Genesis 7:20

7:20 The waters rose more than twenty feet ¹  above the mountains. ² 

Deuteronomy 3:11

3:11 Only King Og of Bashan was left of the remaining Rephaites. (It is noteworthy ³  that his sarcophagus ⁴  was made of iron. ⁵  Does it not, indeed, still remain in Rabbath ⁶  of the Ammonites? It is thirteen and a half feet ⁷  long and six feet ⁸  wide according to standard measure.) ⁹ 

[7:20]  ¹ tn Heb “rose fifteen cubits.” Since a cubit is considered by most authorities to be about eighteen inches, this would make the depth 22.5 feet. This figure might give the modern reader a false impression of exactness, however, so in the translation the phrase “fifteen cubits” has been rendered “more than twenty feet.”

[7:20]  ² tn Heb “the waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward and they covered the mountains.” Obviously, a flood of twenty feet did not cover the mountains; the statement must mean the flood rose about twenty feet above the highest mountain.

[3:11]  ³ tn Heb “Behold” (הִנֵּה, hinneh).

[3:11]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew term עֶרֶשׂ (’eres), traditionally translated “bed” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) is likely a basaltic (volcanic) stone sarcophagus of suitable size to contain the coffin of the giant Rephaite king. Its iron-like color and texture caused it to be described as an iron container. See A. Millard, “King Og’s Iron Bed: Fact or Fancy?” BR 6 (1990): 16-21, 44; cf. also NEB “his sarcophagus of basalt”; TEV, CEV “his coffin.”

[3:11]  ⁵ tn Or “of iron-colored basalt.” See note on the word “sarcophagus” earlier in this verse.

[3:11]  ⁶ sn Rabbath. This place name (usually occurring as Rabbah; 2 Sam 11:11; 12:27; Jer 49:3) refers to the ancient capital of the Ammonite kingdom, now the modern city of Amman, Jordan. The word means “great [one],” probably because of its political importance. The fact that the sarcophagus “still remain[ed]” there suggests this part of the verse is post-Mosaic, having been added as a matter of explanation for the existence of the artifact and also to verify the claim as to its size.

[3:11]  ⁷ tn Heb “nine cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 in (45 cm) for the standard cubit, this would be 13.5 ft (4.1 m) long.

[3:11]  ⁸ tn Heb “four cubits.” This would be 6 ft (1.8 m) wide.

[3:11]  ⁹ tn Heb “by the cubit of man.” This probably refers to the “short” or “regular” cubit of approximately 18 in (45 cm).