It is at eridu that the mesopotamians fix the setting for a man adapa being allowed to obtain godlyforbidden knowledge and being denied immortality by eridus god as happened to adam and eve. The earliest record of a sumerian creation myth, called the eridu genesis by historian thorkild jacobsen, is found on a single fragmentary tablet excavated in nippur by the expedition of the university of pennsylvania in 1893, and first recognized by arno poebel in 1912. In genesis, sonship or slightlylesserthangodship, is conferred on human beings. The natural genesis volume 2 by massey, gerald 18281907 topics comparative mythology collection opensource. It dates to the 18 th century bce and includes a flood story. It is written in sumerian and probably took form late, perhaps around 1600 b. The sumerian story of the great flood and the eridu genesis. Ziusudra upnapishtim from eridu was instructed by enki ea to build a. How to study the bible with ancient near eastern texts.
Texts he more or less fragmentary story for which we suggest the name the eridu genesis has come down to us in bits of related, but variant, versions. Among the texts that were inspired by it are the epic of atrahasis, tablet xi of the babylonian epic of gilgames, berossus, the biblical account of the deluge, and several greek and roman sources, like. First, that the world, and all things therein, were created by god, and that man being placed in this great tabernacle of the world to behold gods. There are, naturally, some significant dif ferences in these. In enuma elish, on the other hand, humans are created from the blood of kingu, an evil figure, and hence their eternal enslavement to the gods is more than skindeep. According to the epic, after the universe was created out of the primeval sea and the gods were born, the deities fashioned man from clay to cultivate the ground, care for flocks.
Cities and kingship was created but the gods decided to destroy mankind with a flood. It is taken from the swordsearcher outlinesbb module which contains a complete outline of the entire bible in the same form. In enuma elish, man is created from a gods blood to be slaves of the gods. The eridu genesis is the tale where utnapishtim was instructed by the gods to build a great vessel and gathers inside the seed of. In genesis, man is created from clay to rule over the creation.
Kramer, samuel noah 1988 sumerian mythology, university of pennsylvania press, west port, connecticut. An sky, the source of rain and most powerful of the gods, enlil lord wind, the power in growing weather, creator of the hoe, ninhursaga lady of the stony ground, mother of wildlife, and enki rival of ninhursaga. Genesis overview page 1 of 8 lecture 2 genesis overview creation of a covenant people introduction 1. The eridu genesis is written on a sumerian cuneiform tablet of which about two thirds are now lost. The eridu genesis myth translated by professor thorkild jacobsen in 1981 speaks of naked man, abandoned, ignored and forgotten by the gods, wandering the high desert or high steppe sumerian. The eridu genesisfrom the harps that once sumerian poetry in translation by thorkild jacobsen. An exposition on the first ten chapters of genesis ebook web page by john bunyan. Name in the ancient near east, it was customary to name books by their first words. It covers the creation of the world, invention of cities and the flood.
In it, various gods created the sumerians and all the animals. The book of enesis genesis is the book of beginningsof the universe and of humanity, of sin and its catastrophic effects, and of gods plan to restore blessing to the world through his chosen people. It is at eridu that the mesopotamians fix the setting for a man adapa being allowed to obtain godlyforbidden knowledge and being denied immortality by eridu s god as happened to adam and eve. Interestingly however, this text does include a flood narrative after creation, which has some notable comparisons and contrasts, but comparison of these text is outside of the scope of your question. It has endured in the face of the changing times, without itself changing much, isolated off in its own world. Let me bethink myself of my humankind, all forgotten as they are. Young, the god of horeb, the evangelical quarterly 10. Sep 14, 2017 genesis 1 barely conceals the existence of the divine retinue, of lesser gods and angels, but it reduces them to spectators and a silent chorus. Kingship in eridu when kingship was first handed down from heaven the concept of kingship, the city of eridu was chosen as the seat of kingship. These cities, which had been named by names, and had been allotted halfbushel. As an example, here are the three chapters of genesis.
