GENESIS
CHAPTER 6
sons of God marry daughters of men—Men turn to wickedness; earth is filled with violence; all flesh is corrupted—The flood promised—God establishes his covenant with Noah, who builds an ark to save his family and divers living things.
1 AND it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
2 That the sons of God [ Born under the covenant, holder of the priesthood - see Mos 6:67-68 The "sons of God" then were offspring of people who believed in and followed God. In Moses 8:13 "Noah and his sons hearkened unto the Lord, and gave heed and they were called the sons of God." ] saw the daughters of men [ Those born outside the covenant, they were those which were lovers of Satan more than God as they had made their covenants with satan See Moses 5:27-30 They were those who were offspring of people who believed in following the ways of the world. ] that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. [ One of the reason's why the Lord would need to cleanse the earth. Answers to Gospel Questions 1:136-137. ]
3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, [ This is often suggested that God is saying that God will withdraw the influence of his spirit from man at some point when God's patience with man is done - the Holy Ghost. However; it does not mean that at all. "What does that mean?" If you actually look it up in Hebrew, the word here is, “To be strong.” And so it's almost this idea of if you lose the Spirit, you are going to lose some strength. You're going to lose some spiritual strength, maybe even some temporal strength. This may be a result of the Lord trying to limit the wickedness of man by limiting his life span, but we must also consider that man's strength is limited when compared to what it can be in comparison with man's strength under the spirit of God. ] for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years. [ The Lord put's a cap on our life expectancy, our mortal probation, after all do we want it to go on forever? We need to learn what we need to learn on earth and then move on. What does this mean? Double meaning: 1) The Lord instructs Noah to preach repentance to the people for a period of 120 years. Noah is 480 years old when he begins and will continue to preach until he enters the ark at 600 years old. Approximately 2300 to 2400 BC. 2) This verse could also be rendered as "My breath shall not abide in man forever, since he too is flesh; let the days allowed him be one hundred and twenty years." So in other words since man has been permitted to live hundreds and hundreds of years period to this point God is not suggesting that from here forward man will not live past 120 years old. Here God is speaking of the "breathe of life as referred to in Moses 3:7. " What does this tell us about the Lord? He is patient, he wants to give his children every chance to be saved, but they have their agency. the period of time provided for Noah to try to save the children of men, to call them to repent before the flood. Moses 8:17 Peter referred to this period as when "the long sufferring of God waited" 1 Peter 3:20 What do we learn about Noah from this period of time? Preaching for 120 years—an extraordinarily long mission that testifies to the incredible patience and endurance of this Noah as well. According to Jewish legends, Noah had to work hard on the ark, spending long years learning how to build it and master the various sciences he needed. Noah labored on it for 52 years, working slowly on purpose in the hope that the people would repent. On being informed of the end of the world, Noah exhorted his contemporaries to repentance, foretelling them that a flood would destroy the earth on account of the wickedness of its people. According to a tradition, Noah planted cedar-trees and felled them, continuing to do so for the space of one hundred and twenty years. When the people asked him for what purpose he prepared so many trees, he told them that he was going to make an ark to save himself from the Flood which was about to come upon the earth. But the people heeded not his words, they mocked at him, and used vile language; and Noah suffered violent persecution at their hands (Sanh. 108a, b; Pirḳe R. El. xxii.; Gen. R. xxx. 7; Lev. R. xxvii. 5; "Sefer ha-Yashar," l.c.; see also Flood in Rabbinical Literature). According to one legend, God showed Noah with His finger how to make the ark (Pirḳe R. El. xxiii.); but according to the "Sefer Noaḥ" (Jellinek, "B. H." iii. 155-160), Noah learned how to build it, and mastered as well the various sciences, from the "Sefer Razi'el" (the book from which the angel Raziel taught Adam all the sciences), which had been brought to him by the angel Raphael. The construction of the ark lasted fifty-two years; Noah purposely working slowly, in the hope that the people would take warning therefrom and would repent (Pirḳe R. El. l.c.). The "Sefer ha-Yashar" (l.c.), however, assigns only five years for the construction of the ark. Noah could distinguish between clean and unclean animals inasmuch as the ark of itself gave admittance to seven of the clean animals, while of the unclean ones it admitted two only (Sanh. 108b). The "Sefer haYashar" describes another method for distinguishing them: the clean animals and fowls crouched before Noah, while the unclean ones remained standing. ]
