | Global Flood | Smith, Jr. |
| 1876 BC | Jacob moves to Egypt | Petrovich |
| 1446 BC | Exodus | Petrovich |
| 20 March 6 BC (Nisan 1) | Birth of Jesus | |
| 16 February 27 AD | Baptism of Jesus | |
| 28 April 28 AD (Wed) | Crucifixion of Jesus | |
| 1 May 28 AD (Saturday) | Resurrection of Jesus | |
| 2 May 28 AD (Sunday) | Tomb found empty | |
| 20 June 28 AD | Pentecost of Acts 2 | |
| 70 AD | Temple destroyed |
