In the Genesis flood narrative, Noah was told to build the ark from gopher wood.
Genesis 6:14 gives the instruction to make the ark from “gopher wood” and to cover it with pitch inside and out. The Hebrew expression is unusual, and its precise meaning is uncertain. Many translations therefore retain “gopher wood” as a transliteration rather than identifying a modern tree species.
The ark’s construction instructions appear in the story before the flood begins. Noah is described as following the divine command, building the vessel for his family and for preserved animals. The text does not identify gopher wood with cedar, cypress, or any other known species.
A common mix-up is treating “gopher” as the name of a recognizable botanical tree. In the biblical passage, it is a construction-material term whose interpretation remains debated. The word “pitch” refers to a waterproofing substance, not to the wood itself.