6 40 days later, Noah opened the window that he had made in the side of the boat, and sent out a raven. 7 The raven flew back and forth to and from the boat until the water was completely gone. 8 Then Noah sent out a dove to find out if the water had all receded on the ground. 9 But the dove did not find any place to perch, so it flew back to Noah in the boat, because there was still water all over the surface of the earth. So Noah reached out his hand and took the dove back inside the boat. 10 Noah waited seven more days. Then he sent the dove out of the boat again. 11 This time the dove returned to him in the evening and, surprisingly, in its beak there was a leaf from an olive tree that the dove had just plucked. Then Noah knew that the water had truly receded from the surface of the ground. 12 Noah waited seven more days. Then he sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.