The Epic of Gilgamesh vs. Noah of the Bible
Utnapishtim’s Flood VS Noah’s Flood
Gilgamesh was written thousands of years ago, but those who have read Gilgamesh notice something extraordinarily striking about the story of Utnapishtim’s immortality: there is a nearly identical flood story written in the Bible. Many things about the flood story in the Bible seem identical to the flood in Gilgamesh, but there are still many differences. The differences are seen before, during, and after the flood, making the two stories similar, but not quite identical. The floods described in Gilgamesh and in the Bible have an obvious relationship, but each is extremely different in some ways and exactly the same in others.
Before the flood, Utnapishtim saw a god named Ea. Ea warned Utnapishtim that a flood was going to destroy the earth’s contents and that he needs to build an enormous boat. “Ea, who was present at their council, came to my house and, frightened by the violent winds that filled the air, echoed all that they were planning and had said, Man of Shurrupak, he said, tear down your house and build a ship” (The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XI). Utnapishtim took all the kinds of animals, and his family members, plus some other humans into his boat. Shamash the sun god showered down loaves of bread and rained down wheat to prepare him for the days the people in the boat must stay onboard. Noah’s flood was alike in the overall idea, but many of the specifics are different. Instead of appearing in a dream, Noah’s Yahweh directly announced that there would be a global flood that would wipe away mankind. “And God said to Noah, ‘I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth’” (Genesis 6:13). Noah built an oblong box-shaped boat and filled the boat with his family members and all kinds of animals. Both boats loaded up and shut the single door, ready for the flood to begin.
Both of the floods from each book describe
Gilgamesh was written thousands of years ago, but those who have read Gilgamesh notice something extraordinarily striking about the story of Utnapishtim’s immortality: there is a nearly identical flood story written in the Bible. Many things about the flood story in the Bible seem identical to the flood in Gilgamesh, but there are still many differences. The differences are seen before, during, and after the flood, making the two stories similar, but not quite identical. The floods described in Gilgamesh and in the Bible have an obvious relationship, but each is extremely different in some ways and exactly the same in others.
Before the flood, Utnapishtim saw a god named Ea. Ea warned Utnapishtim that a flood was going to destroy the earth’s contents and that he needs to build an enormous boat. “Ea, who was present at their council, came to my house and, frightened by the violent winds that filled the air, echoed all that they were planning and had said, Man of Shurrupak, he said, tear down your house and build a ship” (The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XI). Utnapishtim took all the kinds of animals, and his family members, plus some other humans into his boat. Shamash the sun god showered down loaves of bread and rained down wheat to prepare him for the days the people in the boat must stay onboard. Noah’s flood was alike in the overall idea, but many of the specifics are different. Instead of appearing in a dream, Noah’s Yahweh directly announced that there would be a global flood that would wipe away mankind. “And God said to Noah, ‘I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth’” (Genesis 6:13). Noah built an oblong box-shaped boat and filled the boat with his family members and all kinds of animals. Both boats loaded up and shut the single door, ready for the flood to begin.
Both of the floods from each book describe