the case of "clean beasts," and one pair of those that were not clean. Then, when the appointed time for it

came, God would "bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life,

from under heaven." But with Noah God would "establish" His "covenant," that is, carry out through him

His purpose in the covenant of grace, which was to issue in the birth of the Redeemer. Accordingly, Noah,

his wife - for here there is no trace of polygamy, - his sons, and his sons' wives were to go into the ark, and

there to be kept alive during the general destruction of all around.

Thus far the directions of Scripture. Much needless ingenuity has been wasted on a calculation of the exact

space in the ark, of its internal arrangements, and of the accommodation it contained for the different species

of animals then existing. Such computations are essentially unreliable, as we can neither calculate the exact

room in the ark, nor yet the exact number of species which required to be accommodated within its shelter.

Scripture, which sets before us the history of God's kingdom, never gratifies such idle and foolish inquiries.

But of this we may be quite sure, that the ark which God provided was literally and in every sense quite

sufficient for the purposes for which it was intended, and that these purposes were fully secured. It may

perhaps help us to realize this marvelous structure if we compare it to the biggest ship known - the Great

Eastern, whose dimensions are six hundred and eighty feet in length, eighty-three in breadth, and fifty-eight

in depth; or else if we describe it as nearly half the size of St. Paul's Cathedral in London. It should be borne

in mind that the ark was designed not for navigation, but chiefly for storage. It had neither masts, rudder,

nor sails, and was probably flat at the bottom, resembling a huge floating chest. To show how suitable its

proportions were for storage, we may mention that a Dutchman, Peter Jansen, built in 1604 a ship on

precisely the same proportions (not, of course, the same figures), which was found to hold one-third more

lading than any other vessel of the same tonnage.

All other questions connected with the building of the ark may safely be dismissed as not deserving serious

discussion. But the one great fact would stand out during that period: Noah preaching righteousness,

warning of the judgment to come, and still exhibiting his faith in his practice by continuing to provide an ark

of refuge. To sum up Noah's life of faith, Noah's preaching of faith, and Noah's work of faith in the words of

Scripture: "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." (Hebrews 11:7).