I've been thinking about this for a week or so. I’ll try to lay it out as clearly as possible without getting to long winded and I’d like to hear your thoughts.
I know the biblical account of the flood has been discussed ad nauseum. I am not going to be bashing the story or attempting to prove why it is false. But, rather looking at a common explanation that was used by my parents and I have heard in the pages in the WT as well as off the lips of other JW’s. I want to analyze the common claim that god could have simply used a miracle to solve any of the objections that are commonly levied against it. Many Christians today do not think it is a literal account taken as truth, but many still do. JW’s the ones this post will focus on.
Biblical Story – The angels came to earth and mated with women who they found attractive, the offspring were called Nephilim. The Nephilim ruined the earth and hurt people. The earth became so bad that god regretted making man and all life on it. There was one man named Noah who was good. God made a covenant with Noah prior to giving him the dimensions of the ark. The deal was that only 8 people would live at the coming extinction event. God then decreed and set the size of the ark at a size that would accommodate only the 8 people and animals plus the supplies. The flood happened and covered the tallest mountains while lasting the better part of a year. Noah finally deduced that the waters receding by releasing birds until one came back with leaves in its mouth showing Noah that plant life was above water.
Paradox of Miracles – When asked how coral could survive under a mile of water away from the sunlight, a JW would say god could do that. How about fresh water fish and salt water fish living in the murky smothering brackish water? God could do it. How about getting the animals from remote continents and locations to the ark? God could do it. In fact, the new book has a chapter on Noah and mentions god having the animal types orderly file onto the ark from far away places. That would be a miracle. How did insects and worms survive submersion for such a long time without drowning? God could do it. How could the ark survive that torrential downpour and bursting up from under of the waters without breaking? God could do it. How could all the animals get along and not eat each other? God could do it. How did they not run out of food or get sick from the filthy living conditions? God could do it. How did whales and porpoises survive for so long without the food they need or the salinity and habitat they need? God could do it.
So, the flood was possible as understood by fundamentalists only with the use of miracles. Where is the paradox?
Why didn’t a god capable of such miracles simply with a “blink of an eye” wipe the bad people off the face of the earth? Why would a perfect god incapable of petty anger kill all life on earth over the acts of some bad people?
If god is capable of miracles to the extent the flood would indicate, why did he require a wooden boats construction that took decades to build? Why did he require them to gather food and supplies when he can provide food from heaven?
When a god asks mere mortals to take specific actions to save themselves by constructing their own survival craft, then the use of miracles makes no sense. When JW's try to explain where the water came from using a logical approach of claiming there was a water canopy and water underground then the miracles neccessary for the flood to happen do not make sense. Blending miracles with plausible explanations just does not mix.
I’ll leave you with this.
If god spoke to Noah? – Genesis 6:13, Genesis 7:1
If god shut Noah in the ark? – Genesis 7:16
If god remembered Noah? – Genesis 8:1
Then why was Noah sending out birds to try to see if the water had receded? – Genesis 8:6
Why wasn’t Noah just asking god?