The Mabbul and Mesopotamian Myths

Open Comparison Table

Introduction

Flood stories have survived in many cultures from the Central American Maya to the Hindu in India. The closest parallels to the Biblical account (Bereshit 7-8), not surprisingly, are the Mesopotamian versions. These are similar to the Biblical story not only in the general concept of a divinely wrought flood wiping out mankind, but also in many of the particulars describing the event. It is the differences between the versions, though, that are most telling as they highlight the unique values and belief systems of the Children of Israel, distinguishing them from their polytheistic neighbors. For extended analysis of the many parallels and contrasts between the different accounts, see the commentary of U. CassutoFrom Noach to Avraham, Introduction, p.1From Noach to Avraham, Introduction, p.18-19About Prof. U. Cassuto.

Mesopotamian Accounts

• Epic of Gilgamesh – The most widely known Babylonian version of the Flood Story is that found in the 11th tablet of the Epic of Gilgamesh. The hero of this account is Utnapishtim, or, "Finder of eternal life".¹
• Epic of Atrahasis – This version is also Babylonian in origin. It has survived in several fragments but the oldest and fullest known copy dates to the 17th century BCE.²
• Epic of Ziusudra – This Sumerian account focusing on the hero Ziusudra, is known from a single fragmentary tablet, excavated at Nippur, dated to the 17th century BCE. The tablet contains an account of both Creation and the Flood and is sometimes called the Eridu Genesis.³

Parallels to the Biblical Account

• Overall plot
  • A deity decides to destroy the world via a flood.
  • A particular individual, his family, and representatives of other living things are saved on a boat.
• Hero – The surviving hero is the tenth generation from Creation.⁴
• Preparations for the Flood
  • Both Tanakh and the Babylonian versions describe the building of a boat which is depicted as multi-leveled, compartmented, and covered in pitch.
  • There is an explicit mention of the sealing of the door before the Flood begins.⁵
• Waning of the Flood
  • After the Flood, the boat rests on a mountain.⁶
  • In both Bereshit and the Gilgamesh Epic, the hero send birds (including a raven and dove) to determine if the waters have receded. A seven day interval is mentioned.
• Post-Flood sacrifices and blessings
  • The heroes give sacrifices upon exiting the boat, and the deity smells the fragrance.⁷
  • The hero is blessed at the end of the story.⁸

Contrasts

• Gods
  • Motivations of the deities – In the Mesopotamian versions, the Flood is brought either for no explicit reason or because mankind's noise is bothering the gods. In the Torah, Hashem sends the Food because of man's corrupt behavior. Similarly, while no explanation is proffered to explain why the Flood hero is saved in the Mesopotamian epics,⁹ in Bereshit, Noach is saved due to his righteousness.
  • Polytheistic pantheon – The gods in the Mesopotamian epic disagree regarding the decision to bring the catastrophe and act in deceit to thwart each other's plans. All of this is not found in the Biblical narrative in which the sole God determines what will be, with no one to disagree.
  • Gods and nature – The Babylonian gods are described as frightened by the raging waters and storm. In the Torah, Hashem is depicted as in control of nature, not fearful of it.
  • Hungry gods – In the Babylonian epics, the gods are depicted as hungry and thirsty during the Flood, having been deprived of sacrificial sustenance. Similarly, they rush to partake of the sacrifices brought afterwards. No such parallel exists in Bereshit.
• Hero
  • Status – Whereas the other heroes are kings, Noach is a simple human.¹⁰
  • Names – The Mesopotamian heroes have more glamorous names than the Biblical Noach. Both the names of Ziusudra and Utnapishtim refer to one who has found long life, while Atrahasis means one who is very wise. Noach, in contrast, simply means rest.¹¹
  • Divine stature – At the end of the epics, both Ziusudra and Utnapishtim are raised to the status of gods. Noach, though, remains a mere mortal.
• Preparations for the Flood
  • Revealing the plan – In the epics, the gods mean to keep their plan a secret from mankind, while in Bereshit Hashem shares his plan (and the reasoning behind it) with Noach. Similarly, the Mesopotamian heroes are told to hide the reasons for their boat-building from the general public,¹² while Noach is given no similar command.
  • The boat – In Tanakh the saving vehicle is referred to as an ark, while in the other versions it is referred to as a boat. Where mentioned, the dimensions also differ, with the Biblical boat being much smaller.
  • Who is saved? Noach brings only his family and animals aboard the ark. Atrahasis and Utnapishtim gather also their friends, craftsmen, boatmen and possessions.¹³
  • The door – While Hashem personally seals Noach inside the ark, in the epics, the heroes close themselves in.
• Description of the Flood
  • The Mesopotamian version describes a windy, thundering storm while the Torah mentions only water, coming from both the heavens and depths.¹⁴
  • The storm seems to wane naturally in the epics,¹⁵ while the Torah describes Hashem's explicit decision to end the Flood. Similarly, the Mesopotamian heroes decide on their own when to exit the boat, while Hashem commands Noach when to exit.
• Post-Flood promises of life
  • Only in the Biblical account is there a covenant made never to bring another flood to destroy mankind and are blessings given to be fruitful and multiply. This contrasts sharply with the anger of the Mesopotamian gods over the fact that there were survivors¹⁶ and the new plans made in the Atrahasis Epic for population control.
  • In its telling of the Flood and its aftermath, the Torah makes many parallels to the story of Creation.¹⁷ The text seems to suggest that, though the Flood itself reversed Creation, afterwards there was a re-creation. The allusions reinforce the image of a caring God who has no desire for total destruction. He, rather, wants to rid the world of evil so as to create an improved world.

