What are some specific biblical allusions in the Epic of Gilgamesh?

Answer 1

The epic of Gilgamesh is similar to Noah by the adventure; Noah had to build an ark but Gilgamesh had other ways to go about on his adventures.

Answer 2

Both are about gods and both are about there stories. One is about two gods and the other which I think is the most awesome and the best is about Jesus and Gods story! Hope this helps!

Answer 3

One specific biblical allusion in the Epic of Gilgamesh is the flood story, which is similar to the story of Noah's Ark in The Bible. Another allusion is the character of Enkidu, who can be seen as a precursor to the biblical figure of Adam because they both start off as wild beings and gain knowledge and wisdom through their experiences.

Answer 4

Epic of Gilgamesh They are both based on myths placed in historical places and characters. See Related Links See the Related Links for "Noah's Flood and the Gilgamesh Epic " to the left for an answer.

Basically, like many hundreds of other 'cultural memories' such an epic has some striking similarities to the historic flood of Noah's day. These stories handed down for centuries, even millennia, are found in every people group on the planet, many of which had little or no contact with each other. The Gilgamesh Epic is amongst those containing some of the greatest correspondences with the Biblical account.

The Epic Of Gilgamesh And The Bible Are Both Based On Myths Placed In Hisorical Places and Characters.

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Please be aware that the link provided here to a conservative Christian website and the suggestion, above, that the Gilgamesh flood story is just a distorted version of the Genesis account do not represent the wide scholarly consensus about the relationship between the two stories. Almost all Akkadian, Gilgamesh and Biblical scholars agree that the mesopotamian story came first. Fundamentalist scholars will often suggest that this story is just a "cultural memory" of what really happened, although there is absolutely no geological evidence for a worldwide or even a mesopotamian wide flood. Similarly there is not a shred of literary evidence to support the conjecture that the Genesis story came first.

There are, in fact, several good indications that the mesopotamian flood story influenced Genesis and not the other way around. Firstly, greater societies generally influence lesser societies. For example, I suspect that people in many countries around the world would be at least partly familiar with north American history (the pilgrim fathers, the civil and Indian wars, etc) due to the enormous influence of American popular culture. On the other hand I wonder how many US citizens are aware of the history and mythology of Scotland, the Congo, Australia, Thailand or Spain. Secondly, Mesopotamia (literally the "land between two rivers") was prone to constant flooding whereas Canaan was not. Thirdly, the only geographical landmark mentioned in Genesis is the Ararat mountains in northern mesopotamia. Additionally, the epic of Gilgamesh was a widespread "classic" in the ancient world due to the fact that it was used as a standard text for students of cuneiform. Fragments have even been found in northern Israel. There is no such evidence for the influence of the book of Genesis from this period. Finally, the common scholarly suggestion that the book of Genesis was put into its final form during or shortly after the Babylonian exile might explain how this literary borrowing came about.

Additionally, it is not enough to say that many cultures have flood stories, making any similarities between Gilgamesh and Genesis inconsequential. It is well documented that no other flood story has such close parallels to Genesis as that recorded in the epic of Gilgamesh. They use exactly the same basic framework of events, with some very minor differences in detail, in exactly the same order. The main difference between the two is theological. One is monotheistic, the other polytheistic. Genesis introduces the idea of a covenant or contract between God and humankind that is absent in Gilgamesh. Some Christians like to think that the biblical version is more moral since God sends the flood due to human wickedness and violence. Personally I prefer the Babylonian version where the flood is seen for what it really is - mass murder. In this version the gods lament the overwhelming loss of life and the god who is the main instigator of the flood is condemned for his actions. For the same reason, Utnapishtim is given immortality precisely because he has preserved life and saved humanity from utter destruction.

The other episode in Gilgamesh that has close ties to the Bible is the story of Enkidu and Shamhat which shares a number of themes with the story of Adam and Eve.

Other suggestions for literary relationships between the Tanakh (the "Old Testament") and Gilgamesh include:

The friendship between David and Jonathan may reflect that between Gilgamesh and Enkidu.

The depiction of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4 may borrow from the description of Enkidu in the wild.

Some sayings in the book of Ecclesiastes are almost identical to similar sayings in the epic.

