09 - The Flood Narrative
Pretty much everyone has heard the story of Noah's Ark. There's a lot more behind the flood story than you may realize. Did you know that many other cultures have told a similar story and that some of them were even older than the account given in Genesis from the Bible? (Of course you did, you just read The Gilgamesh Epic!)
Here's a quick comparison of the flood narratives of Genesis (Noah), the Gilgamesh Epic (Utnapishtim) and the one from Greek Mythology (Deucalion):
|
Genesis (The Torah/Bible) |
The Gilgamesh Epic |
Greek |
|
Global Flood |
Global Flood |
Global Flood |
|
Caused by mankind's sins |
Caused by mankind's sins |
Mankind's immorality |
|
Noah is saved |
Utnapishtim is saved |
Deucalion is saved |
|
Message of the flood came from God |
Message of the flood came in a dream |
Told by his Father a titan |
|
Saved by boarding a boat |
Saved by boarding a boat |
Saved by boarding a boat |
|
Family members only saved |
Family & a few others saved |
2 people saved |
|
All species of animals |
All species of animals |
|
|
Caused by groundwater & heavy rain |
Caused by heavy rain |
Rain/Flooding/Earthquakes |
|
40 days & nights |
6 days & nights |
9 days & nights |
|
Release of birds |
Release of birds |
|
|
Raven & 3 doves |
Dove, swallow, raven |
|
|
Boat landed on a mountain |
Boat landed on a mountain |
Boat landed on a mountain |
|
The saved offered a sacrifice after the flood. |
The saved offered a sacrifice after the flood. |
The saved offered a sacrifice after the flood. |
|
God promises not to flood again. |
The saved are given immortality |
Deucalion is blessed after the flood. |
Keep in mind that these are not the only Flood Narratives. What possible conclusions can you draw about the table above and the fact that this story seems to be told in more than one culture?
Discuss this with others and see if your conclusions match what others might think.
What we think of as a global catastrophe is much different than what would have been considered a global catastrophe in the past. We have more of a connection now to other places and cultures through the internet and social media. We also have around seven billion people on the planet; in 1960 there were only three billion. Imagine how few people were around thousands of years ago. The place in which you lived would have been your entire world. If something bad happened there your whole culture may have been wiped out.
Next, we will take a closer look at the other two flood narratives mentioned in the chart above.