From the harps that once sumerian poetry in translation by thorkild jacobsen. Pdf sumerian head gods and association with yhwh, allah. The missing parts can be reconstructed from texts like the sumerian king list and berossus. The firstling of those cities, eridu, she gave to the leader nudimmud, the second, badtibira, she gave to the prince and the sacred one, the third, larak, she gave to pabilsag, the fourth, sippar, she gave to the gallant utu. Anunnki anu, enlil, shamash, ea the creation of man. The first book of moses called genesis the argument moses in effect declareth the things which are here chiefly to be considered. For the eridu genesis i have examined and used the translation of civil and. In genesis, the serpent is the enemy of adam, trying to trick him out of the chance to understand good and evil by developing a moral sense and thus becoming fully human. It deals with the creation of man, the institution of kingship, the founding of the first cities and the great flood.
Abraham then lived just 12 miles away from the mesopotamian precursor of genesis garden of eden. This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. God began his plan when he called abraham and made a covenant with him. Unfortunately the text of the creation section of the eridu genesis has been lost to time. All this material was very fragmentary, but the resemblance of its contents to the initial chapters of the old testament was unmistakable, and consequently it had an immediate appeal to a much wider circle. Waltke the preceding article in this series discussed some of the activities of god revealed in the creation account in genesis 1. Comparing the genesis and babylonian stories of creation. In addition, in the creation myth known as the eridu genesis, it is said to have been one of the five cities that existed before the deluge, the. For thi s reaso n, some w oul d thi nk thi s chap ter coul d be skipp ed ov er, o r skimrea d i n 2 mi nute s, a nd be di spe nse d. Here is a free pdf file containing a complete outline of the book of genesis. It is written in the sumerian language and dated to around 1600 bce. In the babylonian myth, the serpent, ningishzida, is a friend to adapa who helps him in his search for immortality.
This does not take place until the fourth tablet of enuma elish. The book of genesis 1868 web page by robert s candlish. In genesis, god forms the heavens and the earth on the first three days. In eridu, alulim mixedbreed ruled for 28,800 years as king and alalgar ruled for 36,000 years. So where does the devil come into the details of eden. The god enki and his city eridu figure importantly in the story, enki as savior of mankind. Genesis 5 is a genealogy chapter, the first chapter devoted almost entirely to the genealogy of adam to noah. Anuan and enlil, enkialthough its obvious the other anunnaki are angry with him. Among the texts that were inspired by it are the epic of atrahasis, tablet xi of the babylonian epic of gilgames, berossus, the biblical account of the deluge, and several greek and roman sources, like ovid.
Myth that tells how enki built a house temple for himself in eridu, the oldest city in sumer according to tradition, the first of five cities founded before the great flood. May they come and build cities and cult places, that i may cool myself in their shade. The eridu genesis, which is believed to have been composed circa 2,300 bce, is the earliest known account fo the great flood, predating the more popular great flood described in the biblical book of the genesis. The eridu genesis has come down to us in bits of related, but variant, versions. Jan 16, 2018 how to study the bible with ancient near eastern texts. According to the epic, after the universe was created out of the primeval sea and the gods were born, the deities fashioned man from clay to cultivate the ground, care for flocks, and perpetuate the worship of the gods. Young, the god of the fathers, westminster theological journal 3. Young, isaiah 34 and its position in the prophecy, westminster theological journal 27.
How the serpent became satan biblical archaeology society. Rather, genesis speaks of god using pillars buckling of the land to raise the earth or fruitful place up between the liquid waters and the waters in the atmosphere. He knows no fear, because no animals exist yet to harm him like lions, hyenas, and snakes. The serpent in the garden of eden is portrayed as just that. The story in genesis 23 contains no hint that he embodies the devil, satan or any other evil power. Bereshit 1 genesis tora bereshit genesis parshat bereshit.
Aug 06, 20 translation and dictation of 3400yr old sumerian tablet, sumerian scribe account of the great flood. The story of the creation and flood has been extremely influential. The eridu genesis the story of the creation and flood has been extremely influential. Other sumerian creation myths from around this date are. After the universe was created out of the chaos of the sea, the gods evolved and they in turn created mankind to farm, herd and. The sumerian creation myth the eridu genesis is the oldest one that has been discovered. This fruitful place or earth created a place where animal and plant life could exist. Certainly such a conclusion is far more reasonable than that genesis or for that matter the entire pentateuchis to be ascribed to another one of these genial nobodies of whom criticism has a large number in reserve as authors. Indeed, since its beginning in 1993, the genesis discography has been a fixture on the internet much like tom bombadil was in middle earth.