With ALL of these questions posed in regards to the Bible wouldn't it be nice to be able to access the questions in one place instead of flipping between blog postings? Now you can! The questions for the first five books of the Bible, the Pentateuch are now in one compilation, and there is no need whatsoever to flip-flop between various posts! Go here for your copy:
http://www.amazon.com/Turkey-Broth-Spirit-Questions-Pentateuch-ebook/dp/B00GVLQ0CY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385651545&sr=8-1&keywords=ester+lighthorse
Questions in Regard to the Genesis Account of Noah's Ark
Please feel free to post any answer you may have to any of these questions. If you choose to use Bible verses as references please include the passage location. Thank you.
Here is a link with supplemental videos for this post:
http://noahsarkrevealed.blogspot.com/
When I first started this series of posts I had it laid out in my mind that it shouldn't take more than ten or twelve individual postings. However, the more I covered in the Holy Bible, the more my questions grew in number. There were even questions emerging that I had previously never even considered.
And so, here we are at Part V of the questions I have in regards to the Holy Bible and its supposed truth and position as the final word of God. Yes, we are STILL in Genesis. In fact, this particular post will be covering solely the questions I have in regards to the story of Noah's Ark.
As always, I will likely use crude, curt language from time to time as I am wont to do when something really stupid gets under my skin. I do not provide answers for the questions I am asking and request that you provide me with some of your answers as to why you believe in the Bible (if that is in fact what you believe).
These questions are part of the reason why I do not believe in the Holy Bible as total truth, as the words of God, and I do not think that faith is a wrong thing. What I think is wrong is taking a whole bunch of questionable situations and claims and accounts and accepting them all en totem as absolute truth without any real, solid, confirmed facts.
These questions are the reason I don't believe. Personally, I think things probably would have worked out at least a tad better for religion if instead of claiming everything, every sentence in the Bible as literal truth the approach was that the Bible is a compilation of stories and parables that are completely true IN THE SENSE OF THE TRUTH OF THE MESSAGE CONVEYED, not necessarily that a particular story itself is true.
Tell me what you think. Explain to me your answers and why you believe. Show me why I should take this religious book and everything in it as truth. Give me a reason to believe.
1. Genesis 6:7
7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
Questions
1) Why does God take this 'if-one-element-is-bad-it-is-all-bad' approach when the beasts and the creeping things and birds and plants and dirt did NOTHING wrong against God, much less even possess the capability to understand or do wrong?
2) If the beasts and creeping things and birds and plants and dust did nothing wrong and yet God considered, planned and acted to destroy them isn't that the same thing as condemning the innocent?
3) Is God destroying all of this innocence as some type of payment for a mega-sacrifice that man owes God for man not doing exactly what God wants, when God wants it, how God wants it?
2. Genesis 6:8
8 Noah, however, found favor in the sight of the LORD.
Questions
1) Isn't favoritism a negative character trait?
2) Is God's favoritism given special license since, well, since God is God and there is no one greater than God that has the authority or the ability to call the Most High on His error of favoritism?
3) Isn't everyone supposed to be the same before God being as though all mankind supposedly falls short of the glory of God?
3. Genesis 6:11
11 Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with wickedness.
Questions
1) Would the earth had been filled with so much wickedness if it were not for God purposely placing enmity with man right before He booted man from the Garden of Eden?
2) Whose version of wickedness are we going by here?
3) Is it wickedness according to human understanding such as, "Do not do that because it is not nice to do and it hurts people?"
4) Is it wickedness according to the understanding of the God of the Holy Bible such as, "Do what I say or you are wicked?"
4. Genesis 6:12
12 God saw how corrupt the earth was, for every creature had corrupted its way on the earth.
Questions
1) How has ALL the flesh been corrupted when all of the 'flesh' that God is considering corrupt does not even possess REASONING powers?
2) Is this a divine version of guilt by association where, since God has decided man has totally and irrevocably fucked up God also decides the animals must be in on the rebellion?
3) So, never mind that it is clear that God screwed around with man's understanding of good and evil before he left the Garden of Eden (Remember, after eating the bad fruit Adam and Eve hid, and when God asked them where they were THEY DID NOT LIE and answered truthfully. And also remember that even though Adam and Eve ate from the wrong tree and thus knew good and evil...they DID NOT USE that knowledge for evil. The proof of that is in the pudding where Mr. Holier-than-Thou God the Creator PUT the enmity were it previously did NOT exist.), but where is the effort on the part of the divine to help the man he created to put things right?
4) Does God consider murdering everything when things do not go His way 'putting things right'?
5. Genesis 6:13
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
Questions
1) If God had not placed the enmity with man, would man have proceeded to the level of violence that God apparently wants us to believe was entirely of man's doing?
