How many days did rain fall during the Flood in the Genesis account of Noah’s Ark?

In Genesis, rain fell for forty days and forty nights during the Flood.

Genesis 7:12 states that rain fell on the earth for forty days and forty nights. Genesis 7:17 repeats the forty-day period while describing the rising waters and the ark being lifted above the ground.

This period should not be confused with the total duration of the Flood episode. Genesis also says that the waters prevailed for 150 days, and the wider narrative describes a much longer sequence from the beginning of the rain to Noah’s departure from the ark.

The number forty has broader biblical significance. Other biblical narratives use forty-day or forty-year periods in contexts involving testing, transition, or preparation. In the ark story, however, the direct answer refers specifically to the duration of the rain, not to the entire time Noah and the animals remained aboard.