Genuine Ark, Part 5: Building on Land or Water?

We have received so many questions about the Ark Encounter based on misconceptions about the project itself. Some of these come from people who are supporters and others come from critics and skeptics. These types of questions give us an opportunity to correct these misunderstandings, so we’ll spend several posts addressing these issues.

Question: If you want your Ark to be like Noah’s, then why are you building it on land?

Many skeptics have challenged the biblical account of the Ark by claiming that such a massive wooden boat could not stay afloat. We have previously addressed this objection in our “Float Your Boat” post. This objection is similar but asks why we are building the Ark on land. In a hurry to mock the Bible or the Ark Encounter project, some people fail to think through their objections. This question represents a classic example of that mistake.

In all likelihood, Noah built the original Ark on land, so just how exactly are we not being like Noah by building our Ark on land?

In Genesis 6, we learn that Noah built the Ark just as God had instructed him to do. In the next chapter, we see the Ark being loaded prior to the start of the Flood, and then we read about the start of the Flood. During the deluge the waters increased and “lifted up the ark.” This seems to indicate that the Ark was constructed on land and only began floating during the Flood.

This issue also serves as a good reminder to carefully read the text of Scripture. God has given us His Word so we need to treat it with the utmost respect and do our very best to interpret it properly.

Thanks for reading!