Moses wanted his audience to know the precise chronological framework of the Flood. The dates that he gives us suggest that, when the rain first began falling, it was expected. Which is precisely why its ultimate disaster was unexpected.

Music Credit: J. S. Bach, “Wir eilen mit schwachen, doch emsigen Schritten,” aria from “Jesu, der du meine Seele,” BWV 78 (Leipzig, 1724).