4 There were giants [ The word giants has been translated from the word "gibborim" which can also be translated as "mighty heros" or "Warriors". We find this word also used in Numbers 13:33 where it compares the strength of the warriors as giants as compared to grasshoppers. It refers to their state of being armed, mighty men. These are said by some to be those who literally in Hebrew made a "name" for themselves "men of renown". I think that sometimes we see this period of time from our perspective and think that they were so primitive, and yet what we do not understand is how much they did know. This was a period when the heavens were revealed, they were taught how to graft trees, how to make ore, fashion weapons of war, a great many things that would have been lost during the flood. The Hebrew word for “giants” is nephilim, and according to scholars, “a literal translation of nephilim is ‘fallen ones.’ ”Interestingly, the German Bible translates the word nephilim as “tyrants.” The “giants” were the proud tyrants bought up by Satan to rule the world Noah lived in. Noah was clearly an irritant to their Satanic system. This verse is also translated as "There were Nephilim (giants) in the earth in those days;and also after, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men. and they bare children to them, the same were mighty (powerful) men like unti the ancients-men of the name. " Meaning the name YHVH. The word Nephilim is also connected to the idea of those who came down from above. The IM on the end in Hebrew, it makes something plural typically. Like cherubim - more than one. The root word here is to fall. And so it literally means the fallen ones. And I love looking at it in the sense of giants and the higher you are, the harder you fall, the further you fall when you fall. It's this idea that there were these greats who had a ton of power, who had a ton of control, and they're oppressing the people. And so now it's spread just from righteous people turning wicked, now we get the influence of wicked leaders. Nephilim is the idea of the giant or the constellation Orion, specifically Orions belt. We can also connect this scripture to the Book of Moses 8:18-21. ] in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God [ See Moses 8:18-21. It is the Joseph Smith Enoch which gives the most convincing solution: the beings who fell were not angels but men who had become sons of God. From the beginning, it tells us, mortal men could qualify as “sons of God,” beginning with Adam. Moses 6:68 How? By believing and entering the covenant. Moses 7:1 Thus when “Noah and his sons hearkened unto the Lord, and gave heed … they were called the sons of God.” Moses 8:13 In short, the sons of God are those who accept and live by the law of God. When “the sons of men” (as Enoch calls them) broke their covenant, they still insisted on that exalted title: “Behold, we are the sons of God; have we not taken unto ourselves the daughters of men?” Moses 8:21 (Hugh Nibley, “A Strange Thing in the Land: The Return of the Book of Enoch, Part 8,” Ensign, Dec 1976, 73) Joseph Smith’s unique Mormon spin on the b’nei ha-Elohim was that they were priesthood holders, and the covenant people of the Lord, who were defiling themselves by marrying out of the covenant. Their resulting progeny were “Nephilim,” or “fallen ones.” Joseph Fielding Smith later clarified the LDS interpretation of Genesis 6 when he scolded:
There is a prevailing doctrine in the Christian world that these sons of God were heavenly beings who came down and married the daughters of men and thus came a superior race on the earth, the result bringing the displeasure of the Lord. This foolish notion is the result of lack of proper information, and because the correct information is not found in the Book of Genesis Christian peoples have been led astray. The correct information regarding these unions is revealed in the inspired interpretation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith in the Book of Moses. Without doubt when this scripture was first written, it was perfectly clear, but scribes and translators in the course of time, not having divine inspiration, changed the meaning to conform to their incorrect understanding. These verses in the Prophet’s revision give us a correct meaning, and from them we learn why the Lord was angry with the people and decreed to shorten the span of life and to bring upon the world the flood of purification. (Answers to Gospel Questions, 5 vols. [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1957-1966], 1: 136.)
The doctrine is repeated in sermons in the Journal of Discourses, such as this one by Charles W. Penrose:
It is stated that the iniquity of man was great, and God brought a flood on the earth. Now, to understand that correctly we have to know what kind of position those persons were in, and why they were called the “Sons of God.” Those men were in the same position as the Latter-day Saints. They were heirs to the Priesthood. They were the sons of God. They had obeyed the holy covenants. They had received the word of the Lord. They were consecrated to the Almighty. But they went outside of their covenants and their engagement with the Lord, and took wives of the daughters of men that were not in the covenant, and thus transgressed the law of God. The law of God in relation to this has been the same in all ages, and has been given to this people—that the sons of Israel shall wed the daughters of Israel, and shall not go out to wed with the stranger. These men did that, and God was displeased, as He is to-day with Latter-day Saints, who are called out of the world to be His servants, to be holy unto the Lord, to be clean because they bear the vessels of the Lord, when they go outside and wed with the stranger. (Journal of Discourses, 26 vols. [London: Latter-day Saints’ Book Depot, 1854-1886], 25: 228 – 229.) ] came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.
