Genesis 8:3Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

"But the water gradually returned from the earth, and the water began to wane at the end of one hundred and fifty days." How can anyone truly grasp this phenomenon? Indeed, the rain ceased, the springs stopped flowing, and the windows of heaven were shut; yet how did such an immense quantity of water come into existence? Everything was engulfed in a deep void: how did this vast abundance of water suddenly recede? Who can elucidate this through mere human understanding? What can we conclude? All unfolded according to God's divine will. Rather than probing into the mechanics of it, let us simply trust that God decreed it, and the depths rose high; He commanded it, and the waters ceased their unrest and returned to the places known only to the Lord Himself, the Creator.

It is noteworthy that in the six hundred and first year of Noah’s life, on the first day of the first month, the waters of the earth had receded. By the twenty-seventh day of the second month, which is Jorah, the land was completely dry (Gen. 8:13-14). Consequently, Noah and his companions remained in the ark for a total of three hundred and sixty-five days. From the twenty-seventh day of the second month of Jorah to the same date in the following year, there were three hundred and sixty-five days, as attested by the lunar calendar used at that time. Additionally, it is important to note that during Noah's era, they measured the year as three hundred and sixty-five days; thus, one might conclude that the Chaldeans and Egyptians were responsible for establishing this calendar system.

Rather than translating it as "the springs were exposed," they all rendered it as "closed" and "clogged." In place of the following phrase, "The waters of the earth were slowed down," it is instead stated, "And the waters returned from the earth downward, flowing and returning" (Ecclesiastes 1:7). It is important to observe that Ecclesiastes indicates all waters and streams descend back to the depths of the abyss through concealed subterranean passages.

The waters started to recede after one hundred and fifty days, which align with the period during which the waters had risen (Gen. 7:24). This duration should be calculated from the onset of the deluge, including the forty days of rainfall. The commencement of the flood is marked on the 17th day of the second month (Genesis 7:11), while the initial sign of the waters' decrease occurs on the 17th day of the seventh month (evidently referring to the seventh month of the calendar year rather than the month of the flood). Thus, the span of one hundred and fifty days distinctly falls between these two dates.

The waters, propelled by the wind, started to recede from the earth, returning to their original sources. Much of the water was directed by God's power into underground spaces and caverns, while the remainder was left to accumulate in the beds of seas and rivers. This reduction in water levels on land commenced precisely 150 days following the 27th day of the second month, when the rains of the flood began.