Analysis

Many of the differences between the Mesopotamian and Biblical accounts of the Flood reflect the cultures' differing belief systems and notions of a deity:

• Polytheism versus monotheism – As the Torah believes in only one God, there is obviously no room for disagreements among other gods regarding His decisions.
• Divide between man and God
  • Polytheistic societies viewed their gods as similar to humans, with physical needs and emotions. This explains the description of hungry gods, in need of sacrifices to sustain themselves, or fearful gods worried about being hurt in the Deluge. Hashem, in contrast, is above the physical and in control of nature,¹⁸ and, thus, not susceptible to hunger or storms.
  • The Mesopotamian anthropomorphizing of its gods serves to blur the lines between man and god. In such a system, a man can be raised to the status of gods (and vice versa.) This is not so in a culture that sees God as separate and supreme.
  • Noach's obeisance to God, relatively less glorified stature, and passive character all further underscore the divide between man and God.
  • God's omnipotence in the Biblical account is also emphasized in some of the smaller details: His personal sealing of the boat, His explicit decision to end the Flood,¹⁹ and his command of when to exit the ark.²⁰
• Arbitrary or just – The Mesopotamian gods emerge as arbitrary gods, acting capriciously or looking to serve themselves rather than their creations.²¹ The Israelite God stands in stark contrast. His actions (to destroy or save) come to serve justice. He has no desire to hide His actions or deceive His creatures, for that would be immoral.²² In contrast to the gods of the other stories, He wants to rebuild the world after the Flood, promising never to bring another all-devastating flood and blessing Noach with progeny.²³

Summary Chart

	Torah	Mesopotamian Versions
Description of Deity	Sole God	Pantheon of gods
	Just and moral	Capricious
	Omnipotent and omniscient	Neither omnipotent nor omniscient
	Above physical desires	Physically needy
	In control of nature	Afraid of nature
Description of Hero	Layman, simple name	King, glorified name
	10th generation24
	Passive, simply obeys God	Active
	Remains mortal	Raised to status of gods
Pre-Flood Preparations	Explicit sharing of plan	Secret divulging of plan
	Building of boat/ark
	Salvation of family and animals	Salvation of family, animals, craftsmen, and possessions
	Sealing of door by Hashem	Sealing of door by hero
The Flood	Water from heavens and depths	Windy storm
	40 days and nights of rain	7 days and nights of rain25
	---	Gods tremble and cower in fear
	Boat rests on mountain and sending of birds
	Divine command to exit	Hero exits the boat on his own
Post-Flood	Bringing of sacrifices
	---	Gods swarm over sacrifices
	Blessing of progeny	Blessing to be like gods
	Promise not to bring another all devastating flood	Deity is angry that there are survivors; new solutions for population control

¹ The epic has survived in several versions. The fullest version, known as the "Standard Babylonian" version, dates from the 13th to the 10th centuries BCE while the "Old Babylonian", shorter version, dates to the 18th century BCE. The former contains 12 tablets of which about two thirds have been recovered. One of the best preserved copies was discovered during excavations in the 1850's in Nineveh, in the ruins of the 7th century library of King Ashurbanipal. The epic as a whole is about the story of two friends, Gilgamesh and Enkidu, and their daring adventures. After Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh begins to think about his own mortality leading him to search for his ancestor, Utnapishtim, who has attained the status of gods and eternal life. The 11th tablet of the epic details Utnapishtim's story in which he is saved from the Flood and achieves immortality. The Flood story in this tablet is not attested to in Old Babylonian fragments of the epic and appears to be a later addition. To read the full text as translated by E.A. Speiser, see here.