5 ¶ And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
[ Or there was no chance that they would do good, only evil. So that means that a child born would really not have agency to choose as there was no choice there had become only one way - evil. So a person living during that time would have no chance to become righteous. So without the agency to be able to become righteous there needs to be a reset, which God does with the flood. In an environment like that your agency is taken away. They were wicked but to them they were not wicked, they were simply more enlightened than those who believed in God. As a result they were able to justify anything that they wanted to do - i.e. further wickedness. There is no thought whatsoever of righteous feelings or thoughts, only evil. We might say that they were completely possessed, suggesting to the point of no return. There is nothing left to work with here, God see's that there is no hope for them to repent. In a Pearl of Great Price Institute Manual, President John Taylor is quoted, describing the Flood as an act of love, done for the benefit of that generation. By taking away their earthly existence God prevented them from entailing their sins upon their posterity and degenerating them. ]
6 And it repented the LORD [ Naham is such a great word because it appears all over the Old Testament. And every time it appears, it's translated in a different way. So people struggle with its meaning. And actually what's great is this word shows up in the Book of Mormon too as the place where Ishmael was buried on the way to the promised land, he was buried at Naham. Half of this word means grieving, sadness, mourning, being in pain. And I think this makes sense that both the Lord and Noah would feel this. They would feel sadness at not only the wickedness, but the Flood as well, that it had come to this, that this widespread punishment was coming. But the other side of nahum it's, and this is why people struggle with it because it almost seems like the opposite, it also means to be comforted. It also means to be consoled. It also means to feel content. I think people struggle because they say, "How can you feel sadness and comfort at the same time? How can you be mourning, but also feel consoled?" I think a lot of us have actually felt that. someone passes away, for example. There's a sadness and grieving and mourning, but there's also this other side of thinking about that's not the end for them. They've moved on to the next thing. They've lived a righteous life or they've been released from the pain or discomfort of this life. And we don't really have a word in English for this, I think, feeling sad but comforted. And that's what this word means. It works in the Book of Mormon too. It's where they buried him. And immediately after that, it says his daughter's mourned for him. It's the perfect example of also a balance of justice and mercy, that justice comes just in the same way that because we die of physical death, that's the justice side of the fall. But we also find comfort in death because we know we can overcome it and we can overcome spiritual death and physical death. And I think this is how Noah and the Lord are viewing this. The Flood is justice, but it'll also be mercy as well. And we'll talk about the different ways that it represents mercy. ] that he had made man on the earth, [ See Moses 8:25-26 for correct translation. ] and it grieved him at his heart.
7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
[ He was walking in such a manner that the Lord noticed his righteousness. ]
9 ¶ These are the generations of Noah: Noah [ Noah obtained his name in Hebrew, nh "Noach", which means "rest," or repose only after he had invented implements for tilling the ground, which, owing to the lack of such implements, had yielded only thorns and thistles". http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=318&letter=N#ixzz0es9nxGHi The world rested from wickedness after the flood. The dove sought rest as it searched for land. The ark finally rested on a mountain top. Noah’s name written backwards, hn¸ means “grace,” pointing to a sub-theme of the Noah story, highlighted in Genesis 6:8 where we read that “Noah [nh] found grace [hn] in the sight of God.” By learning the meanings within Noah’s name, ancient listeners could remember that they, like Noah, could find rest through the grace of God. ] was a just [ Translated "just" in the King James Version, but "righteous" in most modern translations; see, for example, NRSV; JPST; NIV; REB; and GTC. Regarding the significance of the word found here as "zadik", von Rad notes that "we have no satisfactory English word for this] theologically significant (Hebrew] word" (Genesis, 120). According to Sarna, zadik "describes one whose conduct is found to be beyond reproach by the divine Judge" (Genesis, 50). ] man and perfect [ Jesus was the only perfect man; but we do have a knowledge here that Noah was perfect enough to be able to walk with God which would imply that he was pretty close to perfect. "Noah who is Gabriel stands in authority to Adam in the priesthood" History Of the Church Vol 3 pg 386. ] in his generations, [ The word generations here is an imperfect translation of the Hebrew word "to-Ied-aw," which means ancestry. Or from the the Hebrew word dowr, here translated as generations, actually means “household” or “dwelling place” ] and Noah walked with God.
