The Story of the Flood | A Noah Bible Story
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You’ve heard the Noah and the flood story, right?
The world was wicked, God didn’t like it, so He decided to destroy everyone on Earth except that righteous man Noah (and His family).
How’s that for a Noah and the flood summary?
That’s how most of us remember the story of Noah and the ark. Can I be honest though? This summary is way too simple. We’ve all heard sermons about Noah and the flood that are equally as simple. Simple is good but too simple usually means we’re missing important information. There’s so much we can learn from how the Bible tells the Noah and the flood story.
In this article we’re going to look at the full story of Noah in Genesis. To print and use this article as a reference guide or to accompany a Noah and the Flood Sunday School lesson, click here.
Ready to dive into the story of Noah?
Where is the Story of Noah and the Flood in the Bible?
Noah is first introduced to us in Genesis 5:28-29.
Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and had a son. And he called is name Noah, saying, “this one will comfort us concerning our work and the toil of our hands , because of the ground which the Lord had cursed.”
The curse that they are talking about is part of the consequences of Adam and Eve disobeying God generations prior.
Then to Adam God said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree which I commanded you, saying, ‘you shall not eat of it’: Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life.
Genesis 3:17
Noah was a comfort in the midst of a hard and burdensome season. I imagine His name was also a reminder to them of the importance of devotion to God.
Just prior to Noah and the flood Genesis 6:9 lists the genealogy (family line) of Noah.
The actual story of Noah and the ark – when God speak to Noah and tells him to build it – is told in Genesis 6:13-22.
Most people read the story of Noah in Genesis but its also referenced in the New Testament in what is called, “the hall of faith”.
By faith, Noah, being divinely warning of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, bu which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
Hebrews 12:7
The Story of Noah in the Bible
So, what happened to Noah in the Bible?
As we learned just a moment ago, Noah was the son of Lamech. We don’t know much about His upbringing or childhood. Scripture jumps from Noah’s birth to his 500th year of life when He becomes a father to three bouncing boys; Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Though we may not know much about the personal details of Noah and his family we do know, based on the Bible, a little bit about the culture at that time. I’ll summarize it with this one word; wicked. So wicked that God decided to reduce the life span of a human. So through the sin of Adam death entered the world, but the years of man were still many. People were living 900 plus years. The evil had increased so much in the days of Noah that God said,
“My Spirit shall not strive with man forever for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.”
Genesis 6:3
Just a few short verses later God continues to respond to the evil intents and condition of mankind saying,
“I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.”
Genesis 6:7
“But Noah Found Grace in the Eyes of the Lord…”
Noah was what we would call a God-fearer. It wasn’t just that He knew God existed; it was that He had cultivated a reverence for God and it was evident in the way he lived.
Genesis 6:9 describes Noah as “a just man, perfect in his generations.” He was a man who walked with God.So when it came time to judge the wickedness of the earth, Noah found grace with God. If they continued to submit to the Lord, Noah and his family – his wife, their sons, and their sons wives would be spared.
Noah’s Ark
I mentioned earlier how Noah was named in the hall of faith in Hebrews 12.
The more I think about his story, the more I understand why. God asked Noah to prepare for an event that was unheard of prior to this (the flood was the world’s first experience with rain) with a tool that was equally as mysterious to Noah (a man who tilled the land) and surrounding peoples.
When God said, Noah, “make yourself and ark out of gopher word” I can almost guarantee Noah had no real vision for what He was creating. By faith he went to work, carefully sticking to the measurements and blueprints God verbally laid out for him. And ark with rooms, made out of gopher wood and covered in pitch, with a window and a door that opens from the side (Genesis 6:13-16).
And then God continues,
“Behold, I myself am bringing flood waters on the earth…”
Genesis 6:17
If I were Noah this statement would have prompted a lot of questions. Flood water? They knew oceans, they knew lakes and rivers, and they knew spring waters – but not flood waters.
“… to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die.”
Genesis 6:17
One thing to note about how God does justice and judgment; He always preserves a righteous remnant. So was the case with Noah. God said to him,
Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before me in all this generation.”
Genesis 7:1
The ark was to be Noah’s refuge, His covering and safe place, and according to Genesis 6:18; part of a covenant agreement with God.
Noah’s ark also served as a form of preservation for the animals. Seven of each clean animal and two of every unclean animal accompanied Noah’s family on the ark; plus seven of each species of bird (see Genesis 7:2-3).
Timeline of Noah and the Flood
I used to wonder how hard and quickly the rain must have fallen to be able to flood the entire earth. As it turns out, the flood in Noah’s day was a result of much more than rain – which is helpful for understanding the event and the destruction that followed.
The details and timeline of Noah’s flood can be found in Genesis chapter 7. I’ve made note of the Noah and the flood Bible verses that help me get a picture of what the flood really was like.
7 days after entering the ark the flood waters began (Genesis 7:10).
In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was on the Earth forty days and forty nights.
Genesis 7:11
Most people assume that after the 40 days and nights of rain, life went back to normal. According to Scripture, the water remained on the earth for at least one hundred and fifty days (Genesis 7:24).
At the end of the 150 days the waters began to decrease (Genesis 8:3).
It was another two and a half months before the tops of mountains were seen (Genesis 8:4-5).
And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked and indeed the surface of the ground was dry.
And in the second month, on the twenty seventh day of the month, the earth was dried.
Genesis 8:13-14
Based on these passages, we can conclude that Noah, his family, and the animals remained on the ark for nearly a year!
Fun Facts and Bible Verses About Noah and the Flood
Ready for some Noah and the Ark Trivia! Here we’re going to answer some of the common questions floating around the internet about Noah.
Pro Tip: Click here to print this Noah and the flood lesson to use for your own personal or small group study.