6. Genesis 6:14-15
14 Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.
15 And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.
Questions
1) So, it IS the absolute truth that a 480-year-old man (Noah; remember when God warned him He gave the time frame of 120 years' time until the flood waters would arrive on the scene, and when the waters finally came Noah had just turned a dust-crunching 600 years), over a period of 120 years built an ark out of gopher wood, an ark approximately 450 feet long, 45 feet high, and 75 feet wide, WITHOUT benefit of even a fraction of the tools available in Medieval times, without the benefit of a large workforce since everyone supposedly laughed at him (theoretically leaving Noah his three sons to help with the project)?
2) Where in the Bible does it say that Noah warned people OR that people laughed at Noah? Check this out: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&ved=0CE0QtwIwAw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DyIH6NPsO_xU&ei=CU46UrXQJ8eerAGwkoFo&usg=AFQjCNFWO7sguAxOG3QoMO4D9t9OvheB7A&sig2=OxtRSQ7z1StPCI7WUPdNXg
7. Genesis 6:16
16 A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it.
Questions
1) Judging from the language of the verse it could be interpreted that there was ONE opening for light (one window) one cubit from the top (approximately 18 inches), plus there were three stories/levels within the ark. How is light provided to all the levels of the ark?
2) Did Noah use oil lamps/lanterns to provide light, and wouldn't this be quite dangerous considering the amount of hay and plants stored for the grazing animals?
3) Hay stored in large amounts build a lot of heat and can burst into flame if it is not properly aired. How did Noah do this in the ark with so limited a space and so many animals?
4) Wouldn't the amount of methane accumulating on the ark as a result of all the animal shit and poor ventilation make it dangerous to use open flame (I am not saying it would FOR SURE, I am just saying it is a valid question)?
5) Wouldn't the amount of accumulating animal urine fumes (mainly ammonia) coupled with the lack of ventilation cause serious health complications for EVERY breathing being on the ark?
6) If this verse makes it clear there was ONE window why do so many renderings of the ark display neat little windows cut into various areas of the sides of the ark?
7) Are we supposed to interpret the verse as referring ONLY to that particular window and simply NOT mentioning all of the other windows on the ark?
8. Genesis 6:19-20
19 And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female.
20 Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive.
Questions
1) Okay, so we save TWO of every kind of animal, and just to help things along the animals will go TO the ark?
2) How long would it take the animals, even well behaved/organized animals, to get from wherever they are in the world (no trains, planes, or autos) all the way to the ark, and then in a calm fashion and without tearing each other to shreds load onto the ark successfully?
9. Genesis 7:2-3
2 Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female.
3 and seven pairs of the birds of the heavens also, male and female, to keep their offspring alive on the face of all the earth.
Questions
1) But I thought in Genesis 6:19-20 we established that it would be TWO of every kind of animal and not SEVEN?
2) Genesis 6:20 says specifically that the birds shall be preserved two of every kind...very clearly...but now we are going to save seven pair of each?
3) Is it possible to interpret "birds of/in heaven" as the birds used in sacrifice, such as turtle doves, so then maybe the regular birds are saved two of every kind and of the special "heaven" birds seven of every kind?
4) Since Genesis 1:20 says, "And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven," could it be argued that ALL the birds created are birds of heaven?
5) There are approximately 10,000 different bird species in the world, plus or minus a few to factor in extinction and possible undiscovered species, and the instruction is to take seven pair of each kind of bird (total of seven pair per species=14 birds per species=a shitload of birds) and put them on the ark?
6) With so many birds would there be room for any of the other animals?
7) How much food per day do birds eat (and yes, I know it would vary by species), and how much in total volume would that be for just the birds on the ark to eat each day...and how much space would all of this food for the birds alone take up?
8) How much food do elephants, rhinos, giraffes, zebras, horses, lions, tigers, bears, goats, sheep, snakes, rabbits, otters, bears...yada-yada, plucka-plucka, how much food per day do each of these animals require and WHERE did Noah put it?
9) Did the animals all crammed tight into the ark fight or try to eat each other or spread sickness?
10) What is a 'clean' animal as opposed to an 'unclean' animal?
11) Why is there ZERO mention of 'clean' or 'unclean' animals in the Bible from creation straight up to Genesis 7:27, and this verse doesn't even include the definition of 'clean' for an animal?
12) Are we to assume that God did tell Noah the difference between clean and unclean and simply decided NOT to mention that He did such?
13) What is assumption, and what are the consequences of assumption?
