The story of Noah and the Ark is a well-known tale from the Bible, found in Genesis chapters 6 through 9. This story teaches us about obedience, faith, and God’s promise.
God’s Decision
Bible Verse: Genesis 6:5-7
“The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth… So the Lord said, ‘I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created… for I regret that I have made them.'”
God saw that people on Earth were behaving very badly and decided to send a great flood to cleanse the Earth. However, there was one man, Noah, who was good and righteous.
Noah Builds the Ark
Bible Verse: Genesis 6:14-16
“So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out… Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit high all around… Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks.”
God instructed Noah to build a huge boat called an ark. This ark was to be made of cypress wood and coated with pitch. It had to be big enough to hold Noah, his family, and two of every kind of animal.
Animals and the Flood
Bible Verse: Genesis 7:2-4, 12
“Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate… For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth.”
Noah did as God commanded. He took his family and pairs of every animal into the ark. Then, it rained for forty days and forty nights, causing a great flood that covered the Earth.
The Waters Recede
Bible Verse: Genesis 8:13-14
“By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year, the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry.”
After the flood, Noah waited for the water to go down. Finally, the Earth dried up, and Noah, his family, and the animals left the ark. They were the only survivors and would start a new life on Earth.
God’s Promise
Bible Verse: Genesis 9:13
“I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.”
After leaving the ark, Noah built an altar to thank God. God promised never to send such a flood again and gave the rainbow as a sign of this promise.