own wife thought him a fool. Why, he was miles from the nearest water, with no way to launch his vessel. Yet Noah kept building, one nail and one board xix
at a time, constructing pens to house the tigers and elephants and lions and rhinoceroses. His great ship towered above the desert floor and could be seen from miles away. Noah and his ark were a great joke, told far and wide, and many people made the journey to see the ark--if only to shake their heads and chuckle at Noah's folly.
Then the first drop of rain fell. That first drop was not an ordinary trifle of rain, for it hit the earth with a mighty splat that foretold the coming of doom. The skies turned from the clearest blue to gray and then to black. "Go into the ark," God commanded Noah. He obeyed and brought his family on board.
The rains that poured down were unending. The waters grew higher as subterranean rivers burst up through the earth's surface. Great tidal waves surged across the land. Flash floods wiped away homes, markets, and villages.
And as the land slowly disappeared, to be replaced far and wide by only water, Noah closed the hatch, knocked away the supports. Soon the water lifted his massive ship--which floated quite well, much to his relief--and they bobbed away, bound for only God
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knew where. But one thing was certain: God would save them from destruction, no matter how bad the storms and how high the seas.
Noah's story has had its desired effect. Everyone in the small cabin is now calm. Noah goes up on deck alone, and for the first time in what seems like months, the seas are calm.
Noah now revels in the warmth of the sun on his face. The ark is bobbing toward land. Then he hears God's voice loud and clear, and he knows his journey is over.
"Come out of the ark," God commands.
The great door on the side of the ark is lowered. The animals pour out onto the dry land and quickly scatter.
God has saved the world by nearly destroying it. Noah was chosen to continue God's plans for humanity. But humankind is destined to make the
same mistakes.
God will act once again to save the world. But next time he will not need a Noah.
Next time he wil send his only son.
This is a story of God and all of us.
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PART ONE
A MAN NAMED ABRAHAM
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Thousands of years ago, in the city of Ur, in modern-day Iraq, lives a man named Abram, a direct descendant of Noah. Abram is a healthy seventy-five years old, with broad shoulders and a flowing, dark beard. His wife Sarai is known far and wide for her great beauty. The one sadness of their otherwise charmed lives is that Sarai has not been able to have children. One could never detect this sorrow from Abram's behavior. He is always quick with a smile, and forever has a "Peace be with you" on his lips.
One day, in the temple, he hears a voice he has never heard before. It is speaking only to Abram; no one else can hear it.
"Abram." It is the voice of God. "Leave your country, your people, and your father's household, and go to the land I will show you."
Abram gazes up to the sky, his mouth open in shock.
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"I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you. I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse. And all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you."
A lesser man would be puzzled. Or perhaps fearful. But Abram hears the call, which is why God picked him for the task he has in mind.
"Yes," Abram softly tells God, in a voice brimming with passion. "Yes."
Abram races home from the temple. He finds his wife at the back of the house and takes her into his arms. "Sarai, today God has spoken to me."
"Which God?"
" The God."
Sarai pulls back, confused. Theirs is a world of many different gods and idols, each designed to fulfill a specific need.
"I speak the truth," Abram promises. "He has chosen me. Chosen us ."
"For what? I do not understand."
"He wants us to leave here."
"Leave? But our whole life is here."
"Yes, Sarai. Leave. We are going away from this city to a new land. And we will have children in that new land. Of that I am sure.