14) Would an all-knowing, all-powerful God Who is supposedly so precise in everything in the universe that He created, to include natural laws, do you really think this precise, meticulous God would leave anything up to conjecture, foolish guesses, or assumption?
15) Is that what the Christian 'faith' really is, assumption?
10. Genesis 7:11
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
Questions
1) What windows of heaven?
2) Is this idea of windows in heaven having anything to do with Genesis 1:6 which says, "And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters," where basically a barrier separates the waters from the earth from the waters of heaven?
3) Doesn't weather occur in the atmosphere? Have doubts? Go here:
4) If the firmament is supposed to be the atmosphere (look up Kent Hovind and his argument for such), and if heaven is above the firmament, how can any kind of window in heaven be opened to let in water?
5) If heaven is ABOVE the firmament can it be correctly deduced that heaven is somewhere in space, because what else is beyond earth's atmosphere?
6) Are there large amounts of water in space and in such a position as to reach earth's surface via windows/portals in what is called heaven?
11. Genesis 7:16
16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.
Questions
1) Why does this verse's reference to God and Jehovah sound like they are two different beings?
2) What about other Bible references to the Lord, the LORD God, Yahweh, Emmanuel, and more?
3) Doesn't that go far beyond the idea of God being three (trinity: Father, Son, Holy Spirit)?
12. Genesis 7:19-20
19 Then the waters surged even higher on the earth, and all the high mountains under the whole sky were covered.
20 Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered.
Questions
1) The flood waters were so high that they covered the highest mountain and then some...and Noah and the ark and the animals were just fine?!
Mount Everest is the tallest mountain in the world (8,848 meters), unless you are measuring from the center of the earth which would make it the fifth tallest. In the summer Mount Everest can be SO toasty that it comes close to reaching a scorching zero degrees Fahrenheit. Don't let go of your mittens just yet, though. In the winter Everest can dip to -76 degrees Fahrenheit. Yikes.
So, HOW in the fuckey-doo wasn't Noah and everything on the floating asylum frozen solid?
2) Never mind altitude sickness, but with the oxygen content roughly one-third of what Noah and his band of merry men were used to and normally resided in, how were they breathing? Would they have even remained conscious?
3) Where did the water that those who drank on the ark come from? Was it stored in the ark? Considering how much animals need every day was there even enough room to store the water?
4) Many people have pointed out that it is likely that Noah would not have had to store water since, with the rain pouring down for forty freaking days...well, they could use that water, right?
5) Okay. So, Noah and all on the ark drank rainwater. That IS somewhat reasonable; well at least more reasonable than actually storing the water ON the ark. Anyways, we will let the drinking of the rainwater suffice for the forty days and nights that the rain fell. However, the ark was floating around on the water months and months AFTER God had stopped the rain, so WHERE did they get their water during all that time?
6) Some people have suggested that with all the rainwater from the flood there would be an excess of fresh water and Noah could simply put a bucket over the side, or something. But that would not work because it isn't just freshwater, but saltwater as well, right?
7) Wouldn't salt from the water (if Noah and his family and all the animals tried to drink it) not only accumulate in the kidneys to the detriment of the person/animal drinking the salt polluted water, but the ding-dongs drinking the salty water would still need FRESHWATER to help flush the salt from their system AND to keep from dehydration?
13. Genesis 8:1
1 And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged;
Questions
1) So, God had forgotten about Noah, or at the very least stopped thinking about him since the term 'remembered' implies that there was in fact a cessation of thoughts about Noah by God?
2) If God is everywhere, and if God knows everything at all times He would have not needed remembrance, right?
14. Genesis 8:11
11 And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.
Questions
1) THIS is amazing, right? An olive tree has not only survived a mega-flood in tact, but it is still in the ground, still has its branches, and still has its leaves that may in fact still be plucked?
2) Wouldn't the mega-flood destroy everything and leave absolutely NOTHING, and isn't that exactly what God said He would do when He told Noah to build the ark?
3) God told Noah He would destroy every living thing...people, animals, plants. Plants are living things. Tell me how vegetation survived and how a dove was able to pluck some olive branch leaves?
4) When Noah left the ark how long would it take for the earth to be replenished with plants and what did the people and the animals eat in the meantime (be sure to account for the time it takes for germination and pollination and all of that)?
15. Genesis 8:20-21
20 And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.
Questions
1) So, you're telling me that God and Noah and all the animals on the ark went through this harrowing flood/save the species ordeal just to have Noah sacrifice some of the animals?
2) Constructing an alter and killing and burning innocent animals (and NOT because you are going to eat them) that have no concept WHATSOEVER about sin or good or evil creates a sweet smelling savor for the LORD?
3) Notice that here it says they sacrificed to the LORD and not God. Why is this?
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