SHEPHERD TO SHEEP
UNIVERSAL OR LOCAL FLOOD?
(Gen 7:19) And the waters prevailed
exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were
covered.
As you read some Bible commentaries
and hear some Bible teachers they will speak of the flood of Noah as being only
limited and not all over the world. What
does the Bible really say about Noah’s flood?
Was it universal or local? And
does it really matter?
First of all the language is very
clear in that the waters covered ALL the high hills under the WHOLE
heaven. One of the most helpful hints of
Bible interpretation I have ever received was “If the literal sense makes
sense, seek no other sense”. We are to
take the scriptures literally until the text proves itself to be
otherwise. The Bible means what it says!
Next, you can take that common
sense and apply it to the story of Noah in a practical way. So we would surmise that if it was a local
flood there would be no need for an ark.
Noah and his family would have just left the area and let God wipe out
the region! Makes sense to me!! Why frustrate the meaning of the Bible?
Other passages point to a
universal flood. Why would the Bible
contradict itself? (Isaiah 54:9) “For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; for as I have
sworn that the waters of Noah would no longer COVER THE EARTH, so have I sworn that
I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you.
See also Psalm 104:5-9, 1 Peter 3:20; 2 Peter 2:5, 2 Peter 3:5-6,
Hebrews 11:7.
Jesus Himself believed in a
universal flood and took it as the type of the coming destruction of the world
when He returns (Mat 24:37-39; Luke 17:26-27).
He reminded us that "the flood came and destroyed them ALL"
(Luke 17:27).
Then how do you explain the fossil
record? And animals deposited where they
don’t belong? There are vast fossil
graveyards found on every continent and large amounts of coal deposits that
would require the rapid covering of vast quantities of vegetation. Oceanic
fossils are found upon mountain tops around the world. What explains the huge amounts of animal species
buried in mud, frozen in ice, or petrified?
And consider that literally
hundreds of people groups have their own accounts and legends of the flood. One
of the most remarkable is the Babylonian account, which is similar to the
Genesis account in many ways and is clearly drawn from it. Since all mankind
came from Noah’s sons, all mankind remembers the flood.
I vote for a universal
flood. But I also believe God so loved
the world too! (John 3:16)
Louie
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