Nephi had no knowledge of ship building. He emphasized that the construction was not after the manner of men, but as the Lord revealed it to him. Certainly the Lord knew the extent of the journey, and how to build a ship to endure the rigorous trip. He had previously instructed Noah to build an ark “three hundred cubits” in length, “the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits,” that could house Noah and his family, and male and female of all the animals and fowls of the earth. The ark sailed for over “an hundred and fifty days” (Genesis 6:15–7:24). The Jaredites built barges “according to the instructions of the Lord” that were “three hundred and forty four days upon the water. And they did land upon the shore of the promised land” (Ether 2:16; 6:11–12). These were not small boats, but ships, and “the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine” (v. 4).