Noah's ark was not a little rowboat; it was a rectangular, pitch-sealed box built to withstand a year of catastrophic flooding and to save Noah's household from God's judgment.
Les Feldick corrects the common Sunday-school picture of a small boat with animals looking over the edge. The Hebrew word for ark means a box, like a coffin or the ark of the covenant. The pitch sealed out the floodwaters of judgment, making the ark a place of safety for Noah's family, which he prepared by faith.
Genesis 6:14-16 — These verses give God's direct instructions for the ark's construction: gopher wood, pitch, dimensions, window, door, and three stories.
Genesis 7:1 — Shows God's invitation to Noah to 'come' into the ark with his household.
Hebrews 11:7 — Explains the purpose: by faith Noah prepared the ark to save his house and condemned the world.
The Bible records that God told Noah to make an ark of gopher wood with rooms, pitching it within and without with pitch. Its length was three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. It had a window, a door in the side, and lower, second, and third stories. When the flood came, God said to Noah, 'Come thou and all thy house into the ark.' Hebrews 11:7 says Noah, warned of God of things not seen, 'moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house' and 'condemned the world' by it.
Les explains that the familiar children's picture of the ark—a little rowboat with a shed in the middle and a giraffe looking over the edge—is a myth. The ark was actually a rectangular box, the same Hebrew word used for a coffin and for the ark of the covenant. It was built with real stability because the flood was far more than forty days of rain; it involved severe turmoil, tidal waves, earthquakes, and volcanoes, and the ark would be in the water for almost a year. Les emphasizes the pitch that sealed out the waters of judgment, making the ark a place of perfect safety for Noah's family. He also notes that God's word to Noah was not 'go' but 'come' into the ark, and that Noah's preparation of the ark was an act of obedience and faith.
Les says the common picture of a little rowboat with a shed and animals looking over the edge comes from Sunday school material and is not what the ark was. The ark was a rectangular box for all practical purposes, built to survive the awful events of the coming flood. The Hebrew word translated 'ark' is also translated 'coffin' and refers to a box.
In the Hebrew, the same word translated 'ark' is used for the ark of the covenant and for a coffin—both are boxes. Les says the ark was a rectangular box designed not for sailing but for stability, because the flood involved far more than rain and the ark would remain in the water for nearly a year.
The ark was a place of safety within the floodwaters of judgment. Les says the waters of judgment were directed at the unbelieving multitudes, while Noah's family was kept safe inside the sealed box. Hebrews 11:7 says Noah prepared the ark to the saving of his house and by this condemned the world. Les also highlights that God's word to Noah was 'come' into the ark—not 'go'—emphasizing God's invitation.
Les explains the pitch was not just a coating; it sealed out the waters of judgment. Without it, the ark would have leaked and sunk. The Hebrew word for pitch is also translated atonement, connecting the ark to a place of safety. He also connects this to Moses's ark of bulrushes, which was daubed with slime and pitch as a place of safety.
Les's answer is faith. Noah was 'warned of God of things not seen as yet' and 'moved with fear' prepared an ark to the saving of his house. This is the perfect lesson of the obedience of faith: when God told Noah to build the ark, Noah built it.
The Ark Is Not a Rowboat
Les debunks the Sunday-school image of the ark as a little rowboat with a shed and animals looking over the edge; the ark was not a small boat.
The Ark as a Stable Box
The ark had to be built with real stability because the flood was far more than forty days of rain and the vessel would be in the water for almost a year; the Hebrew word for ark is also translated 'coffin' (a box).
The Rectangular Box
Les repeats that everyone's mental picture of the ark is wrong; for all practical purposes it was a rectangular box built to survive the awful events of the coming flood.
God Says 'Come'
Referring to the turmoil of tidal waves, earthquakes, and volcanoes, Les notes that God's word to Noah was 'come,' not 'go,' as Noah and his family entered the ark.
Pitch Seals Out Judgment
The pitch sealed out the waters of judgment, making the ark a place of perfect safety for Noah's family; Les uses this as a picture of entering God's ark of safety in salvation.
Ark Means Box
Les explains the Hebrew word for ark simply means a rectangular box, as seen in 'ark of bulrushes' and the ark of the covenant.
Pitch and Atonement
For Moses's ark of bulrushes, God gave the same instructions as Noah's—daubing with slime and pitch; Les notes the Hebrew word for pitch is also translated atonement, connecting to a place of safety.
Noah's Faith
Noah was prompted by faith: warned of God, he moved with fear and prepared the ark to save his house, thereby condemning the world.
Genesis 6:14: Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.
This is God's command that the ark be made of gopher wood and sealed with pitch.
Genesis 6:15: 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.
These dimensions describe the rectangular shape and size of the ark.
Genesis 6:16: 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.
This verse shows the ark had a window, a side door, and three stories.
Genesis 7:1: And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.
God's invitation to Noah uses 'come,' not 'go,' as Les notes.
Hebrews 11:7: By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
This verse states the purpose of the ark: to save Noah's household and to condemn the world.
No. Les Feldick says that mental picture comes from children's Sunday school materials. The ark was a rectangular box, not a little rowboat with a shed in the middle or giraffes looking over the edge.
Les says the same Hebrew word is translated 'coffin' in other places in Genesis, and it refers to a box. The ark of the covenant was likewise a rectangular box.
The pitch sealed out the floodwaters of judgment. Les says that without it the ark would have leaked and sunk; with it, Noah's family remained in perfect safety.
Les says the ark was in the water for almost a year, so it had to be built with real stability and meticulous workmanship.
It was God's place of safety for Noah's family while the floodwaters judged the unbelieving world. Noah prepared it by faith, saving his house and condemning the world.
Watch the Teaching: Noah’s Flood Was Not Just Rain: The Fountains of the Great Deep Explained