The Atrakhasis Epic

Spelt many different ways, the Atra-Hasis Epic is a Mesopotamian ancient record of Creation and the Flood dating from the seventeenth century BC, named after Atrahasis the “exceedingly wise” figure of narrative. It is of interest, particularly to biblical archaeologists, as there are similarities with the record of Creation and the Flood written by Moses in the book of Genesis. Most notably is the creation of humanity by the divine, using clay, followed by a global flood that required Atra-Hasis to construct a boat filled with animals in order to avoid death. As we Christians, it is interesting to note that there are strong similarities with the creation of Adam and the story of Noah and the Ark. However, we must look closer at the finer details. In the theAtra-Hasis Epic, man is created by gods (plural), while in the Bible, there is only one true God. The God of the Bible does not work with other “gods” as He needs no such help and these so-called “gods” are the imaginations of humanity carved from stone and wood. Also, in the Atra-Hasis Epic, man was created with blood. This is incorrect, as the Bible tells us that Adam was created from the dust of the ground and was given breathe by the Spirit of God. In the Atra-Hasis Epic, the “gods” sent a flood because humanity was too noisy; what a cruel action! In the Bible however, God sent the flood as form of punishment on humanity for disobeying God and “The LORD saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time” (Genesis 6:5). There are many more, but you see my point.

Equally important to learn from the Atra-Hasis Epic, is that Satan is at work here, by creation false history and doctrine (1 Timothy 4:1-5) by mixing God’s truth and his own lies, in order to deceive both Christian and non-Christian alike. A work like the Atra-Hasis Epic is Satan’s attempt to confuse and question the book of Genesis. Both can’t be right, so one is wrong. God says it is Genesis. Satan says it is the Atra-Hasis Epic and several other ancients record of Creation and the Flood. As such, we must pray for wisdom on such things (James 1:5).

I would also recommend you read the article from the Got Questions website entitled “Did the Bible copy the Flood account from other myths and legends?”: http://www.gotquestions.org/Flood-accounts.html

Thank you & God Bless…Benjamin