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"And he stayed yet another seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not
again unto him any more" (Gen. 8: 12).
"And it came to pass on the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first
day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth" (Gen. 8: 13).
"And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth
dried" (Gen. 8: 14).
We cannot help but be struck with the opening and closing dates given here. In order
that the evidence may be the better seen let us use figures, instead of spelling out the
numbers.
Years when the flood came: 600th year of Noah.
Year when the waters were dried up: 601st year, 1st month, 1st day.
Six is the number of man, of labour, of failure, and of the measurement of time.
Seven is associated with perfection, rest, and attainment. It is significant that Noah,
whose name means "rest", and of whom the word "perfect" is first used (Gen. 6: 9),
should at the close of his 600th year experience the flood and the deliverance of the ark,
and that the drying up of the waters of judgment should coincide with the New Year's
day of Noah's seventh century. The type is too clear to be missed, and, linked together
with the witness of the first chapter of Genesis, makes us certain that all has been ordered
according to a mighty plan.
If we were asked to say how many days there were in five months, we should have to
ask for a clear statement as to the word "month". The first five months in our calendar
have 31, 28, (29), 31, 30, 31 days, so that we should require to know what months were
intended before a total could be reached. But the Hebrew month was a period of 30 days
which gave 360 days for 12 months, leaving 5 days to be accounted for. Time was
measured by the revolution of the sun, as it is to this day, and the year was one of
365 days. The feast, however, were regulated by the revolution of the moon.
"Blow up the trumpet in the new moon" (Psa. 81: 3).
"Your new moons and your appointed feasts" (Isa. 1: 14).
"Burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and drink offerings, in the feasts, and in the new
moons, and in the sabbaths, in all the solemnities of the house of Israel" (Ezek. 45: 17).
We must not make the mistake of imagining that the Hebrew names and number of
months must necessarily have been used by Adam, Noah or Abraham: we can only be
tolerably certain that no radical changes could have been made at Sinai, for day and
night, summer and winter, remained unaltered, and the length of the solar year is
independent of any dispensational change among the sons of men. As can be seen from
the following data, the narrative of the flood contains positive proof of the average length
of a month.
The flood commenced on the 17th day of the 2nd month and the ark rested on the
17th day of the 7th month. Thus we have an interval of exactly 5 months, which
Gen. 8: 3, 4 declares to be 150 days. A month therefore must have averaged 30 days.
We cannot, however, be dogmatic and say that a month must have been 30 days because