Noah's ark - what is it: truth or fiction? Biblical believers believe the story is based on true facts, while their opponents assure: "It's just another bedtime story."
But who is right and who is wrong? Was there really an ark? The definition of truth is difficult because the traces of this event have long been erased by the sands of time. So all judgments regarding the ark are built solely on the thoughts of scientists and Bible experts.
Why did God decide to destroy people
According to the Bible, the human race descended from the descendants of Cain and Seth. At the same time, the sons and daughters of the first carried the seed of darkness in their souls, because their father was a fratricide. As for the descendants of Seth, they were pious and obediently carried out the instructions of God. But over time, even in the kindest hearts, sin appears.
And now, the moment has come when all people, with the exception of Noah's family, are mired in a quagmire of chaos and anger, completely forgetting about their Creator. For such inappropriate behavior, the Lord became very angry with them and decided to wipe them all off the face of the earth with the help of a flood.
The Ark is a way to save the last righteousfamily
Noah, or Noah (Torah), was a righteous man, like his family, so God decided to save his faithful servant. To do this, he ordered him to build an ark. It was a difficult task, and besides, Noah himself was not a builder, like his sons. But he sincerely believed in God and knew that he would help him.
It is not known how long it took to build the ark, but everything ended in success. Then God told Noah that he should take on his "ship" not only his family, but also animals in order to save them from extinction. And the day the building of the ark was finished, the beasts and birds and creeping things began to come to take their place in it.
After the doors of the ark were closed, it rained from heaven for seven days and seven nights. All living things died, and only the inhabitants of the ark were able to survive, after which they sailed on the waves for another forty days until the water level dropped. In the end, they moored at the foot of Mount Ararat, where Noah offered a sacrifice to God, who in return promised not to kill people again.
How believers view this story
Many Bible scholars say, "The Ark is the truth." For them, it is quite enough that it is said so in Holy Scripture, which means that it is impossible to doubt the veracity of history. Based on their beliefs, all people are descendants of Noah.
But in the modern world, scientists are used to questioning the veracity of the Bible, so believers are actively looking for more solid evidence for their theories. The main trump card in their hands are the traces of the oceanactivity on the tops of the mountains. This allows them to claim that the entire world was once completely covered in water, hence the Flood.
Otherwise, logical arguments have always been refuted by only one thing - faith in God.
Inconsistencies in the biblical story
According to the Bible, the size of the ark was 300 (133.5 m) cubits long, 50 (22.5 m) wide and 30 (13.3 m) high. Based on these dimensions, the following conclusion can be drawn: it is simply impossible to fit all kinds of animals, birds and insects into such an ark.
More importantly, stocking water and food for so many passengers is very difficult, especially considering the number of Noah's family members. In addition, the issue of air supply inside the ark must also be resolved, as well as how and where to throw away waste (and there are a lot of them, given the number of animals).
Therefore, many researchers believe that the ark is just an embellished story from the past. Although they admit that there was a flood, this is also confirmed by archaeological finds in Mesopotamia, but its scale is clearly exaggerated. Most likely, Noah survived the flood by building a raft or boat, which became the basis for this story.
Over time, the story was supplemented and a little embellished. A thousand years later, the flood turned into a universal flood and the destruction of mankind. But again, this is just a guess. It is impossible to verify the authenticity of this story for sure, as well as to completely refute it. Therefore, everyone must determine for himself what is true in it, and what isfiction.
