How Did Fresh And Saltwater Fish Survive Noah’s Flood?

This question arises for both freshwater and saltwater fish (and other creatures) when we consider the possibility of Noah’s Flood being global.

However, nowhere in Scripture do we find God instructing Noah to bring marine life on the Ark.

So how could fish have survived such a cataclysmic event?

Creatures On The Ark Would Be Impacted By Noah’s Flood

Turn your Bible with me to,

Genesis 6:20
Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive.

Notice, God told Noah to bring fowl, cattle and creeping things on the Ark.

God never mentioned anything about bringing plants, fish, or other marine creatures on the Ark. It stands to reason then, God only instructed Noah to bring the animals on the Ark that were going to be impacted by the Flood. This in of itself proves Noah’s Flood was not global.

Had God intended to Flood the entire earth, Noah’s job would have been much bigger, and included these other species of life.

The Global Flood Narrative For Marine Life

I want you to consider how a global flood would have impacted fish and other marine life across the globe.

We know Noah’s Flood was freshwater from rain and “the fountains of the great deep“, which are “springs” that were brought about by “a surging mass of water”, (Genesis 7:11).

This tremendous and rapid amount of freshwater in just 40 days would have mixed with saltwater oceans causing a catastrophic event for the ecosystems of lakes, rivers and of course the oceans, (Genesis 7:12).

We should understand, most species of fish can only survive in either freshwater or saltwater. Even subtle temperature changes can kill certain species of marine life. While you consider the thought, remember; jellyfish, octopus, and coral are all saltwater creatures.

Understanding that, we now must ask the question.

How Did Fish Survive Noah’s Flood?

If Noah’s Flood was global, the mixing of freshwater and saltwater would have destroyed both environments along with the creatures who called them home. These creatures would have simply become extinct due to the Flood.

Yet, this inconvenient truth has not stopped young earth creationists from trying to explain a global flood.

Unfortunately, they do not use the Bible to document their case, rather they latch onto the theory of evolution. We are going to discuss their argument in order to properly understand this subject, so you can come to understand the truth concerning Noah’s Flood.

Young earth creationists believe fish could have survived a global flood in “water layers”, (see: The Ark Encounter Is Not Biblically Accurate).

They state,

Freshwater and saltwater do not necessarily mix together, so freshwater layers may have existed within the global flood, allowing the freshwater creatures to survive.

That is true to a degree. Freshwater is lighter since it does not contain the salt content seawater possesses, so freshwater “floats” above seawater.

However, considering their global flood scenario which explains the mountains were formed by the Flood, the two types of water would certainly have mixed together and destroyed most marine life.

They continue,

Furthermore, since the oceans become saltier every year, the water during the flood would not have been as salty as today.

This is another scenario they created in order to provide their original theory with credence. Since young earth creationists have introduced science into the argument, what does science tell us about the oceans?

Science explains, trace amounts of salt are carried into the oceans by rivers. However, there is an element to the ocean called a “salt sink” that actually removes salt from the ocean and keeps it balanced. That sounds like God’s handiwork if you ask me.

Nevertheless, young earth creationists explain theoretical fresh and saltwater layers could have enabled marine life to exist in their own specific water environments. If that were even possible, it should make one wonder how saltwater creatures would have survived with thousands of feet of freshwater above them…

Considering the fact that Noah’s Flood consisted of freshwater from rain and springs, how much freshwater would have been above the saltwater surface?

29,029 feet, enough water to touch the top of Mount Everest.

Of course, they explain the mountains rose after the flood. Yet, that is not documented in the Bible either, quite the opposite.

Regardless, if their theory were true, this would have trapped saltwater creatures below a freshwater surface, depriving the deep of air, light, and nutrients. The basic requirements to sustain life. Simply stated, saltwater creatures would have never seen the light of day.

Obviously, their theories raise more questions than answers.

However, young earth creationists have a backup theory.

They explain,

Many fish, such as salmon, striped bass, and Atlantic sturgeon live in both freshwater and saltwater during their lifetimes. In most families of fish there are both freshwater and saltwater varieties, which may imply that the original marine creatures were more capable of tolerating both types of water.

“Original marine creatures”?

Their entire theory is made out of thin air.

“May imply” in their statement is pure speculation, and they introduce evolution to fit their theory. If “water layers” are not possible, then “the original marine creatures” evolved into the marine creatures of today they conclude.

I have to ask, instead of using evolution to explain Noah’s Flood, why not use the Word of God and common sense?

None of their explanations fit in with Scripture or even science for that matter.

There is no basis for us to believe the oceans changed rapidly during such a short period of time, or the creatures in the ocean changed. For such changes to have occurred that rapidly, we would continually see these changes in action today.

If their theory were true, fish and all other marine life would be under a constant state change, just as we, and the rest of Creation would be.

But that is not what God said.

No Evolution, God Said His Creation, “Was Good”

Turn your Bible with me to,

Genesis 1:9-10
9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.

What did God say about the Seas, the large bodies of water we call oceans?

God said, “it was good”.

Our Father looked at all of His Creation and said, “it was good”.

That means there was no room for change or improvement. Our Father was happy with the oceans and the life He created. He did not change it during the time of Noah, He did not grow tired of it and modify His Creation.

Nowhere in Scripture are we led to believe such a conclusion.

Evolution is not Biblical. While mainstream science teaches evolution in order to fit their present view of life’s origins, they differ on how it occurred. Further, they believe it occurred over millions of years, not thousands of years as most proponents of a global flood believe.

It is very disheartening to discover evolution being introduced into Biblical concepts. One cannot bring such concepts forward without making God’s Word of no effect, (Mark 7:13).

When you have to go so far as to preach evolution alongside God, you have lost the argument. If evolution occurred just 6,000 years ago, we would certainly see it in action today. Yet, the creatures of the earth, including ourselves are not changing, we are not evolving.

We are the same today as yesterday.