The Old Testament in the Light of the Historical Records and Legends of Assyria and Babylonia — John Shaqi
The Old Testament in the Light of the Historical Records and Legends of Assyria and BabyloniaPinches, Theophilus G. (Theophilus Goldridge)
Religion
The Old Testament in the Light of the Historical Records and Legends of Assyria and Babylonia
Pinches, Theophilus G. (Theophilus Goldridge)
Bible. Old Testament -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.
The second chapter refers to the seventh day—the day of rest, and is
followed by further details of the creation, the central figure of which
is the last thing created, namely, man. This chapter reads, in part, like
a recapitulation of the first, but contains many additional details. “No
plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb ... had sprung up:
for the Lord God had not caused it to rain ..., and there was not a man to
till the ground.” A mist, therefore, went up from the earth, and watered
all the face of the ground. Then, to till the earth, man was formed from
the dust of the ground, and the Lord God “breathed into his nostrils the
breath of life, and man became a living soul.”
The newly-created man was, at this time, innocent, and was therefore to be
placed by his Creator in a garden of delight, named Eden, and this garden
he was to dress and keep. A hidden danger, however, lay in this pleasant
retreat—the tree of knowledge of good and evil, of which he was forbidden
to eat, but which was to form for him a constant temptation, for ever
testing his obedience. All might have been well, to all appearance, but
for the creation of woman, who, giving way to the blandishments of the
tempter, in her turn tempted the man, and he fell. Death in the course of
nature was the penalty, the earthly paradise was lost, and all chance of
eating of the tree of life, and living for ever, disappeared on man’s
expulsion from his first abode of delight.
In the course of this narrative interesting details are given—the four
rivers, the country through which they flowed, and their precious mineral
products; the naming of the various animals by the man; the forming of
woman from one of his ribs; the institution of marriage, etc.
Such is, in short, the story of the Creation as told in the Bible, and it
is this that we have to compare with the now well-known parallel accounts
current among the ancient Babylonians and Assyrians. And here may be noted
at the outset that, though we shall find some parallels, we shall, in the
course of our comparison, find a far greater number of differences, for
not only were they produced in a different land, by a different people,
but they were also produced under different conditions. Thus, Babylonian
polytheism takes the place of the severe and uncompromising monotheism of
the Hebrew account in Genesis; Eden was, to the Babylonians, their own
native land, not a country situated at a remote distance; and, lastly, but
not least, their language, thoughts, and feelings differed widely from
those of the dwellers in the Holy Land.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account