The Creation Story: A Comparison

This page compares the biblical creation account in Genesis with various creation myths from the ancient Near East. Despite originating from different cultures, these texts share several intriguing similarities, suggesting a common cultural background or shared traditions.

1. Primordial Waters

Many ancient Near Eastern creation accounts, including Genesis, begin with a watery chaos before creation.

Biblical Account (Genesis)

"Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters."

Genesis 1:2 (New International Version)

Enuma Elish (Babylonian)

"When on high the heaven had not been named,
Firm ground below had not been called by name,
Naught but primordial Apsu, their begetter,
(And) Mummu-Tiamat, she who bore them all,
Their waters commingling as a single body;"

Tablet I, lines 1-5, translated by E.A. Speiser in Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, ed. J.B. Pritchard, 1969, p. 60-61

Memphite Theology (Egyptian)

"There took shape in the heart, there took shape on the tongue the form of Atum. For the very great one is Ptah, who gave [life] to all the gods and their kas through this heart and through this tongue..."

From "Creation by the Word" in Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol. I, ed. Miriam Lichtheim, 1973, p. 54

2. Creation by Divine Word

The concept of creation through divine speech appears in multiple texts.

Biblical Account (Genesis)

"And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light."

Genesis 1:3 (New International Version)

Memphite Theology (Egyptian)

"Thus all the gods were formed and his Ennead was completed. Indeed, all the divine order really came into being through what the heart thought and the tongue commanded."

From "Creation by the Word" in Ancient Egyptian Literature, Vol. I, ed. Miriam Lichtheim, 1973, p. 54

Enki and Ninmah (Sumerian)

"The lord of wisdom, Enki, king of the Abzu, praise! 'O my mother, the creature you commanded has been produced...'"

From "Enki and Ninmah: Translation" by The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature, Oxford University, 2001

3. Separation of Heaven and Earth

The division of heaven and earth is a common theme in creation accounts.

Biblical Account (Genesis)

"And God said, 'Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.' So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. God called the vault 'sky.'"

Genesis 1:6-8 (New International Version)

Enuma Elish (Babylonian)

"He split her [Tiamat] like a shellfish into two parts:
Half of her he set up and ceiled it as sky,
Pulled down the bar and posted guards.
He bade them to allow not her waters to escape."

Tablet IV, lines 137-140, translated by E.A. Speiser in Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, ed. J.B. Pritchard, 1969, p. 67

Egyptian Cosmogony

"Shu it is, who created heaven and earth,
Who raised heaven, who supported earth."

From "Coffin Texts," spell 80, in Religion in Ancient Egypt: Gods, Myths, and Personal Practice, ed. Byron E. Shafer, 1991, p. 93

4. Creation of Humanity

The special creation of humans is a significant event in many creation accounts.

Biblical Account (Genesis)

"Then God said, 'Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.'"

Genesis 1:26 (New International Version)

Enuma Elish (Babylonian)

"Blood I will mass and cause bones to be.
I will establish a savage, 'man' shall be his name.
Verily, savage-man I will create.
He shall be charged with the service of the gods
That they might be at ease!"

Tablet VI, lines 5-8, translated by E.A. Speiser in Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, ed. J.B. Pritchard, 1969, p. 68

Atra-Hasis (Akkadian)

"Geshtu-e, a god who had intelligence,
They slaughtered in their assembly.
Nintu mixed clay
With his flesh and blood."

Old Babylonian version, Tablet I, from Myths from Mesopotamia, translated by Stephanie Dalley, 1989, p. 15

5. Divine Rest

The theme of divine rest after creation appears in some accounts.

Biblical Account (Genesis)

"By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done."

Genesis 2:2-3 (New International Version)

Enuma Elish (Babylonian)

"When Marduk heard the word of the gods,
His heart prompted him to fashion artful works.
Opening his mouth, he addresses Ea
To impart the plan he had conceived in his heart:"

Tablet VI, lines 1-4, translated by E.A. Speiser in Ancient Near Eastern