THE DAYS BEFORE THE DELUGE
Welcome to one of the most discussed subjects: Noah’s ark and the flood.
Do you think it was real? Or do you think it’s just a myth with some more lessons?
Come with me to Cologne in Germany. I was on my way to this beautiful cathedral when I came across something amazing.
Here it is and this is what the newspapers had to say:
Noah’s Ark has docked in Cologne
Europe’s first floating amusement park with a Biblical theme has opened its gangway in Cologne. Visitors can test their knowledge of the Bible while getting cozy with life-size models of giraffes and other fuzzy fellows.
It’s a stately vessel floating on the Rhine River and somehow it looks vaguely familiar. Plumbing one’s memory, it does indeed resemble illustrations from childhood picture books about the Bible.
That’s just what Dutch television entertainer and puppeteer Aad Peters was aiming for. Nearly a year ago, he purchased this model of Noah’s Ark, turning it into a kind of museum and amusement park to teach people more about the Holy Scripture.
“The Bible is an interesting book, even for people who have never read it,” he observed. “Everyone should be familiar with its stories.”
Cologne is the first station abroad for the Ark, having docked only at Dutch ports until now. When visitors board the ship, the first thing they receive is a questionnaire, where they can test their knowledge of the Bible.
Wooden vs. stuffed
True to the story in the Book of Genesis, which saw Noah build an ark to save himself, his family and the animals of the world during the Great Flood, this museum ship is home to many an animal, though the majority of them are stuffed. Plenty of the furry creatures, even massive giraffes, are life-size models, while some of the smaller critters are real.
The ship is also a four-story abode for many scenes from the Old and New Testaments, including Adam and Eve in Paradise. In the David and Goliath setting, visitors can pick up a slingshot like the young future king of Israel to slay the giant Philistine warrior.
Wooden models created by the Czech sculptor Michaela Bartonova are beautifully crafted. Ark-goers can also sit down in confession booths to reveal their secrets.
Open to everyone
Having opened in Cologne in July with the help of German singer Nina Hagen, the show has already seen a wide range of visitors. Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, as well as Christians have made their way on board since then.
Peters, whose work as a filmmaker and producer of children’s television shows has taken him to Arab countries, particularly likes talking with the Muslim Ark-visitors. “Noah’s tale is also present in other religions,” he noted. “I’ve met Muslims who know the story better than Christians.”
But the exhibition doesn’t just aim to share knowledge about Biblical history. It’s also art for art’s sake, aiming to prompt thoughts and feelings about a wide scope of topics. There’s a display that shows Noah’s wife with two birds in her chest.
Viewers can make of that what they want.
A theological view
Once visitors want to settle down after exploring, they can step down into the bowels of the ship. There, they can read the original story of Noah and the Ark in Bibles provided by the German Bible Society.
Protestant pastor Mathias Bonhoeffer from Bonn, for his part, found the exhibition interesting, but noted that “some of the theological subtleties are missing and much does not correspond with what’s actually in the Bible.”
“Still, it’s impressive for young people and a good way for them to get a glimpse of Christian traditions and culture,” he added.
Author: Christina Beyert / als
Editor: Kate Bowen
When I visited the model of Noah’s ark I thought of the many people who visited floating museum with a story of Noah’s experience in their thoughts.
Some of them believed, others were skeptic.
Come with me to the British Museum where I found the Gilgamesh epic. It is the story of a worldwide flood. The main player is not Noah but someone by the name of Utnapishtum.
Where else can we find flood stories?
In Hindu mythology, texts such as the Satapatha Brahmana and the Puranas story of a great flood,[6] wherein the Matsya Avatar of Vishnu warns the first man, Manu, of the impending flood, and also advises him to build a giant boat.
Matsya-avatara of Lord Vishnu pulls Manu’s boat after having defeated the demon.
There are many sources which one can consult on Noah, the ark and the flood. Flavius Josephus has some interesting facts to share. Then you can check a mountain of ancient Jewish writings.
The two best sources on the story that I have found, is the Bible and a book called “Patriarchs and Prophets”.
VISIT TO ARARAT
My daughter and I went to Turkey and visited an interesting site near Mount Ararat.
No trace of an ark formation
We saw something that looks like a boat. People all over the world were very excited when this was found and many believed that this is the remnant of the ark of Noah.
After examining the claims it was concluded that this is just a geological phenomenon. In a very exciting lecture to come, I am going to take you to Armenia.