Answer 5

The epic as a whole does not parallel any biblical story but it contains a flood story almost identical to the biblical flood story. The story of Enkidu and Shamhat also has many similarities to the story of Adam and Eve. It has also been suggested that the book of Daniel (chapter 4) and Ecclestiastes contain some close parallels to the Epic of Gilgamesh.

Answer 6

The question has it backwards. It should be: What elements of the Epic of Gilgamesh reappear in the Bible?

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I agree completely. Historically, the epic came first.

The most obvious biblical allusions to the epic are the flood story (which uses an almost identical framework to that in Gilgamesh) and the story of Adam and Eve (which contains many themes in common with the story of Enkidu and Shamhat).

Answer 7

A:The Epic of Gilgamesh includes the great flood story of Utnapishtim, a story that is remarkably similar to the biblical story of Noah, although in some ways it is more primitive in concept.

A useful comparison of the two accounts is found in the AnswersinGenesis website:

Genesis .......................Gilgamesh

Extent of flood .................Global ...........................Global

Cause .............................Man's wickedness .........Man's sins

Intended for whom? ........All mankind ...................One city & all mankind

Sender ............................Yahweh ........................Assembly of gods

Name of hero ..................Noah .............................Utnapishtim

Hero's character ..............Righteous .....................Righteous

Means of announcement .Direct from God .............In a dream

Ordered to build boat? .....Yes ................................Yes

Did hero complain? ..........No .................................Yes

Height of boat .................Three storeys ................Seven storeys

Compartments inside? ....Many .............................Many

Doors .............................One ...............................One

Windows ........................At least one ..................At least one

Outside coating ..............Pitch ..............................Pitch

Shape of boat ................Oblong box ....................Cube

Human passengers .......Family members only .....Family & few others

Other passengers ..........All kinds of land .............All kinds of land animals

.....................................animals (vertebrates)

Means of flood ...............Underground water .......Heavy rain

......................................& heavy rain

Duration of flood ............40 days & nights (plus) ..6 days & nights

Test to find land .............Release of birds .............Release of birds

Types of birds ................Raven & three doves ......Dove, swallow, raven

Ark landing spot ............Mountains-of Ararat ........Mountains-Mt Nisir

Sacrificed after flood? ....Yes, by Noah ...................Yes, by Utnapishtim

Blessed after flood? .......Yes ..................................Yes

Answer 8

A:It is believed that the biblical story of Noah's Flood was either based on the much earlier Epic of Gilgamesh, or that they are both based on a common source. Ian Wilson (Before the Flood) presents a well argued case for both accounts to have been based on folk memories of the inundation of what is now the Black Sea.

Answer 9

Perhaps the respected biblical scholar Dr. Gleason Archer notes about the Flood account answers this question best:

"Some comparative religionists have suggested that the Babylonian myth was earlier than the Hebrew, and that the compilers of Genesis 7 and 8 borrowed from it. But this is rendered most unlikely in view of the significant contrast between the two. Thus, the ark built by Utnapishtim [in the Babylonian account] was completely cubic, equipped with six decks for all the animals to be quartered in. A more impractical and unseaworthy craft could hardly be imagined. But Noah's ark was three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide, and thirty cubits deep an ideal set of measurements for an ocean liner... "Moreover, the stark contrast between the quarrelsome and greedy gods of the Babylonian pantheon and the majestic holiness of [the God of the Bible], the absolute Sovereign over the universe, furnishes the strongest basis for classifying the Gilgamesh account as a garbled, polytheistic derivative from the same original episode as that contained in Genesis 7-8. The Hebrew account is couched in terms of sober history and accurate recording that reflect a source derived from the persons who were actually involved in this adventure. The Gilgamesh Epic is far more mythical and vague" ( New International Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, 1982, p. 84).

The best ideas of learned people have been proven wrong throughout history - consider the geocentric beliefs of the Middle Ages or the belief the Earth was flat. New equipment and discoveries have changed many of the scholarly beliefs. The one exception, however, seems to be the Bible. The more scientists/scholars discover, the more authenticated the writings of Scripture become.

Answer 10

The epic of Gilgamesh is similar to Noah by the adventure; Noah had to build an ark but Gilgamesh had other ways to go about on his adventures.