² It contains a colophon dating it to the reign of Ammisaduqa, who ruled in 1646-1626, during the 1st Babylonian dynasty. W.G. Lambert and A.R. Millard published a critical edition in 1969. The three tablets recount the creation of man and then tell how the gods decree upon them a series of disasters which culminate in the Flood. A copy of the translated epic can be found here.

³ The epic was published in 1914 by Arno Poebel. Only the bottom third of the tablet's 6 columns have survived, making it difficult to reconstruct the entire narrative. Other relevant Sumerian material includes the Sumerian king lists (several versions have been recovered) which divide the recorded kings into ante and post-diluvian listings. In the WB-62 Sumerian king list recension, Ziusudra is listed as having reigned right before the Flood, in the 3rd millennium BCE. See here to read the text as translated by T. Jacobsen.

⁴ None of the fragments from the three Mesopotamian flood stories mention the hero's placement explicitly but according to the WB 62 version of the Sumerian king list, and in the flood version of the 3rd century BCE Babylonian priest, Berossus (as quoted by later Greek historians), the hero is the tenth in the royal line. Other versions of the Sumerian king list record just eight kings before the Deluge.

⁵ This whole section is missing from the Sumerian version.

⁶ There is a lacuna in this section of the story in both the Epic of Ziusudra and Atrahasis.

⁷ The Sumerian version does not mention the deity smelling the sacrificial odor.

⁸ In the Epics of Ziusudra and Gilgamesh the hero is blessed with eternal life, while, in Tanakh, Noach is blessed with progeny. In the surviving fragments of the Atrahasis Epic, no blessing is mentioned.

⁹ In the Sumerian version, Ziusudra is described as a priest serving the gods, but no direct connection is made betweeen this point and his being chosen to be saved.

¹⁰ Noach is further portrayed as a much more passive character. While the other flood heroes speak, portray emotions, and act, Noach says nothing throughout the narrative and hardly acts except to obey Hashem's commands.

¹¹ Tanakh suggests that it might connote comfort, explaining the etymology of the name: "וַיִּקְרָא אֶת שְׁמוֹ נֹחַ לֵאמֹר זֶה יְנַחֲמֵנוּ מִמַּעֲשֵׂנוּ וּמֵעִצְּבוֹן יָדֵינוּ מִן הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר אֵרְרָהּ ה'‏".

¹² This part of the narrative is lost from the Sumerian account.

¹³ Another difference relates to the numbers of animals brought. While Noach is told to bring pairs and sevens of animals, the other heroes do not receive such specifics.

¹⁴ In the epics it rains for just 7 days, while in Bereshit the downpour lasts for 40 days.

¹⁵ The Atrahasis Epic is missing this section of the narrative.

¹⁶ In the Sumerian version this section has not survived.

¹⁷ Almost every day of creation is alluded to. The wind of 8:1 recalls the wind of 1:2. The closing of the waters of the depths and heavens parallels the separation of waters by the firmament. The tops of the mountains are seen, much like the land is seen in 1:9 and the dove's olive branch might represent the vegetation. The setting of seasons in 8:22 parallels the setting of luminaries and times in 1:14. The birds and animals are mentioned explicitly, and the people are blessed just as they had been in Parashat Bereshit. For elaboration see The Flood Story: Undoing and Redoing Creation

¹⁸ Cassuto points out that in the Biblical account the storm takes the form of just water and not winds to emphasize this control. If He so decides, God can use the same forces of nature that are normally viewed as a blessing, in order to curse and destroy.

¹⁹ In the Torah the Flood ends not due to a natural waning of the storm but to God's remembering of Noach .

²⁰ Cassuto also notes that in the Biblical account the vehicle is an ark and not a technically engineered boat and there is no one to professionally steer it, further emphasizing that all is in Hashem's hands.

²¹ The one exception in the Epic of Gilgamesh is Ea, who, when blamed for divulging the gods' plans to Utnapishtim, protests against the injustice of the gods in punishing those who have not transgressed any sins.

²² In fact, Bavli SanhedrinSanhedrin 108bAbout the Bavli and Bereshit Rabbah30:7About Bereshit Rabbah depict Noach sharing Hashem's plans with the people, trying to convince them to repent.

²³ This differs greatly from the ending of the Atrahasis Epic which has the gods contemplating other methods of population control. See Tikva Frymer-Kensky, "The Atrahasis Epic and its Significance for our Understanding of Genesis 1-9," Biblical Archaeologist (December 1977): 147-155.

²⁴ According to the WB 62 version of the Sumerian King list, the Flood hero is the tenth king. Other versions list only eight kings before the Deluge.

²⁵ The Epic of Gilgamesh mentions 6 rather than 7.