The Beginning of Time ~ Part 3: International Flood Stories

Today’s article is a continuation of the Beginning of Time series. I am taking a different approach to this article as I will be covering cultural accounts of the Flood. After I will write a brief summary of the Bible’s account. But first, the reasons for the Flood need to be discussed.

The Biblical account of the Flood begins in Genesis 6. This chapter tells us that “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. (verse 5)” God decided that He would destroy every living thing on the face of the earth because of the growing wickedness of the human race. But then the chapter records that “Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. (verse 8)” Noah didn’t receive grace from God because he was better than everyone else (which may have been the case from the perspective of a human), but because he trusted in the Lord for salvation from his sins. This was also the case for his other family members. God even made a covenant with them which I will discuss in another article. Before God even told Noah about the Flood that was to come, He instructed Noah to build an ark. The design of an ark is different than the boats or ships we think of today. It is more like a floating box that was designed by God Himself. Prior to this time, there was no rain or very large bodies of water so a boat was practically non-existent. While the ark was built, Noah preached to the rest of the human race about God’s impending judgment. But no one repented; they decided to continue in their sins. Once the ark’s construction was finished, God instructed Noah to bring two of every animal, animals for sacrifice, and food into the ark. Around this time God told Noah about the Flood that was coming as judgment. Then Noah, his wife, his sons, and his daughters-in-law entered, and God closed the ark.

There is a lot of proof from the Flood from the fields of geology and geography, not to mention cultures. What most evolutionists might take as the cataclysmic results of a natural disaster might be evidence for a worldwide Flood. Ancient civilizations buried under oceans and the Grand Canyon are all indications that the Flood is an actual historical account. Other cultures also testify that the Flood is a true account. I decided to include the cultural accounts below because I find it interesting. This is another example of how the false gods influenced the integrity of a particular culture’s literature.

Sumer, Greece, India, Samoa, and the Maoris (of New Zealand)

These civilizations all have a flood story that includes people escaping a flood sent by the gods by entering a floating object.

The Epic of Gilgamesh

I have made quite a few references to this piece of Mesopotamian literature, and here it is again. The Epic of Gilgamesh is about the warrior-king, Gilgamesh, who’s friend, Enkidu, recently died. Looking for immortality, he makes a trip to see Shamash the Assyrian sun-god who only redirects him to Utnapishtim. Utnapishtim is the Noah-like figure in this legend. According to the story, Utnapishtim and his family escaped a flood sent by the gods, and was granted immortality. Unfortunately, as the story goes on, the reader can see the depravity of the Sumerian gods who are much like the god of Greek mythology. Although this is a historical article, I will say that I recommend reading this manuscript as it provides insight into Sumerian culture.

Ireland

The Irish have quite a few flood accounts. One of the accounts includes descendants of Noah who escape from another worldwide flood by sailing to Ireland. The survivors populate the area until another flood comes and wipes out everyone in Ireland except for one man. He then goes through a series of transformations until he becomes a man in the medieval times and tells the story above.

Finland

The Finnish tell their flood folklore with the poem below (Warning: the poem below is very bloody):

“The blood came forth like a flood
the gore ran like a river:
there was no hummock
and no high mountain
that was not flooded
all from Väinämöinen's toe
from the holy hero's knee.”

&

Those were some strange myths (especially the Finnish one if you decided to read the poem). Now for the accurate account. Noah and his family stayed in the ark for approximately two hundred days. After the rain stopped, the ark landed on the mountains of Ararat. Noah sent a raven out of the ark; the raven hovered over the water until the land dried up. This was a sign that death was everywhere on the earth. Then Noah sent out a dove. The first time, the dove returned with nothing; the next time it returned with an olive leaf; the third time, the dove didn’t return. Noah, his family, and his animals left the ark, and God commanded all of them to populate the earth. Noah built an altar and sacrificed to God as a burnt offering, which was a sign for the repentance of sins. In the next historical article, I will discuss God’s covenant with Noah and his family and the changes that the Flood brought to the earth.

The verse for this week is Hebrews 11:7. It says, “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” Hebrews 11 is a chapter about the faith of many Biblical characters. And Noah is not an exception; although Noah didn’t know why he was building an ark or even what a Flood was, he still obeyed God because of his faith. The faith of Noah and many other people recorded in the Bible should challenge us in our faith and obedience.