OP BABYLONIAN CONCEPTIONS ON JEWISH THOUGHT. 301 



was inscribed a dedication to Mnib by this king. This dates 

 back the creation legend to at any rate 200 years before the 

 formation of the Ubrary.* It seems, therefore, clear that the 

 tablets from Mneveh are of much greater antiquity than 

 670 B.C. 



In them the beginning of things is thus described : " At 

 that time the Heavens were unnamed. The chaotic Sea was 

 the mother of all." 



In Genesis the deep is called " Tehom." In Babylon, 

 " Tiamat," the dragon conquered by Merodach, was the personi- 

 fication of chaos and darkness. From her body were made the 

 sky and heavenly bodies, like the firmament in Genesis and the 

 lights in it. Consequently, the tablets and Genesis (P.) agree 

 in putting the deep as the first existence. In one tablet 

 Merodach says, " Bone will I fashion." Issamtu is the word 

 used for bone. It corresponds to esem bone in Genesis ii, 23 

 (J.), where Adam calls Eve " bone of my bones." 



This tablet also says that Merodach opened his mouth and 

 spake to Ea, telling him what he had conceived in his heart. 

 This corresponds to Genesis i, 26 (P.), " Let us make man." 



As Merodach was originally a solar deity, his conquering the 

 dragon may be looked on as parallel with the Hebrew narrative 

 (P.) of the existence of light before the creation of the heavenly 

 bodies. And the dividing of the primeval waters by a 

 firmament before the creation of the heavenly bodies agrees 

 with Genesis ; and also the culminating act of creation being 

 that of man (as in Genesis (P.)).* 



In the Assyrian tablets, the stars and night came first in the 

 order of creation, then the sun and the day, the reverse being 

 the case in the Hebrew record (P.) ; this has been attributed to 

 the nomad life of the earlier people ; and would point to an early 

 date (viz., during the nomad period) for the Babylonian legends — 

 the sun, being associated with agriculture, would come first with 

 agriculturists — the moon would come first with persons leading 

 a nomad life. 



Another tablet describes the gods calling forth mighty 

 monsters, the cattle and wild beasts by Ea. The lower part 

 of this tablet is mutilated, and it has been supposed might have 

 contained a description of the creation of the human race. And 

 in a hymn to Ea occur these words, for their redemption did 

 he create mankind, even he with whom is life," and in another 

 tablet occur the words, " may his word be established and not 



Vide King. 



