Global Flood

There's Room For All The Animals

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How Could All The Animals Fit On Noah's Ark?

There are three aspects to this question:

(1) There were too many animals to fit: Noah did not need to fit all of the animals in the world on the ark. He was to bring two of every KIND (and 7 of some defined as "clean") of land animal that breathed through nostrils. Today we have many species and breeds. However, in Noah's day the original kinds were still living. One "kind" can include numerous species. That means one pair of each kind of animal would cover all possible species. For example, all of the dogs we have today came from just two (probably very much lke wolves) of the canine kind. It is estimated that, including extinct kinds such as dinosaurs, there were about 8,000 kinds in Noah's day. That means there would be about 16,000 animals on the ark. In order to have a conservative estimate, and cover unknowns, we typically use an estimate of 30,000 animals.

We'll see if 30,000 animals will fit when we take a look at the size of the ark. But first, there's another important question...

Noah's Ark Was Big

How did the big ones, like the huge dinosaurs, fit on the ark? Since there were dinosaurs on the ark, this is a good question. Sauropod dinosaurs could be 40 feet tall, 60 feet long and weight as much as 70 tons. Noah's ark was huge, but these dinosaurs are colossal. But, did Noah need to take the biggest ones? No. What makes sense is for Noah to take juveniles who were not only small, but they still had their entire reproductive life ahead of them. Remember, those who are on the ark will be repopulating the world. Based on this, and the fact that most animals are very small (mice, squirrels, birds, etc.), it is estimated that the average of the size of the animals on the ark was somewhat smaller than a sheep. So that gives us 30,000 sheep-sized animals. Was the ark big enough?

The Answer

Based on the dimensions given in the Bible, the ark was 1.54 million cubic feet in size. It is estimated that cages for 30,000 sheep-sized animals would required about 84,000 cubic feet. That's less than 6% of the available space in the ark. The storage space required for enough food and water for a year would use another 25% of the space. That leaves two-thirds of the space in the ark available for structural parts of the ark, exercise areas, work areas, and living quarters for people... with plenty of room left over.

Noah's Ark had plenty of room.



More information:

How did all the animals fit on Noah’s Ark? (CMI)

How Could All the Animals Fit on the Ark? (AIG)

How Could All the Animals Get On Board Noah's Ark? (ICR)


THE GOOD NEWS

The Good News


Before you get the good news, you need to know the bad news. It's about you. God says:

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. - Romans 3:23

Sin means disobeying God, aka breaking God's law. God is perfect and perfection is required to enter heaven. It's a standard none of us can achieve. We all fall short. For example, compare yourself with just one of the Ten Commandments. Have you ever told a lie?

All liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. - Revelation 21:8. Or what about:

Have you ever taken something that does not belong to you, no matter how small? Have you ever looked at another person with lust? In Matthew 5 Jesus said:

Everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.' Have you done that?

You have broken God's laws. You have sinned. There must be justice, and that means eternity in hell, the lake of fire, the second death. Unless...

Unless there was someone willing to pay that penalty on your behalf. Someone who will take on themselves the consequences you deserve. And there is. There is one person who can and will do that. That person is Jesus Christ. If you trust this is true (believe), and repent (turn away from disobeying God), Jesus' death is applied to your account and you are freed from the penalty of sin to be with God forever.