Besides visiting many amazing archaeological sites we will also visit a mountain called Ughtasar, meaning covenant in Armenian language.
I am very excited about what I discovered here and are anxious to share it with you.
JESUS REFERS TO THE FLOOD
Let’s listen to the interesting meaning Jesus couples to the Noah and the flood.
Matthew 24:36-39 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
What have here is called eschatology. Jesus is telling us that as the world in the days of Noah was destroyed by water, so will this present world of ours also be destroyed because of wickedness.
PRESENT DAY CRIME
How would you rate present day crime? Can it get worse?
Yes. And what will happen then? According to Jesus He is going to say: “Enough is enough. Crime and cruelty cannot just continue forever and forever. Suffering will come to an end just like it came to an end in the time of Noah.”
Let us look at the moral situation in the population before the deluge, the universal flood. In the days of Noah a double curse was resting upon the earth in consequence of Adam’s transgression and of the murder committed by Cain.
Does moral decay have an effect on nature, on the ecology?
Yet this had not greatly changed the face of nature. There were evident tokens of decay, but the earth was still rich and beautiful in the gifts of God’s providence.
The hills were crowned with majestic trees supporting the fruit-laden branches of the vine. The vast, gardenlike plains were clothed with verdure, and sweet with the fragrance of a thousand flowers.
The fruits of the earth were in great variety, and almost without limit. The trees far surpassed in size, beauty, and perfect proportion any now to be found; their wood was of fine grain and hard substance, closely resembling stone, and hardly less enduring.
I once visited the Redwoods in California. When I looked at the Giant Sequoias, my thoughts went out to the trees from the time of Noah.
The human race yet retained much of its early vigor. But a few generations had passed since Adam had access to the tree which was to prolong life; and man’s existence was still measured by centuries.
You can read about the five blue zones of the planet and look at the ages of the people who live there. But this is nothing in comparison with people before the flood who lived almost to 1000 years.
There were many giants, men of great stature and strength, renowned for wisdom, skillful in devising the most cunning and wonderful works; but their guilt in giving loose rein to iniquity was in proportion to their skill and mental ability.
What is tallest person you have seen so far? The antediluvians were about twice the heights of our tallest people. Just think of the crime of someone living for ages and perpetuating their crime.
Men put God out of their knowledge and worshiped the creatures of their own imagination; and as the result, they became more and more debased.
You can see some of the oldest deities in our large museums. Can people become so base as to worship the work of their own hands?
The psalmist describes the effect produced upon the worshiper by the adoration of idols. He says, “They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusted in them.” Psalm 115:8.
It is a law of the human mind that by beholding we become changed. Man will rise no higher than his conceptions of truth, purity, and holiness.
If the mind is never exalted above the level of humanity, if it is not uplifted by faith to contemplate infinite wisdom and love, the man will be constantly sinking lower and lower.
The worshipers of false gods clothed their deities with human attributes and passions, and thus their standard of character was degraded to the likeness of sinful humanity. They were defiled in consequence.
Can you imagine the pain in God’s heart as He observed the behaviour of the creatures He created?
“God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. . . . The earth also was corrupt before God; and the earth was filled with violence.
“God had given men His commandments as a rule of life, but His law was transgressed, and every conceivable sin was the result. The wickedness of men was open and daring, justice was trampled in the dust, and the cries of the oppressed reached unto heaven.” {PP 91.2}
Polygamy had been early introduced, contrary to the divine arrangement at the beginning.
The Lord gave to Adam one wife, showing His order in that respect.
But after the Fall, men chose to follow their own sinful desires; and as the result, crime and wretchedness rapidly increased.
Neither the marriage relation nor the rights of property were respected. Whoever coveted the wives or the possessions of his neighbor, took them by force, and men exulted in their deeds of violence.
Can you imagine living in those days? You are not sure about your property or your dear wife. Would God tolerate this forever?
But what about the animals. Originally God prescribed a plant based diet. How long did they continue this practice?
“They delighted in destroying the life of animals; and the use of flesh for food rendered them still more cruel and bloodthirsty, until they came to regard human life with astonishing indifference.” {PP 91.3}
In our next lecture we will continue our study of conditions before the deluge. You will be surprised at the patience of God with His creatures.
May prayer for you is to prepare for the last catastrophe that is coming.
This planet is getting so wicked that if God does not destroy it soon, He will have to apologize to the antediluvians.
If you need a little help with a weakness in your life, please consult the Creator because He is also the Recreator.