Genesis 8:3 - The Ark Rests on Ararat

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Context

The Ark Rests on Ararat
…2The springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens were closed, and the rain from the sky was restrained. 3The waters receded steadily from the earth, and after 150 days the waters had gone down. 4On the seventeenth day of the seventh month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat.…

Cross References

Genesis 7:24
And the waters prevailed upon the earth for 150 days.Genesis 1:9
And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered into one place, so that the dry land may appear.” And it was so.Exodus 14:21-22
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the LORD drove back the sea with a strong east wind that turned it into dry land. So the waters were divided, / and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on their right and on their left.Psalm 104:6-9
You covered it with the deep like a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. / At Your rebuke the waters fled; at the sound of Your thunder they hurried away— / the mountains rose and the valleys sank to the place You assigned for them— ...Job 38:8-11
Who enclosed the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, / when I made the clouds its garment and thick darkness its blanket, / when I fixed its boundaries and set in place its bars and doors, ...Isaiah 54:9
“For to Me this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So I have sworn that I will not be angry with you or rebuke you.2 Peter 3:6
through which the world of that time perished in the flood.Matthew 24:37-39
As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. / For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark. / And they were oblivious until the flood came and swept them all away. So will it be at the coming of the Son of Man.Luke 17:26-27
Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man: / People were eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.Hebrews 11:7
By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in godly fear built an ark to save his family. By faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.1 Peter 3:20
who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In the ark a few people, only eight souls, were saved through water.Revelation 22:1-2
Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb / down the middle of the main street of the city. On either side of the river stood a tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit and yielding a fresh crop for each month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.Psalm 29:10
The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD is enthroned as King forever.Isaiah 11:9
They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the sea is full of water.Jeremiah 5:22
Do you not fear Me?” declares the LORD. “Do you not tremble before Me, the One who set the sand as the boundary for the sea, an enduring barrier it cannot cross? The waves surge, but they cannot prevail. They roar but cannot cross it.

Genesis 7:11,24
In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened…

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Genesis 8

The waters receded steadily from the earth
This phrase indicates a gradual process of the floodwaters diminishing. The Hebrew word used here suggests a continual and consistent decrease. This reflects God's control over the natural world, as He orchestrates the retreat of the waters. The receding waters symbolize a return to order from chaos, reminiscent of the creation narrative where God separates the waters to create dry land (Genesis 1:9). This event marks a new beginning for the earth, paralleling the new creation theme found throughout Scripture, such as in Isaiah 65:17 and Revelation 21:1.

and after 150 days
The specific mention of 150 days highlights the precision and orderliness of God's plan. This period includes the 40 days of rain and the subsequent time the waters prevailed before they began to recede. The number 150, being a multiple of 5 and 30, may symbolize completeness and divine order. This timeframe underscores the severity and totality of the flood, emphasizing the magnitude of God's judgment and the thoroughness of His cleansing of the earth.

the waters had gone down
The phrase indicates the completion of the recession process, preparing the earth for a new beginning. This mirrors the concept of redemption and restoration found throughout the Bible, where judgment is followed by renewal. The lowering of the waters sets the stage for Noah and his family to repopulate the earth, akin to a second creation. This anticipates the ultimate restoration through Christ, who brings new life and hope after judgment, as seen in passages like 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Persons / Places / Events

1. Noah
A righteous man chosen by God to survive the flood and repopulate the earth. He is a central figure in the account of the flood.

2. The Flood
A cataclysmic event sent by God to cleanse the earth of its wickedness, sparing only Noah, his family, and the animals aboard the ark.

3. The Ark
The vessel built by Noah according to God's instructions to save his family and pairs of every kind of animal from the flood.

4. Mountains of Ararat
The location where the ark came to rest as the waters receded, marking the beginning of a new chapter for humanity and creation.

5. God
The sovereign Creator who judges the earth with the flood and shows mercy by preserving Noah and his family.

Teaching Points

God's Sovereignty and Control
The receding waters remind us of God's ultimate control over nature and history. Just as He brought the flood, He also caused the waters to recede, demonstrating His power and authority.

New Beginnings
The gradual receding of the waters symbolizes a fresh start for Noah and his family. In our lives, God often provides new beginnings after periods of trial and judgment.

Patience and Trust
Noah's experience teaches us the importance of patience and trust in God's timing. The waters did not recede immediately, but steadily, requiring Noah to wait on God's perfect plan.

God's Faithfulness
The receding waters are a testament to God's faithfulness in fulfilling His promises. He promised to preserve Noah and his family, and He did so, reminding us that God is faithful to His word.

(3) The waters returned from off the earth.--This backward motion of the waters also seems to indicate that a vast wave from the sea had swept over the land, in addition to the forty days of rain.

Were abated.--Heb., decreased. Those in the ark would notice the changing current, and would know, by their being aground, that the flood was diminishing. But it was not till the first day of the tenth month that the tops of the mountains were seen. This slow abatement of the waters and their stillness, described in Genesis 8:1, makes it probable that the ark had grounded on some land-locked spot.

Verse 3. - And the waters returned from off the earth continually. Literally, going and returning. "More and more" (Gesenius). The first verb expresses the continuance and self-increasing state of the action involved in the second; cf. Genesis 26:13; 1 Samuel 6:12; 2 Kings 2:11 (Furst). Gradually (Murphy, Ewald). The expression "denotes the turning-point after the waters had become calm" (T. Lewis). May it not be an attempt to represent the undulatory motion of the waves in an ebbing tide, in which the water seems first to advance, but only to retire with greater vehemence, reversing the movement of a flowing tide, in which it first retires and then advances - in the one case returning to go, in the other going to return? The LXX., as usual, indicates the visible effect rather than the actual phenomenon: καὶ ἐνεδίδου τὸ ὕδωρ πορεύομενον ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς. And after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated. Literally, were cut off, hence diminished; imminsutae sunt (Vulgate); ἠλαττονοῦτο τὸ ὕδωρ (LXX.). The first stage was the quieting of the waters; the second was the commencement of an ebbing or backward motion; the third was a perceptible diminution of the waters. Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

The waters
הַמַּ֛יִם (ham·ma·yim)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4325: Water, juice, urine, semen

receded
וַיָּשֻׁ֧בוּ (way·yā·šu·ḇū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again

steadily
הָל֣וֹךְ (hā·lō·wḵ)
Verb - Qal - Infinitive absolute
Strong's 1980: To go, come, walk

from
מֵעַ֥ל (mê·‘al)
Preposition-m
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

the earth,
הָאָ֖רֶץ (hā·’ā·reṣ)
Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776: Earth, land

and after
מִקְצֵ֕ה (miq·ṣêh)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 7097: End, extremity

150
וּמְאַ֖ת (ū·mə·’aṯ)
Conjunctive waw | Number - feminine singular construct
Strong's 3967: A hundred

days
יֽוֹם׃ (yō·wm)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3117: A day

the waters
הַמַּ֔יִם (ham·ma·yim)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4325: Water, juice, urine, semen

had gone down.
וַיַּחְסְר֣וּ (way·yaḥ·sə·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 2637: To lack, need, be lacking, decrease

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Genesis 8:3 Catholic BibleOT Law: Genesis 8:3 The waters receded from the earth continually (Gen. Ge Gn)