A number of scholars believe that there are two accounts of the creation story in Genesis. The two creation stories of Genesis 1:1-2:4a and 2:4b-25 are different in literary style and character. For example, Genesis 1 uses Elohim for God’s name while Genesis 2 includes Yahweh. This suggests that more than one source was used to produce the early chapters of Genesis.
Differences between Genesis 1 and 2
Genesis 1, with its seven-day, repetitious structure, is systematic. Genesis 2 is an overview of creation. A systematic structure is less evident. Genesis 1 places decisive attention to detail and is structured chronologically.
Here, God is in control of the cosmos, transcendent and all powerful. Alternatively, Genesis 2 portrays God anthropomorphically as well as immanent and involved in human affairs.
A close look at Ancient Near Eastern texts shows that Genesis may have been influenced by the stories of some neighbouring nations. Two Ancient Near Eastern texts of significant are the Enuma Elish and the Atrahasis Story.
Genesis 1 and the Enuma Elish
There is a close parallel between the Genesis 1 creation account and the Enuma Elish, a Babylonian creation story. Genesis 1 speaks of a six-day creation with God resting on the seventh. The Enuma Elish speaks of six generations of gods. Humans were created to do the work of the gods on the last generation so that the gods may rest.
Genesis 1 speaks of one God who exists and creates. The Enuma Elish speaks of two gods, one male and one female.
Each of the elements God creates in Genesis 1:1-2:4a are found in relatively the same sequence in the Enuma Elish. Both have the formation of the earth before the formation of constellations.
In the Enuma Elish the god Apsu (the God of fresh water) and the god Tiamat (the god of salt water) mix their waters giving birth to a next generation of gods. Similarly, water had a significant role in the first day of creation in Genesis 1. Genesis 1:2 speaks of “the face of the deep.” The Hebrew word for “deep” is tehom. Biblical scholar Frank Frick points out that word tehom “closely resembles the name of Tiamat.”
Genesis 1 was written in Babylon. Its intent was to give comfort to Hebrews exiled in Babylon. It suggests God alone is all-powerful, using water (hence the play of words between tehom and Tiamat) to create the cosmos.
Genesis 2 and the Atrahasis Story
The Atrahasis story (of Sumerian origin) does have some parallels with Genesis 2. The Atrahasis story is primarily concerned with why humans were created and how they were created.
The Atrahasis story makes it clear that humans were created to serve the gods. In Genesis 2, God puts man in the Garden of Eden “to till it and keep it.”
In the Atrahasis story the god Nintu creates humans “just as a potter would shape a vessel.” Nintu is to “thin the clay…with flesh and blood” and then command “Live.” The human was to have eternal life. Similarly, in the creation account of Genesis 2 God forms man from the earth and breathes life into him. Humans were meant to live eternally, though the fall changed all that.
In Genesis 2, the name given to the first woman Eve (hawwa) possibly derives from the verb "haya" which means "living." It is possible that the woman received the name "Eve" because she was to become the mother of the living. This creates a parallel with the Atrahasis story, which refers the god Mami as the “Mother of the Living.”
The two creation stories of Genesis parallel two Ancient Near Eastern texts. There are differences between Genesis 1 and 2 that cannot be reconciled. It appears these stories were written during different periods of time, under different circumstances. This evidence suggests that the two Genesis creation accounts are rooted in history, not science.
Sources:
- Enuma Elish
- Frick, F. S. A Jouney Through the Hebrew Scriptures. Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace, 1995
- NRSV Bible
- The Story of Atrahasis
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