Abstract

BELLMANN, Raphael  and  WUNCH, Hans-Georg. Old testam. essays [online]. 2022, vol.35, n.1, pp.10-31. ISSN 2312-3621.  https://doi.org/10.17159/2312-3621/2022/v35n1a3.

The existence of striking similarities between the biblical flood narrative and the flood narratives of the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Atramhasïs myth has led to the widely accepted hypothesis that the biblical flood narrative depends on the Mesopotamian narratives. In this study, the representation of Yahweh in the biblicalflood narrative is compared with the representation of the gods in the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Atramhasïs myth by means of a synchronic juxtaposition of the texts in question. Since the flood narratives in question all originated in a common cultural sphere, the juxtaposition of the contents leads to the conclusion that the biblical text or the tradition on which it is based is not dependent on the Mesopotamian narratives, but playfully and sometimes also polemically contrasts itself to the prevailing Mesopotamian theology. By using or consciously avoiding certain formulations of the Mesopotamian flood narratives the biblicalflood narrative puts emphasis on the God of the biblical narrative over and against all the other gods.

Keywords : Old Testament; Genesis; Biblical flood narrative; Mesopotamian flood narrative; Gilgamesh Epic; Atramhasïs Myth; Narrative analysis.

        · abstract in Afrikaans     · text in German     · German ( pdf )