Hugh Ross/RTB - Overview (section 6 of 7): A Universal Flood

Another aspect of RTB’s creation model lies in the interpretation of the flood described in Genesis chapters 6-9.  “All human beings and the “soulish” animals (birds and mammals) they came into contact with were destroyed by this flood -- except for Noah, his three sons, and their wives.  Contrary to popular perception of the Genesis Flood account, RTB’s model for human origins posits that the Flood was geographically limited (confined to the environs of Mesopotamia), not global. Still, the RTB model considers the extent of the Flood to be ‘universal’ in that all humanity was impacted by it.” ³⁷  This is because their model is required to be both a “biblically consistent and scientifically plausible interpretation of the Flood account.” ³⁸  In other words, RTB’s interpretation of the flood is a conclusion based upon, and a result of, RTB’s adherence to a dual, consistent revelation between nature and Scripture which I spoke of earlier in this paper.

In addition, the reader should also distinguish between universal and global.   Global would imply that the flood covered the entire planet, something which the RTB model deems to be scientifically implausible. Whereas universal implies that “the Flood event described in Genesis 6-9 did, indeed, accomplish the ends God clearly intended – and explicitly stated – without covering the entire planet.” ³⁹

Although, RTB appeals to a local universal flood, they still maintain the scientific plausibility of humans living hundreds of years prior to the Flood.  “The Genesis 5 genealogy indicates that some of humanity’s patriarchs to be several hundred years old. The RTB model maintains that these ages are to be taken literally. Genesis 6:3 records that God deplored humanity’s rampant sinful behavior and intervened to shorten the maximum human life span from about 900 years to about 120 years.” ⁴⁰  “The RTB biblical creation model must accept the burden of proof by demonstrating that the long life spans recorded in Genesis are scientifically plausible.” ⁴¹

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³⁷ Rana with Ross, Who was Adam? 51.

³⁸ Ross, The Genesis Question, 160.

³⁹ Ibid.

⁴⁰ Rana with Ross, Who was Adam? 50; My personal opinion is that it is likely that the words in Genesis 6:3 (“his days will be a hundred and twenty years” NIV) not only mark the time until the floodwaters came upon the earth, but that these words also limit the maximum lifespan of human beings to 120 years (although, it took time for this reduction of the maximum lifespan to reach 120 years). I find it highly correlative that the current scientific approximation for the maximum lifespan of human beings is, and has historically been, 120 years. Note that the definition of maximum lifespan is not the same as average lifespan, life expectancy or mortality rate.

⁴¹ Rana with Ross, Who was Adam? 112.