Jesus Will Save Ministries

The ark was the vehicle God used to deliver Noah, his family and the animals
from the flood (God’s judgement). Most people are familiar with popular artistic
depictions of Noah’s Ark. The ark often resembles a wooden ship with a barn-like
structure on top. Interestingly, the Bible gives a much different description of
the ark. The book of Genesis describes it as a rectangular object resembling a
barge rather than a ship-like structure. The basic specifications for the ark
are given in Genesis 6:14 – 16. Noah is commanded by God to construct the ark.
Therefore, the specifications came from God Himself.

Genesis 6:14 – 16 (NKJV) 14 “Make yourself an ark of gopherwood; make
rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch. 15 “And this is
how you shall make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its
width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. 16 “You shall make a window
for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit from above; and set the door of
the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third decks.

What Was the Hull Shape of Noah’s Ark?

The Genesis passage provides only a brief description of the ark’s basic
specifications. These specifications appear to represent a rectangular hull
design. However, it is possible that the ark’s design could represent a more
traditional hull shape. Since detailed construction plans are omitted, we don’t
know for certain what the hull shape actually was. Moses is the credited author
of Genesis. He may have condensed a much longer story in order to conserve space
or perhaps the only information he had available was what he included.
Therefore, all we have available for the ark’s design is what is written in
Genesis. It is likely that the Genesis account of the Great Flood came from
earlier written material. We know Moses was educated in Egypt. Perhaps he
learned about the flood from the libraries of the Egyptians. Perhaps their
ancient libraries contained detailed knowledge on the antediluvian society that
lived before the flood. Another likely possibility is Jacob could have carried
records into Egypt that were kept by both the Israelites and the Egyptians. It
is entirely possible that the Genesis story could have consisted of a number of
writings which Moses condensed into “Genesis”. Perhaps the information could
have come from an ancient “Book of Noah”, containing a more detailed version of
the Genesis story.

what the ark may have looked like

Construction

The ark’s purpose was to deliver its occupants from a catastrophe that would
bring an end to all land based-life on earth. The Biblical word for ark is
“tebah” and it is used only in the Genesis account of the flood and for the
container in which Moses was placed. The ark’s design was intended to protect
its occupants from the hostile environment of the flood. Its construction
appears to have taken about 120 years. Interestingly, it appears to have been
designed without capability for steerage or power. This was probably due to the
reason that there was no place to navigate to during the flood. Navigation would
have been at the mercy of God. The Bible also indicates that God watched over
the ark.

The ark was made of a material that the Bible identifies as “gopher wood”.
The actual Hebrew word is “Gopher”. The exact meaning of this material is still
unknown. It has been presumed by some to be Cypress wood, Cedar, Teak, or
Mahogany, but these are only assumptions. What ever the actual material was,
still remains a mystery, although it was probably some type of wood. There are
serious problems with building a solid wooden ship longer than 300 feet. This is
due to the structural stress caused by the effects of wave action upon wooden
vessels. Gopher could have been a material which was far stronger than
conventional wood. The Antediluvians may have had processes for strengthening
wood that we are not aware of. It is interesting that no ship of the size of
Noah’s Ark was built until the late 19th century when iron was used for
construction material. It is possible that other materials could have been used
in its construction. Perhaps metal was used as a frame (which is not mentioned
in the Bible). Another possibility is the design could be other than the
rectangular shape given in scripture.

The outside and inside were coated with pitch. The Hebrew word is “kopher”
and again, this word is obscure so we don’t know what the composition of the
pitch was. Pitch was probably used to make the ark water tight and to protect
the exterior from the effects of the outside environment.

The ark had three decks. We don’t know if they were all the same height or if
there were areas in which there was open space from bottom to top. The ark had
only one door, which was the side door (Gen 6:16). It was used for loading its
cargo. Genesis also describes a window that is 1 cubit in size (Gen 6:16) (~18
inches) located at the top of the ark. The size in this description makes it
(likely) to be a small hatch. We are not entirely certain of the exact use of
the window. We do know that Noah was able to send out the raven and the dove,
probably from this same window. It is a safe assumption that the ark needed some
sort of ventilation. This could have been one purpose of the “window”. Elfred
Lee’s painting shown at the top of the page, shows a row of these “windows”
along the top of the ark extending from bow to stern. This would form an
adequate ventilation system. With its cargo of animals, it would seem necessary
to have more than one eighteen-inch window for ventilation.

Size of Noah’s Ark

The measurements provided in Genesis are in cubits rather than feet or
meters. A cubit in the Old Testament is approximately 17.5 inches long. Another
measurement to consider is the Egyptian Royal cubit which is 20.65 inches. As
mentioned earlier, Moses is credited as being the author of Genesis. Since Moses
was educated in Egypt we should consider the Egyptian cubit, as well as the
Hebrew cubit. Hebrew common cubit = 17.5 in. Egyptian Royal cubit = 20.65
in.

The ark had a volume of 1.4
million cubic feet and a gross tonnage of 14,000 tons. This is the equivalent of
522 railroad box cars. The ark could have carried over 125,000 sheep-sized
animals. Interestingly, there are less than 18,000 species of land animals alive
today. Also, the average size of most animals is less than that of a sheep.

Stability

A scale model of the ark was tested in a special tank at Scripps Institute of
Oceanography at La Jolla, California. The tank was capable of generating giant
waves with respect to the model boat, thus simulating severe sea conditions. The
waves were much larger than would be experienced in the ocean. The ark proved
impossible to capsize. Due to the rectangular shape, it proved capable of
righting itself, even to 90 degrees. This is unheard of on an ocean-going
vessel. Most vessels will develop severe stability problems at more than a 60
degree list. The Ratio of the ark is 30 x 5 x 3. It turns out that this design
is a perfect design to prevent capsizing in rough seas.

Zero Degree Roll

Sixty Degree Roll

One of the ongoing debates on Noah’s Ark is weather the ark was the
rectangular design indicated in scripture or a more traditional canoe design.
There are still a number of unanswered questions concerning a rectangular “box”
design for the ark. The primary concern with this design is longitudinal
stability. This problem is associated with the ark’s length. Analysis of an
all-wood design indicates that the vessel would break apart under heavy sea
conditions due to longitudinal forces acting upon it. Further analysis needs to
be done on this design. It is entirely possible that the antediluvians had
developed methods of construction which we are unfamiliar with. Also, the
general shape of the ark could appear to be rectangular, yet curved in areas to
relieve stress. Just as the design of modern ships has significantly changed in
recent years, the construction of Noah’s Ark could turn out to be radically
different by our design standards.

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