The Differences The Flood of Noah and The Flood of Utnapishtim By Daniel Steele Genesis 1. What do you make of the remarkable similarities in the two accounts?' In the story of Noah and the Ark, God or Yahwist (God of Israel) is saw that evil was everywhere amongst the earth. He is tasked by the god Enki to create a giant ship to be called Preserver of Life in preparation of a giant flood that would wipe out all life. Rabbi Professor David Golinkin, President of The Schechter Institutes, points out that despite the general similarities between the story of Noah and the Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh there is a major theological difference between the stories. Begins with an historical timeline of generations leading up to Noah 6. Ancient Mythology Utnapishtim, Noah, and Flood study guide by phoenixbarker includes 9 questions covering vocabulary, terms and more. Whenbecoming aware of his own mortality and fear of death, Gilgamesh decided toventure out to find the only man that had been granted immortality from theGods for surviving the Great Flood, Utnapishtim. He convinced the other gods to completely exterminate every person on Earth as well as land animals and birds with a great flood. Utnapishtim vs. Noah: War of the Ships (Part 2) By Stephen Mitchell . In the story of Gilgamesh, a man by the name of Utnaptishtim experience the fate Noah had with the flood. Cuneiform tablet with the Atra-Hasis epic in the British Museum So to answer your question: Yes, it's "legendary plagiarism". Text written as historical 4. The Gilgamesh flood myth is a flood myth in the Epic of Gilgamesh.Many scholars believe that the flood myth was added to Tablet XI in the "standard version" of the Gilgamesh Epic by an editor who used the flood story from the Epic of Atrahasis. His story parallels that of the Biblical figure of Noah. Because of this, God … Noah was the only man on earth who found grace in the eyes of God, and was really good. Theism – one God 2. Here is what the text says, using the New American Standard, 1995, translation: Chapter 6 Both are from different religious points of view (Noah's ark is from the Bible and Utnapishtim from the Epic of Gilgamesh) but share similarities, as well as differences. Noah is preserved because he is the most morally clean and obedient. Utnapishtim was chosen out of the cleverness of Ea, the god of wisdom and crafts. Noah's Ark was built over a long, realistic period of time, Utnapishtim's Ark was built in a matter of days. The Chaldean Flood Tablets from the city of Ur in what is now Southern Iraq contain a story thatdescribes how the Bablylonian god Enlil had been bothered by the incessant noise generated by humans. “The dove went off, but came back to me…I sent forth a swallow and released it. 7/13/2001 0 Comments The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Bible have been compared for their historical value. Because of this, God came to warn him about the flood and told him to build the ark. Noah’s was rectangular; Utnapishtim’s was square. • Both arks had a single door and at least one window. Noah sent two and Utnapishtim sent three birds. It would obviously tumble, killing or maiming its passengers. Flood because of mankind’s wickedness 9. It would, therefore, make sense that Noah would be chosen for his righteousness although Utnapishtim was chosen for no apparent reason. [6] Noah’s behavior here is actually strange, since the first bird flies back and forth until it eventually finds dry land, so what did he need the dove for? Now it is time to consider the ship of Noah, commonly known as Noah’s Ark. Gilgamesh is the semi-mythic King of Uruk best known from The Epic of Gilgamesh (written c. 2150-1400 BCE) … The swallow went off, but came back to me….I sent forth a raven and released it. In this week’s Parasha, Noah is chosen by God to perpetuate the human race after his wicked contemporaries perish in the flood. In Tablet XI of the epic poem, Utnapishtim, the Gilgamesh Noah, explains that because of some unexplained sin of man, the pantheon of gods decide to send a Deluge to kill all of mankind. Pryke says that while the Hebrew version of the flood story hinges on morality — the destruction of the wicked and the saving of the righteous — the authors of Genesis display a "wary engagement with wisdom" elsewhere. In particular, their varying recounts of “the flood” are of great interest to historians, clergy, and scholars. The story of Utnapishtim is adapted from the story about Atrahasis, which in turn is probably adapted from the earlier Babylonian flood myths.The same goes for the story in the bible. Before Noah: Myths of the Flood Are Far Older Than the Bible. • A great rain covered the land and mountains with water, although some water emerged from beneath the earth in the biblical account (Genesis 7:11). After the rain stops, both Noah and Utnapishtim arks land on a mountain, Mount Ararat for Noah and Mount Nisir for Utnapishtim; both mountains are located in the Middle East, only a few hundred miles apart (Robinson). In the Epic of Noah, the hero, Noah is sent by God to warn the people and build an ark where he will save a small number of righteous people. A specific chronological timeframe 5. Noah and family were human 7. Utanapishtim, on the other hand, is saved quite literally by wisdom, by obtaining divine knowledge. How would something like this fare during a catastrophic, worldwide Flood? We learn this story from the Old Testament, the book of Genesis, chapters 6 and 7. When Gilgamesh finally meetswith Utnapishtim and is told the story of the Great Flood. Even though these stories are very similar, there are differences that are present. Utnapishtim or Utanapishtim is a character in ancient Mesopotamia mythology. Utnapishtim sends out three different birds (dove, swallow, raven), whereas Noah sends out two different birds (raven, dove). Quizlet flashcards, … Utnapishtim is regarded as the hero in the epic of Gilgamesh where he acts as the mediator between gods and the people of Uruk. Compare and Contrast Noah and Utnapishtim The story of Noah's ark and the story of Utnapishtim are two different, yet similar accounts of a flood that exterminated the human race. Utnapishtim tries toconvey to Gilgamesh that these were unusual circumstances that granted he andhis wife immortality and that they could not be repeated. Utnapishtim vs. Noah. In both stories the instruction is to bring “two of every sort [of living thing of flesh] into the ark.” And finally, after the flood subsides there is a sacrifice where the Babylonian gods and the Biblical God feel sorry about and/or regret the flood. One of the most common attacks on the flood narrative is that it's simply a copy of some other material, including the Epic of Gilgamesh, so let's look at the differences. The life of Utnapishtim and the Babylonian Flood Story are described in the Epic of Gilgamesh. Noah’s Ark vs. Gilgamesh Ark. One of the gods, Ea, went against the decision of the rest of the gods, and told a human, Ut-Napishtim, to build an ark to save a few humans, and some animals. [7]The raven is thus manifestly “out of place” in the text. Author – Moses 3. Noah's Ark was built logically to withstand the pressure and force of viscious waves for a long period of time. The character appears in the Epic of Gilgamesh. Get an answer for 'Compare and contrast Utnapishtim's description of the great flood with Noah's account. Construction of an Ark in both Epics Utnapishtim was chosen to survive the great flood out of pure luck by the god Ea. Utnapishtim was chosen to survive the great flood because he was a true worshipper of the god Ea, who came to warn Utnapishtim about the flood. Just like Noah, Utnapishtim is the survivor of the Deluge. Even with these major changes not considered, there are many dissimilarities that would not be expected from a story copied from another story. Then, Noah and Utnapishtim each send out birds at regular intervals to see if there was any dry land. God causes the flood, people we fearful 8. Third, Utnapishtim and Noah save their relatives and samples of species of land animals. 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