11 The earth also was corrupt [ The word corrupt here in Hebrew, it's the exact same word as the word translated as destroyed down later in verse 17. And so we have this level of corruption, this level of destructive sin, and the only answer is the same level of destructive punishment. And that's where we're at at this point. And it's interesting that it's the exact same word that's used. ] before God, and the earth was filled with violence. [ The word here in Hebrew, referring to violence, it actually encompasses both a physical violence and a psychological violence as well, physical abuse and psychological abuse. So they not only were sinning and their hearts had been taken over by evil, but they were destroying each other. Murder and killing and every kind of violence. And that's kind of like this word in Hebrew, it covers all violence. Violence against people, violence against animals, physical violence, other types of abuse, everything. It covers everything, all types. So this violence of the flood upon the earth, the completest of world catastrophes, is shown in the book of Enoch to be the only solution to problems raised by the uniquely horrendous types of wickedness that were infesting the whole world with an order that was becoming fixed and immovable. There’s no other cure for it. (Moses 7:32-34) Enoch
saw “great disorder on the earth, because a man hates his neighbor, and people do evil to people, and nation rises in war against nation, and all the earth will be filled with blood and disorder” (Secrets of Enoch 22, in Andre Vaillant, ed., Le livre des secrets d’Hènoch (Paris: Institut d’études slaves, 1952), p.72; 2 Enoch 34:1—2.) and “a man does not withhold his hand from his son, nor from his beloved, to slay him . . . nor from his brother,”(3 Enoch 4 (99, 15)) at a time when “covetousness held in her hand the head of every kind of lawlessness.”(Apoc. Abraham 24:9 cf. 1 Timothy 6:10; 1 Enoch 67:8—11; 3 Enoch 5:7—9.) “Ye have trusted in riches,” Enoch tells them,”... ye have not remembered the Most High in the days of your riches.”(1 Enoch 94:8; cf. Helaman 13:22.) Elsewhere, Enoch tells the people, “Ye have gone astray that your riches shall not remain ... because you have done evil in everything,”(1 Enoch 97:10, in Fascicle 8: Enoch and Melito, in F. G. Kenyon, The Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri: Descriptions and T exts of Twelve Manuscripts on Papyrus of the Greek Bible (London: Emery Walker Ltd., 1941). Samuel the Lamanite plainly drew on the Enoch texts that must have been included in the brass plates of Lehi. (Cf. Helaman 13:31.)) with all manner of perversions,including “men dressing like women and women like men.” (1 Enoch 98:1, in Fascicle 8: Enoch and Melito, in F. G. Kenyon, The Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri: Descriptions and Texts of Twelve Manuscripts on Papyrus of the Greek Bible (London: Emery Walker Ltd., 1941).)
The peculiar evil of the times consisted not so much in the catalog of human viciousness, long as it was, as in the devilish and systematic efficiency with which corruption was being riveted permanently on the social order. (Cf.
Moses 5:58.) It was evil with a supernatural twist: Those angels or
“Watchers” who had been sent down to correct the vices of the race and impart heavenly instructions to men themselves yielded to earthly temptation, mingled with the daughters of men, and used the great knowledge entrusted to them to establish an order of things on earth in direct contradiction to what was intended by God. (Apocalypse of Adam 3:12—15 (71).) (https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1029&context=mi Hugh Nibley)]
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; [ The word corrupt here in Hebrew, it's the exact same word as the word translated as destroyed down later in verse 17. And so we have this level of corruption, this level of destructive sin, and the only answer is the same level of destructive punishment. And that's where we're at at this point. And it's interesting that it's the exact same word that's used. ] for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
[ As Elder Neal A. Maxwell explained it as "corruption had reached an agency-destroying point that spirits could not, in justice, be sent here" (Neal A. Maxwell - We Will Prove Them Now Herewith 1982, 58). ]
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; [ Or I am left with no other choice but to do a reset on mankind. “They are without affection, and they hate their own blood” is the Moses version. (7:33.) ] for the earth is filled with violence through them; [ God gives us the reason for the flood. The reason is hatered and violence on the earth. ] and, behold, I will destroy them [ President John Taylor "Why did he destroy them? He destroyed them for their benefit, if you can comprehend it"Journal of Discourses 24:291 & 19:158-159 As an act of love. ] with the earth.
