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16 Hope of Israel Ministries BIBLE Correspondence Course Lesson 32

ABOVE, and let the skies pour down righteous- that by the first day of the 10th month the tops of
ness.” the mountains finally became visible?
It is no wonder that people over the COMMENT: He certainly does -- but
centuries have been confused in understanding he doesn’t mean what most of us think he means!
the flood narrative! With 15 cubits of water (276 inches) in the form
As well as stating WHERE the water of rain entering the earth’s atmosphere and
came from, Moses even gave details about the falling to the surface, a supersaturated atmos-
EXACT amount of precipitation that fell “from phere resulted in thick clouds with extremely
above.” He said the waters “prevailed” (or they foggy conditions. This mantle of heavy clouds
came “from above” in their strength) to the tune and rain surrounded the surface of the earth for a
of 15 cubits (just about 23 feet of water). In fact, period of several months, causing all the
Moses was reporting that 23 feet of water (that mountains TO BE OBSCURED FROM SIGHT.
is, 276 inches of rainfall) fell to earth in that In fact, Noah probably couldn’t see a hand in
40-day period. This is equivalent to about 7 front of his face -- at the best, not more than 20
inches of rainfall occurring on EACH of the 40 yards in any direction from the ark! This lasted
days; and this represents about a third of an inch for about 5 months.
an hour -- a considerable amount of rain! 6. What happened after 150 days (five
However, this is not enough rain for a months) of intense supersaturation of the earth’s
flood that would cover Mount Everest by 15 atmosphere? Genesis 8:1.
cubits -- as people would like you to think! COMMENT: YEHOVAH God caused
Critics of this understanding might argue a STRONG WIND to pass over the earth causing
that Moses recorded in Genesis that the moun- the impenetrable fog and dense clouds to
tains were COVERED by the waters that dissipate; and the atmosphere began to clear up.
descended from the heavens, and that he meant At the same time the waters began to recede and,
even the highest mountains. And they would be because of the drying effect of the wind, THE
right! However, most people have not LOWER PARTS OF THE MOUNTAINS could
understood WHAT Moses actually intended be seen through the clearing atmosphere. And,
when he used the Hebrew word for “covered.” just as Moses said in Genesis 8:5, “the waters
What did YEHOVAH God (through decreased continually until the tenth month. In
Moses) mean by this word? the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the
4. Study II Samuel 22:5 and Jonah 2:5. tops of the mountains were seen” because the
COMMENT: The mountains were in- fog and clouds had cleared up enough to enable
deed COVERED, but nowhere does Moses say much better visibility.
-- or even hint -- that the mountains were SUB- If you examine the text carefully, you
MERGED! There is a perfectly good Hebrew will see that Moses is only saying that the tops of
word (ahphaph) that, without ambiguity, means the mountains COULD BE SEEN -- not that
SUBMERGED (II Samuel 22:5 and Jonah they emerged from under thousands of feet of
2:5). This word would have been used by Moses water! He simply meant that the clouds and fog
if he intended to show that the mountains were were dispersed by the “wind” that YEHOVAH
SUBMERGED. Instead Moses is simply telling God produced on the earth and that the tops of
his readers that the mountains (as well as all land the mountains could now be seen for the first
masses including the oceans) were COM- time since the flood commenced. This is ALL
PLETELY DOUSED with 276 inches of rain that Moses meant, and this can be clearly
that came “from above.” The word “covered” demonstrated from the meaning of the Hebrew
does NOT mean “submerged”! words he used.
5. Doesn’t Moses tell us in Genesis 8:5 7. When Moses said that the flood waters

Evolution -- Fact? Or Fabrication?