The Enuma Elish and Genesis: A Contrast of Two Creation Myths

The Enuma Elish (literally "When On High") is an ancient Babylonian Creation Myth which may have influenced other cultural Creation Myths, including the Hebrew Creation Myths recorded in the Bible.


The Babylonian account opens with two original deities; one male and one female, as the explained original source of the gods (Table 1. 1-10;  cf. the Hebrew Creation Myths, each of which opens with a Monotheistic God as the explained source of all that is; Genesis 1.1; 2.4, though the existence of other deities is alluded to in 3.22).

The Babylonian account features a story of domestic dysfunction, which involved troublesome teen like disruptive behavior, quarreling parents, and which eventually escalated to the point of patricide (Table 1.21-69; cf. the Hebrew account which featured a story of sibling rivalry which likewise lead to murder; Genesis 4.1-8).

The Enuma Elish accounts for the creation of the earth and humanity, while exalting the Babylonian Warrior/Creator God Marduk and his mighty feats.  (Table 5; cf. the Hebrew Creation Myths which likewise account for the creation, all the while exalting the Hebrew Warrior/Creator God Jehovah; Genesis 1, 2.4; Exodus 15).

The Babylonian account portrays humanity as a slave race created by Marduk for forced servitude in order to benefit the gods (Table 6.5-8, 33-36; cf. the Hebrew account of Genesis 2-3; which portrays the Hebrew god creating man and then placing him in the garden to till it; Genesis 2.4-8,15).

The Babylonian account portrays the construction of Babylon as an act of the gods in order to serve as a shrine to the greatness of Marduk (Table 6.47-68; cf. the Hebrew account which portrays the construction of Babylon as an autonomous act of a human collective in order to make a name for themselves; Gen 11.4)


The Babylonian account then is a narrative of divine procreation, domestic dysfunction, death, and dominion.

The Hebrew account on the other hand is a narrative of monotheistic creation, domestic dysfunction, death, and dominion.

Although each respective narrative appears to be mythical; nonetheless they both contain elements of truth regarding human nature which transcend time and circumstance.

Genesis 3: A Myth of Life as an Existential Exile From Eden

Why is life so difficult?  Why is the ground cursed with thorns, thistles, and snakes?  Why do I have to work by the sweat of my brow just to survive?  Why does my wife have to suffer so merely to have babies?

Serves her right though, because she is to blame.  My life would be so much better if I didn't listen to her. She is to blame.  She holds me back.


Such seems to have been the perspective of the originator of the myth of the Garden of Eden as recorded in Genesis 3.  He appears to have been a man who toiled strenuously to survive, yet never seemed to get ahead. Though he doubtlessly loved his wife, like so many men he felt that she was holding him back, and was surely the reason that his life was so damned difficult.

This disheartened man who felt trapped and downtrodden envisioned the plight of the human predicament as being due to independent women and weak men.  Perhaps he even resented himself as a pushover because he actually listened to his wife.

Regardless, the myth of the Garden of Eden is an early effort to address the existential circumstances of humanity as envisioned and expressed  by a frustrated dude living the domestic life back in the day.

Hard labor for man and woman alike.  And then we die.

(Commentary based upon Genesis 3)