14 ¶ Make thee an ark [ The Hebrew word means "box" or "chest" - ie Ark of The Covenant. It was also used for watertight basket as what Moses was placed into on the Nile. ] of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. [ Cover it with bitumen or tar inside and outside to make it waterproof. ]
15 And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, [ A cubit, even though it kind of changed over time, it was typically equal to a forearm. So from like the tip of your finger to your elbow, that was a cubit. And so it's usually around 18 inches. 450 ft. So it has a surface area of about 2.125 football fields since it is 3 levels deep. Noah and his family built this. It would not have been easy. ] the breadth of it fifty cubits, [ 75 feet wide. ] and the height of it thirty cubits. [ 45 feet deep/in height. ] [ The ancient Hebrew word for the Ark, tebah, does not even mean “boat” or “ship”. It is etymologically related to the Egyptian word db’at, meaning “box” or “chest” or even “coffin”, suggesting a squarish, barge-like craft. (Interestingly, the word is only used one other place in the Bible, to describe the casket in which the infant Moses was cast adrift in the Nile.) Also, the 4,700 year old Akkadian Epic of Gilgamesh (Tablet IX, line 59) and the Babylonian version of Atra Hasis (Tablet III, lines 25-6) both refer to the Ark’s “square decks”. Finally, ancient Mesopotamian traditions held that Ziusudra, Atrahasis(Utnapishtim also goes by the name of Atrahasis, “the exceedingly Wise One,” “the Super-clever One. L. Matous,
“Die Urgeschichte der Menschheit im Atraḫasīs-Epos in der Genesis,” Archiv Orientální 37 (1969):5. Kraeling finds the two versions reflected in the P and J texts of Genesis: “In P’s Enoch we seemingly have thewhole biography of the Babylonian Flood here in nuce,”whereas the hero of the other version is Terah, whose “name could be an abridgement of Atraḫasīs or Atarḫasīs.” (E. G. Kraeling,“The Earliest Hebrew Flood Story,” Journal of Biblical Literature 66 (1947): 292.)), and Utnapishtim(Noah) (the Sumerian, Akkadian, and Babylonian “Noahs”) came from the city of Shurrupak on the Euphrates River, so a river barge-type design would have been a natural. n size the ark was 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high. Conservatively calculating the cubit as 44.5 cm (17.5 in.) (some think the ancient cubit was nearer 56 or 61 cm), the ark measured 133.5 m by 22.3 m by 13.4 m (437 ft 6 in. × 72 ft 11 in. × 43 ft 9 in.), less than half the length of the ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2. This proportion of length to width (6 to 1) is used by modern naval architects. This gave the ark approximately 40,000 cu m (1,400,000 cu ft) in gross volume. It is estimated that such a vessel would have a displacement nearly equal to that of the mighty 269-m (883 ft) Titanic of this 20th century. No cargo vessel of ancient times even slightly resembled the ark in its colossal size. Internally strengthened by adding two floors, the three decks thus provided gave a total of about 8,900 sq m (96,000 sq ft) of space. To my knowledge there are only 3 buildings in the the bible that God has provided the actual details for the size of the building - they include solomon's Temple, Tabernacle of Moses and the Ark whose design was directly revealed by God. ]
16 A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; [ Notice that the word “window” has been mistranslated, and the footnote says, “HEB tsohar; some rabbis believed it was a precious stone that shone in the ark” (Ether 2:23 (23–24). The Hebrew word Zohar, means “light” or “brilliance” and that light was connected with magical stones. The word used in this passage for window is actually the word Tzohar (צֹהַר) meaning radiance or something that shines. The usage of the word window (probably the closest thing the translators could come up with to demonstrate something that gives light) is translated from the Hebrew word tzohar meaning radiance, brilliance, or something that shines. While the word challown is actually the word for a window/or opening in a wall. The use of precious stones and jewels to provide light in Noah's ark offers a unique and fascinating interpretation of a biblical verse. Rabbi Yochanan, in the Talmudic tractate Sanhedrin, interprets the term "tzohar" in Genesis 6:16 as referring to precious stones and jewels that illuminated the ark.
