Book of Jasher, Chapter 5 — Noah and Methuselah Preach Repentance for a Hundred and Twenty Years; the Ark Is Built
1And it was in the eighty-fourth year of the life of Noah that Enoch the son of Seth died; he was nine hundred and five years old at his death.
2And in the one hundred and seventy-ninth year of the life of Noah, Cainan the son of Enosh died; and all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years, and he died.
3And in the two hundred and thirty-fourth year of the life of Noah, Mahlallel the son of Cainan died; and the days of Mahlallel were eight hundred and ninety-five years, and he died.
4And Jared the son of Mahlallel died in those days, in the three hundred and thirty-sixth year of the life of Noah; and all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years, and he died.
5And all who followed the Lord died in those days, before they saw the evil which God had declared he would do upon the earth.
6And after the passing of many years, in the four hundred and eightieth year of the life of Noah, when all the men who followed the Lord had died away from among the sons of men, and only Methuselah was left, God spoke to Noah and Methuselah, saying,
7Speak, and proclaim to the sons of men, saying: Thus says the Lord — return from your evil ways and forsake your works, and the Lord will relent of the evil he declared he would do to you, and it shall not come to pass.
8For thus says the Lord: Behold, I give you a period of one hundred and twenty years; if you turn to me and forsake your evil ways, then I too will turn away from the evil I told you of, and it shall not be, says the Lord.
9And Noah and Methuselah spoke all the words of the Lord to the sons of men, day after day, speaking to them constantly.
10But the sons of men would not listen to them, nor incline their ears to their words; and they were stiff-necked.
11And the Lord granted them a period of one hundred and twenty years, saying, If they return, then God will relent of the evil, and not destroy the earth.
12Noah the son of Lamech refrained from taking a wife in those days to have children, for he said, Surely now God will destroy the earth — why then should I have children?
13And Noah was a just man; he was perfect in his generation, and the Lord chose him to raise up seed from his seed upon the face of the earth.
14And the Lord said to Noah, Take yourself a wife, and have children, for I have seen you righteous before me in this generation.
15And you shall raise up seed, and your children with you, in the midst of the earth. And Noah went and took a wife, and he chose Naamah the daughter of Enoch, and she was five hundred and eighty years old.
16And Noah was four hundred and ninety-eight years old when he took Naamah as his wife.
17And Naamah conceived and bore a son, and he called his name Japheth, saying, God has enlarged me in the earth; and she conceived again and bore a son, and he called his name Shem, saying, God has made me a remnant, to raise up seed in the midst of the earth.
18And Noah was five hundred and two years old when Naamah bore Shem; and the boys grew up and walked in the ways of the Lord, in all that Methuselah and Noah their father taught them.
19And Lamech the father of Noah died in those days; yet truly he had not gone with all his heart in the ways of his father. And he died in the hundred and ninety-fifth year of the life of Noah.
20And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy years, and he died.
21And all the sons of men who knew the Lord died in that year, before the Lord brought the evil upon them; for the Lord willed that they should die, so that they would not behold the evil that God would bring upon their brothers and relatives, as he had declared he would do.
22In that time the Lord said to Noah and Methuselah, Stand forth and proclaim to the sons of men all the words I spoke to you in those days — perhaps they may turn from their evil ways, and I will then relent of the evil, and not bring it.
23And Noah and Methuselah stood forth, and spoke in the ears of the sons of men all that God had said concerning them.
24But the sons of men would not listen, nor would they incline their ears to all they declared.
25And it was after this that the Lord said to Noah, The end of all flesh has come before me, on account of their evil deeds; and behold, I will destroy the earth.
26And you — take yourself gopher wood, and go to a certain place, and make a great ark, and set it in that place.
27And this is how you shall make it: three hundred cubits its length, fifty cubits its breadth, and thirty cubits its height.
28And you shall make yourself a door, opening at its side; and you shall finish it to a cubit above, and cover it inside and out with pitch.
29And behold, I will bring the flood of waters upon the earth, and all flesh shall be destroyed; from under the heavens, all that is upon the earth shall perish.
30And you and your household shall go and gather two of every living thing, male and female, and you shall bring them to the ark, to raise up seed from them upon the earth.
31And gather to yourself all food that is eaten by all the animals, so that there may be food for you and for them.
32And you shall choose for your sons three maidens from the daughters of men, and they shall be wives to your sons.
33And Noah rose up, and he made the ark in the place where God had commanded him, and Noah did as God had ordered him.
34In his five hundred and ninety-fifth year Noah began to make the ark, and he made the ark in five years, as the Lord had commanded.
35Then Noah took the three daughters of Eliakim, son of Methuselah, as wives for his sons, as the Lord had commanded Noah.
36And it was at that time that Methuselah the son of Enoch died; nine hundred and sixty years old was he at his death.