Quote:
Originally Posted by AV1611 
In the twelfth tablet of the Babylonian "Epic of Gilgamesh" we find significant material for the Sumerian concepts of the creation of the universe. After heaven had been moved away from earth,
After earth had been separated from heaven,
After the name of man had been fixed; This can be summarised thus: "Heaven and earth, originally united, were separated and moved away from each other, and thereupon the creation of man was ordained." (Kramer)
Sound familiar? Now it would be wrong to say that the Israelites borrowed these ANE myths, but we should recognise that Gen 1. performs the same function as these did, to explain the origin of the Israelites. That is it is a cosmogony and ought to be interpreted as such. | The problem with your argument is that the other ANE cosmogonies are actually myth not history. They were created to deceive. Thus they cannot function the same way. In many ways, as noted above by Lane, the Genesis narratives are an apologetic against those false myths about origins. That Genesis provides a cosmogeny I will not deny, but Genesis is clearly teaching us not only the origins of Israel but of all mankind. 
__________________
Patrick
OPC
MDiv, RTS Jackson.
"He does well, that discourses of Christ; but he does infinitely better, that by experimental knowledge, feeds and lives on Christ." Thomas Brooks.
Last edited by Puritan Sailor; 06-06-2008 at 09:38 AM..
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