- How many years was it between Noah and the flood?
- What is the Date of Noah and the Flood? When Did It Actually happen?
- What is the main Noah and the flood theme?
How many years was it between Noah and the flood?
The details of Noah’s family life in the Bible start when Noah was 500 years old (Genesis 5:32). According to Genesis 7:6, Noah was 600 when the flood waters hit the Earth. So there is a one hundred year difference between the introduction of Noah’s family and the time of the flood. What happened in those 100 years?
Noah had three children, Ham, Shem, and Japheth.
The family tended and lived off the land.
Noah received instructions and put in the work to build the ark.
What was the date of Noah and the flood?
Scholars haven’t pinned down an exact date for the events of the flood, but most agree it took place somewhere between 2472 BCE and 2348 BCE. A good four thousand plus years ago.
What themes surround the story of Noah and the flood?
If I could describe three central themes in the story of Noah it would be threes:
- Sin is real. Equally as important it has real consequences. Paul teaches it like this,
For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23Though Jesus wasn’t a physical figure in this day, God makes it clear in Scripture that those who served God before the coming of Jesus have access to salvation through faith just like you and I do. The wage of sin has always been death. Salvation and life have always been the gift of God. Eternal atonement has only ever been accomplished through Jesus.
- Repentance matters. Repentance is the act of turning away from your own ways so that you can follow God’s ways. You can’t have righteousness without repentance. Having a repentant heart means you are willing to accept God’s correction. Repentance matters for you, but on a grander scale it impacts generations.
Paul teaches it like this,If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9 - Salvation (life) is a gift. In Genesis 6:8-9 we see that Noah found grace in God’s eyes. It was this grace that brought Noah into covenant with God and allowed Him the covering of the ark. God didn’t have to give this grace. He could have welcomed Noah into heaven and started over with humanity. Didn’t he do that with Enoch (the welcoming Him to heaven part – Genesis 5:24). Yet for Noah, God chose to preserve his life and extend his years. We see this same grace extended to Lot and his family, Rahab in Jericho, and multiple times towards the nation of Israel. We did nothing to earn it and certainly don’t deserve it, but by God’s grace we have life.For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is a gift of God not of works, lets anyone should boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9
What is the Main Story of Noah?
Most people hear the story of Noah and immediately think of the flood. We remember an event and we isolate it to the past as if swift judgment like this could never happen again. That’s a mistake on our part.
What the story of Noah teaches us from beginning to end is this – when we deviate from the goodness of God only destruction can follow.
The people of Noah’s time were living extremely corrupt lives. They didn’t just reject the idea of God, they embraced everything wicked that was introduced to them. It lead to a society corrupted by sin and even enslaved by it. The ironic thing is that nobody wanted to be free from the bondage they were in. They lived to appease their flesh no matter how destructive their ways became and they refused to accept correction.
The Bible doesn’t explicitly describe Noah as an evangelist but I have a hard time believing He could live His life in such a corrupt society and not explain his reason for living life so differently. It’s rare that God allows evil to be without presenting an opportunity for correction and repentance in some shape or form. There is always someone, always a remnant, who brings light into the darkness.
When we reject that “light” (a word often used to describe good and righteousness) we are subject to the consequences of choosing darkness (evil) over light. This is a choice we make on a heart level that radiates outward into the way we live. Jesus described it like this,
“This is the condemnation, that light has come into the world and men loved darkness rather than life because their deeds are evil.”
John 3:19
As In the Days of Noah
It’s interesting to me that Jesus uses the culture and lifestyle of this time period to describe the condition the world will be at the coming of His kingdom.
And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they ate, they drank, they bought, they married wives and were given in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and the flood waters came and destroyed them all.”
Luke 17:26-27
The people of Noah’s day were not without warning of the judgment to come. They were simply too caught up in themselves to pay any mind to the ways of God.
They rejected Him.
Noah’s story should read to us as an alarm that is sounding, prompting us to look within ourselves and our societies – to deal with the sin that we’ve allowed to take seed – to humble ourselves before God and submit ourselves to His ways. Because there is a day that is coming where Jesus will again deal with the wickedness of the world. And when He comes we will be without excuse.
Yet for the righteous, there is hope; a covering, and a preservation in the time of destruction.
I hope you enjoyed this quick summary of Noah and the flood!
The Story of Noah for Kids! Books to Help You Tell the Flood Story
I hope you enjoyed this quick summary of Noah and the flood! Are you looking for a fun way to share the story of Noah with kids? Here are some of our top story book suggestions.
Noah and the Very Big Boat – A simple and colorful board book story of Noah and the animals on the ark. Best for kids 1-4 years old.
A Patch at the Peak of Ararat – A rhythmic retelling of the Story of Noah and the Ark. A Patch on the Peak of Ararat is a great way to engage kids in the Noah Bible story, while rhyming, laughing, and tons of fun catchy phrases.
The True Story of Noah and the Ark – The True Story of Noah’s Ark is full of fun facts, cultural notes, and stunning art work that work together to tell the story of Noah in context without all the fluff. If you’re tired of watering down Bible stories for your kids, this book may be the perfect fit for both you and them!
The Story of Water – Have you noticed how a lot of God’s miracles and monumental moments involve water? The Story of Water takes readers on a journey through the Old and New Testament exploring the incredible ways God used water in the Bible and how these water Bible stories (like Noah and the Ark) point to the truth of Jesus and hope of the gospel.
Noah’s Ark Hidden Picture Story Book – A colorful story book with interactive “hide and seek” like pages. Enjoy the story of Noah while helping your kids find hidden items within the pictures on the pages. Perfect for a family read-a-loud book!
Print this Noah and the Flood Sunday School Lesson!
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