With regard to the verse: “A tzohar you shall make for the ark” (Genesis 6:16), Rabbi Yoḥanan says that the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Noah: Set precious stones and jewels in the ark so that they will shine for you as the afternoon [tzohorayim] sun. Sanhedrin 108b:9
There's this Jewish rabbinical tradition that, when God created Adam, one of the things he did was he put his light; God's light in a stone, so that Adam would always have the light of God with him. And Adam passed this stone down. He passed it down until it got to Noah. And the tradition goes that Noah used it to light the Ark. And so the tzohar was actually this lighted stone that Noah had. And then the tradition continues. He passed it down. It eventually went to Moses, who used it to light the tabernacle, so that there was always this light of God with the prophets and being passed down.There are other traditions citing that the Patriarch Abraham wore a luminous stone around his neck that allowed him to see and that Moses recovered a luminous stone from Joseph’s body and placed it in the tabernacle in the wilderness. Dennis also recounts the following tradition:
“Abraham wore a glowing stone around his neck. some say that it was a pearl, others that it was a jewel. The light emitted by that jewel was like the light of the sun, illuminating the entire world. Abraham used that stone as an astrolabe to study the motion of the stars, and with its help he became a master astrologer. For his power of reading the stars,
Abraham was much sought after by the potentates of East and West. So too did that glowing precious stone bring immediate healing to any sick person who looked into it.
At the moment when Abraham took leave of this world, the precious stone raised itself and flew up to heaven. God took it and hung it on the wheel of the sun.
This talmudic legend about a glowing stone that Abraham wore around his neck is a part of the chain of legends about that glowing jewel, known as the Tzohar, which was first given to Adam and Eve when they were expelled from the Garden of Eden and also came into the possession of Noah, who hung it in the ark. See “The Tzohar, p. 85. This version of the legend adds the detail that the glowing stone was also an astrolabe, with which Abraham could study the stars.” (sources: B. Bava Batra 16b; Zohar 1:11a-11b, Idra Rabbah.) "A light shall you make for the Ark" (Beresheet 6:16) Noah was commanded by Hashem to make a "sohar" or "Zohar" for the Ark. What is a sohar? Rashi brings two explanations from a Midrash. some say it was a window to let in light. some say it was a precious jewel that shone brightly and provided light for the Ark. The Talmud Yerushalmi explains that these two opinions are dependent on another issue that was debated by the Sages. There was a debate about whether the heavenly bodies, the sun, moon and stars, were functioning during the flood or not. The opinion that held that the lights were shining also held that the sohar was a window that let in the natural light of the sun. The opinion that held that the heavenly lights were not shining, held that the sohar was a shining jewel that gave light, since there was no point in making a window for light if there was no light out there anyway. http://www.shemayisrael.com/parsha/jersey/archives/noach66.htm also “You will make a tso′har [roof; or, window] for the ark,” Noah was told. (Gen. 6:16) Just what this was or how it was constructed is not altogether clear. some scholars think tso′har is related to light and so they translate it “window” (KJ, Mo), “light” (AS, JP), “a place for light” (Ro). Others, however, associate tso′har with a later Arabic root meaning “back (of the hand),” “back (of a beast),” “deck (of a ship),” that is, the part away from the ground or water, and for this reason translate it “roof.” (AT, RS, JB) This tso′har, Noah was told, was to be completed “to the extent of a cubit upward.”—Ge 6:16.
It could be, therefore, that the tso′har provided for adequate light and ventilation, not just a single cubit-square “peephole,” but an opening a cubit in height near the roof and extending around the four sides to give an opening of nearly 140 sq m (1,500 sq ft). On the other hand, while still allowing an ample opening for ventilation under the roof or elsewhere, the roof could have had slightly angled sides. Regarding this possibility James F. Armstrong wrote in Vetus Testamentum (Leiden, 1960, p. 333): “‘Unto a cubit upward you shall finish it’ is difficult to understand when sohar is translated either ‘light (= window)’ or even ‘(flat) roof’. If, however, a gable-type roof be postulated, the ‘one cubit upward’ can refer to the elevation of the crease of the roof above the level of the tops of the walls. In modern architectural terms, the ‘one cubit’ would be the height of the kingposts between which the ridgepiece is laid. . . . According to the argument that has been presented, the roof of Noah’s ark was conceived as having a four per-cent pitch (1 cubit elevation — 25 cubits from wall to ridge), quite adequate to permit the water of the rains to flow off.”
