Enuma Elish

One of the most famous myths emanating from the ancient world is the Babylonian epic known by its opening word, Enuma Elish ("when on high"). …(It is) preserved more or less in its entirety…it belongs to the same ancient Near East of which ancient Israel was a part.

The Babylonian creation epic tells how, before the formation of heaven and earth, nothing existed except water. This primal generative element was identified with Apsu, the male personification of the primeval sweetwater (freshwater) ocean, and with his female associated Tiamat, the primordial saltwater ocean, represented as a ferocious monster. From the commingling of the two waters were born the divine offspring. These, in turn, gave birth to a second generation of gods and the process was repeated successively. Then came a time when the young gods, through their unremitting and noisy revelry, disturbed the peace of Tiamat and Apsu. The latter decided to destroy the gods, but the evil design was thwarted by the quick action of the all-wise Ea, the earth-water god.

Tiamat now planned revenge and organized her forces for the attack on the gods. The latter, for their part, requested Marduk to lead them in battle. He acceded, provided that he be granted sovereignty over the universe. To this condition the assembly of the gods readily agreed and Marduk, invested with the insignia of royalty, thereupon became their champion and took up the cudgels against Tiamat and her helpers. After a fierce battle in which he defeated enemy forces and slew Tiamat, Marduk sliced the carcass of the monster in two and created of one half the firmament of heaven and of the other the foundation of the earth.

The work of creation having thus begun, Marduk then established the heavenly luminaries, each in its place. This activity is described in the fifth table of the epic which, unfortunately, is fragmentary. However, from what follows it would appear that the gods complained to Marduk that, each having now been assigned his or her fix place and function in the cosmos, there would be no relief from unending toil. Accordingly, Marduk decided to create man to free the gods from menial labor and this he proceeded to do, fashioning a human being out of the blood of Kingu, Tiamat’s second husband and the captain of her army. The gods showed their gratitude to Marduk by building for him a great shrine in the city of Babylon, "the gate of god." The epic ends with a description of a testimonial banquet tendered by the gods at which they recited an adulatory hymn of praise to Marduk that confirms his kingship for all eternity.

From Nahum N. Sarna, Understanding Genesis, pp. 4-6