“And the Lord said to him: ‘Go in thou and all thy house into the ark: for thee I have seen just before me in this generation. Of all clean beasts take seven and seven, the male and the female. But of the beasts that are unclean two and two, the male and the female. Of the fowls also of the air seven and seven, the male and the female: that seed may be saved upon the face of the whole earth. For yet a while, and after seven days, I will rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will destroy every substance that I have made, from the face of the earth.’ And Noe did all things which the Lord had commanded him. And he was six hundred years old, when the waters of the flood overflowed the earth.”
God then calls Noah into the ark, which has a two-fold meaning here: The first is that He calls all into His Catholic Church, longing that they be harbored by her sacraments, her teachings, her love, that they may be safe amongst the great flood waters of this life: “Great was the noise of the waters” (Psalm 76:18). All are called to be beautiful expressions of His love within her walls, for “it is not the will of your Father, who is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish” (Matthew 18:14). The second meaning is that you are called into your soul from your earthly walk, that you may keep the house of yourself safe within the confines of a well-tempered mind. To bring the strength and attention you previously spent on things of the world to the affairs of God is to enter the ark, that you may not be drowned in vice and passion, but may rather float atop temptation in the ark of love. Now, why did God ask Noah to bring seven pairs of clean animals, and two pairs of unclean animals? The literal interpretation is that there would be enough clean animals to offer for sacrifice without going extinct, showing that God always upholds you and your duties when you make time for worship, prayer, and service in His name: “Honour the Lord with thy substance, and give him of the first of all thy fruits; and thy barns shall be filled with abundance, and thy presses shall run over with wine” (Proverbs 3:9-10), but there is a spiritual interpretation that is found when you explore the numbers. The number seven is a prime number, symbolizing undividedness, and is itself a number of fullness, encapsulating the days of the week as well as the seven Christian virtues. This is important, because a pure, or clean, life is one that is undivided, aimed entirely toward the festive service of God: “Religion clean and undefiled before God and Father, is this: to visit he fatherless and widows in their tribulation: and to keep one’s self unspotted from this world” (James 1:27). It also carries more meaning, “all with twins, and there is none barren among them” (Song 6:5), for everything becomes an act of love, rather than being flat and empty with vain activity: “And when I turned myself to all the works which my hands had wrought, and to the labours wherein I had laboured in vain, I saw in all things vanity, and vexation of mind, and that nothing was lasting under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 2:11). The number two, though also a prime number, is more symbolic of division, and represents a divided heart that harbors affections for the world as well as for God. While both have a place in the ark, showing that a seat at the heavenly table is there for those who only lightly turn to Him, here is displayed which He prefers. God then says that there will be rain for forty days and nights, the number forty representing a period of testing, for Moses, Elijah, and Jesus all fasted for forty days, and the Israelites spent forty years in the deserts of Egypt. Such experiences make for drastic shifts in worldview, for what is unnecessary or wrong gets drowned beneath the weight of hardship, and can draw the one enduring it to realize how unimportant many of the things that were once held dear truly are. This is one of the many reasons why people suffer, so that they can realize that there are more important things than the what the world advertises, and not stake their entire being on it. So too does asceticism not need to afflict, “Trust not thyself to a rugged way, lest thou set a stumblingblock to thy soul” (Ecclesiasticus 32:25), but merely set aside what isn’t love: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). Finally, it says that Noah was six hundred years old when he entered the ark, while it says that he was five hundred when he had his children, after which God appeared to him to command him to build the ark. Thus, there is a passage of one hundred years that God allowed for his work, as well as for those on earth to come to the way of righteousness. This shows that God will give you enough time and grace in your life both to reach the heights of sanctity, the degree of love, set aside for you: “The lines are fallen unto me in goodly places: for my inheritance is goodly to me” (Psalm 15:6), as well as to finish the work for the kingdom that you are called to do: “For every man that eateth and drinketh, and seeth good of his labour, this is the gift of God” (Ecclesiastes 3:13).