Noah in rabbinic literature "Sefer haYashar" describes another method for distinguishing them: the clean animals and fowls crouched before Noah, while the unclean ones remained standing. A difference of opinion concerning Noah prevails also with regard to his entering into the ark. According to some rabbis, Noah's faith was so small that he did not enter the ark until he stood ankle deep in water (Genesis Rabba xxxii. 9); others declare, on the contrary, that Noah waited for God's directions to enter the ark, just as he awaited His permission to leave it (ib. 34.4; Midrash Agadat Bereshit, in Jellinek, "B. H." iv. 11).
The Return of the Dove to the Ark The Return of the Dove to the Ark The Return of the Dove to the Ark is a painting by Sir John Everett Millais, completed in 1851. It is in the Thomas Combe collection at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. The painting portrays a scene from the Bible. Two of Noah's daughters-in-law nurture the dove that has returned to the Ark bearing an olive branch. This is the second of Millais's paintings with biblical themes, following "The Eve of the Deluge". Millais had some intention of producing a "pendant" painting titled "The Dove's First Flight", but never did so. Millais's original