Mount Ararat

Biblical Text

Mount Ararat appears in Genesis 8:4, which records that after the Flood ended, "the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat." The waters then receded, and the tops of the mountains became visible. Noah sent out a raven and a dove to confirm that the earth was dry, then came out of the ark and built an altar (Genesis 8:5–20).

The name "Ararat" also appears in other passages, where it refers not to a mountain but to a nation or land.

• 2 Kings 19:37 and Isaiah 37:38: The sons who killed Sennacherib, king of Assyria, fled to the land of Ararat (rendered "the land of Armenia" in the KJV).
• Jeremiah 51:27: Ararat is summoned as one of the kingdoms that would attack Babylon.

Background

The Hebrew text of Genesis 8:4 uses the plural, "the mountains of Ararat." For this reason, the passage is generally understood to refer not to a single peak but to the mountainous region of Ararat. Ararat is identified with Urartu, a region named in Assyrian records. Urartu was an ancient kingdom centered around Lake Van, in what is today eastern Turkey and Armenia.

The mountain now called Mount Ararat is a high volcano in eastern Turkey, rising more than 5,000 meters. Its identification as the resting place of the ark is a tradition that became established later. Other traditions, such as those of the Syriac-speaking region, point to different mountains.

Significance in the Whole of Scripture

Ararat marks the place where a new beginning took place after the waters of judgment ended. When Noah came out of the ark, God made with him the Noahic covenant, promising never again to destroy the earth by a flood (Genesis 9:8–17). Some scholars hold that the verb translated "rested" is connected with a word meaning "rest" and forms a wordplay on Noah's name.

The New Testament does not mention Ararat by name, but it takes up the account of Noah's Flood. Jesus compares the days of Noah to the last days and calls His hearers to watchfulness (Matthew 24:37–39). 1 Peter 3:20–21 connects salvation through the ark with baptism. Hebrews 11:7 presents Noah as a man of faith.

Interpretation and Issues

• Extent of the Flood: Some read the Flood as a global event, while others read it as an event affecting the region inhabited by people at the time. This question is also tied to the creation and evolution debate.
• Searches for the ark: Claims to have found traces of the ark on present-day Mount Ararat have been made on several occasions, but none has been verified by scholars. The text states only that the ark rested on "the mountains of Ararat." Claims that the ark survives on a particular peak are later additions not found in the text and should be distinguished from what the text actually says.

In the Korean Church

In Korean church preaching, Mount Ararat frequently serves as an illustration of a new beginning after judgment and of faith that waits for God's appointed time. It is also featured in Sunday school lessons and Bible stories about the Flood and the ark.