] and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it. [ The ark shall have three decks. Interesting to note that there are only 2 buildings in the Torah that are described how to build - 1) the Ark and 2) the Tabernacle. The ark has some symbolism in this regard. 1) It does have some of the pattern of the tabernacle, 2) The Tabernacle is the place where Yahweh meets his people, and thru the covenant with Abraham it is the place where God allows his presence so that the life of his people might be preserved. The Ark itself acts as a physical and a symbolic preservation of his people. ]
17 And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, [ " The earth, in it's present condition and situation, is not fit for the santified; but it abides the law of its creation. It has been baptised with water, will be baptised by fire (at the second coming) and the Holy Ghost, and by-and-by will be prepared for the faithful to dwell ipon (it will be our celestial kingdom D&C 130:9-11) Brigham Young Journal of Discources Vol 8 Pg 83. ] to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. [ Why would the Lord do this? "Now I will go back to show you how the Lord operates. He destroyed a whole world at one time save a few, whom he preserved for his own special purpose. And why? He had more than one reason for doing so. This antediluvian people were not only very wicked themselves, but having the power to propagate their species, they transmitted their unrighteous natures and desires to their children, and brought them up to indulge in their own wicked practices. And the spirits that dwelt in the eternal worlds knew this, and they knew very well that to be born of such parentage would entail upon them selves an infinite amount of trouble, misery and sin. And supposing ourselves to be of the number of unborn spirits, would it not be fair to presume that we would appeal to the Lord, crying, "Father, do you not behold the condition of this people, how corrupt and wicked they are?" Yes. "Is it then just that we who are now pure should take of such bodies and thus subject ourselves to most bitter experiences before we can be redeemed, according to the plan of salvation?" "No," the Father would say, "it is not in keeping with my justice." Well, what will you do in the matter; man has his free agency and cannot be coerced, and while he lives he has the power of perpetuating his species? "I will first send them my word, offering them deliverance from sin, and warning them of my justice, which shall certainly overtake them if they reject it, and I will destroy them from off the face of the earth, thus preventing their increase, and I will raise up another seed." Well, they did reject the preaching of Noah, the servant of God, who was sent to them, and consequently the Lord caused the rains of heaven to descend incessantly for forty days and nights, which flooded the land, and there being no means of escape, save for the eight souls who were obedient to the message, all the others were drowned. But, says the caviller, is it right that a just God should sweep off so many people? Is that in accordance with mercy? Yes, it was just to those spirits that had not received their bodies, and it was just and merciful too to those people guilty of the iniquity. Why? Because by taking away their earthly existence he prevented them from entailing their sins upon their posterity and degenerating them, and also prevented them from committing further acts of wickedness." John Taylor Journal of Discourses Vol 19 pg 158-159 ]
18 But with thee will I establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, [ There is a covenant made between Noah and the Lord. This covenant is entered into freely by Noah, his wife and his son's when they enter the ark. The covenant is that the Lord will preserve them in the flood and they agree to be obedient to his commands. What symbolisms do we have today that are arks in our lives? The ark is therefore a symbol of the Savior. Like the ark of Noah, Jesus Christ is our refuge in the storm, safely carrying us through the tempest and calming the anxious waters. The Church News has said, “As we go through the storms of life, our closeness to the Lord will, in a large measure, determine the peace and comfort and renewed strength that we feel.” (“Refuge from the Storm, “Church News, Jan. 26, 1991.)
The ark can also be likened to the temple, a celestial refuge in a telestial world. It was in the ark that the human family found salvation, and it is in the temple that our families find the means of exaltation. The Ark is similiar to the temple in that it had three decks, and each of the three decks of Noah’s Ark was exactly “the same height as the Tabernacle of Moses. What did the ark lack? There were no oars or anything designed for navigation suggesting that Noah’s deliverance was not dependent on navigating skills, (but rather happened) entirely by God’s will. ] thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee. [ Notice the Lord preserves the family as a unit. ]
19 And of every living thing [ Including plants and seeds? ] of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female.
20 Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive.