C.I.M. OUTLINE #27 FACTS ABOUT THE FLOOD I. Introduction: The first 12 chapters of Genesis are attacked more than any other passage in the Bible. It is very important for believers to be assured that this is no less the Word of God and is important for our instruction. We must not be tempted to prostitute ourselves to a higher authority than Scripture. II. The Extent of the Flood If the science of geology did not exist, and we only had Genesis chapters 6-8., what would we conclude from a normal reading of Scripture about the extent of the Flood? There is little doubt that a universal Flood is meant. Regardless, some evangelical scholars still postulate that the Flood was a local event. A . The Local Flood Theory 1. The local Flood theory received a boost when the famous archaeologist, Sir Leonard Wooley thought he found proof of the Biblical Flood when he found an eight foot thick layer of water-deposited strata under the city of Ur covering a still more ancient civilization. Despite proof to the contrary, many still believe this discovery. (This flood layer, it was later discovered, did not even cover the entire city!) 2. Objections: a. There would be no need for an Ark (definitely not an Ark the size of the one described in Genesis 7). b. The Biblical language is universal. c. This view seeks accommodation with the conclusions of modern geology B. The Flood was Universal 1. The main objections are its supernaturalism and the fact that it contradicts the conclusions of modern uniformitarian geology. 2. Support: (a) The language of the Bible is universal. "all the high mountains under the entire heavens", "Every living thing", "all mankind", "Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark." (b) The tradition is universal. A catastrophic flood seems to be found in the collective memory of all ancient peoples. Some 270 of these stories have been cataloged. What is interesting is the fact that the closer you get to Asia Minor, the closer the details are to the Biblical account! (c) The size of the Ark. It is an ocean-going type of vessel befitting a global catastrophe. (d) It explains the geosphere in terms of Biblical revelation. The huge extinction of animal and plant life told by the fossils speak of catastrophe. (e) The Duration of the flood. They remained in the Ark for a whole year! (f) It ignores the testimony of the apostle Peter. II Pet. 3:3-7. Peter is speaking in global terms. (g) It ignores the stated purpose of the Flood--to destroy all of the human race. (h) The Covenant God made with Noah after the Flood would be meaningless if the Flood had just been a local event. III. The Cause of the Flood (Genesis 6:1-4) The Bible speaks of the Flood as being a judgement from God due to wickedness on the earth. IF THE FLOOD WAS INDEED GLOBAL THEN THE SIN MUST HAVE BEEN OF THE MOST HEINOUS NATURE! A. The Spiritual or Supernatural Reasons for the Flood Genesis 6: 1-4 is one of the most puzzling passages in the entire Bible. The major questions of interpretation are: Who are the "daughters of men", the "sons of god", the "nephilim", and the "heros of old"? Four views: 1. Mixed marriage view a. Explanation: The "sons of god" were the righteous line of Seth; the "daughters of men", the unrighteous line of Cain. The sin which gave rise to the judgement was the sin of intermarriage between the godly and ungodly. b. Objections: (1) This view hardly explains the severity of the Flood? (2) "Sons of god" in all other occurrences means "angels. Job1:6, 2:1, 38:7; Ps. 29:1, 89:6; Dan. 3:25. (3) "men" means the same things in verse 2 as it does in verse1. (4) The Bible does not say that angels are sexless. Angels in heaven do not marry: the same as people. Matt. 22:30, Mk. 12:25, Lk. 20.35-36. Angels are spoken of as being male (Michael and Gabriel) and as female (Zech. 5:9)! (5) It does not explain the offspring produced. (6) It runs roughshod over the passages in I Pet. 3:19,20; IIPet. 2:4,5; Jude 6. (7) None of the sons of god were on the Ark. (8) The contrast is between the "sons of god" and the "daughters of men" not between the sons of Seth and the daughters of Cain. (9) If the "sons of god" were godly, why did they do what is ungodly? 2. Immorality-polygamy view (a) Explanation: A powerful, elite took for themselves multiple wives. There are parallels of this in ancient near-eastern literature. (b) Objections: (1) It gives too much emphasis to creation myths and not enough to Scripture. (2) Again, does this explain the severity of the judgement? 3. Demon-possession View (a) Explanation: This unholy union resulted in demon-possessed men. (b) Objection:Use of the term "sons of god in other OT passages does not refer to demon- possessed men. 4. The Corrupt Race (Seed) View (a) Explanation: Angels (spirit beings) left their proper spheres (the spirit world), took on bodies of men and cohabited with the daughters of men. This unholy union threatened to destroy the Seed through which the Deliverer would come. Apparently the "nephilim were some sort of hybrid. As a result, the earth was filled with violence. (1) it explains the severity of the flood. (2) It agrees nicely with the theme of Genesis which demonstrates the sovereignty of God in preserving purifying "the seed" as Satan tries to corrupt and destroy it. The marriage of fallen angels to daughters of men somehow corrupted the seed of man, perhaps causing some kind of genetic mutation. Noah and his family were chosen perhaps because their blood-line remained untouched. (3) It does justice to the text. (4) It explains a difficult passage in I Pet. 3. and Col 2:15, I Tim. 3:16, and explains why women should cover their head! ICor. 11:10. (5) It is an ancient universal tradition that the gods once visited this earth in the form of men, i.e. the titans of mythology. "More and more we are finding that mythology in general though greatly contorted very often has some historic base. And the interesting thing is that one myth which occurs over and over again in many parts of the world is that somewhere a long time ago supernatural beings had sexual intercourse with natural women and produced a special breed of people." Francis A. Schaeffer (6) It has strong support from extra-biblical literature-- the psuedopigraphic book of Enoch and the book of Jubilees. The New Testament writers were familiar with these books. Jude quotes from Enoch and Peter alludes to it. (7) It was the universal interpretation of the early church fathers until the 5th century. (b) Objections: The major objection to this view is angelic spirit-beings co-habiting with humans. It is a hard interpretation, and is hard to explain philosophically, i.e. the mind-body problem. B. Natural Causes of the Flood Some explanations offered: 1. A rapid shifting of the Poles. 2. The collapse of the vapor canopy surrounding the earth. 3. Volcanism and earthquakes. 4. The shifting of the earth's crust. 5. An extra-terrestrial body passing close by the earth. Christian Information Ministries is a non-profit ministry and is dependent on gifts from God's people in order to operate. If you receive a benefit from our materials would you consider giving a tax-deductible gift to CIM. We suggest $25. a year minimum. Send to: Christian Information Ministries 2050 N. Collins Blvd. #100 Richardson, TX 75080