The Sumerian religion and the Bible share a lot in common. The creation stories for the two religions are similar in many ways; for example, how human beings were created, the order in which things were created, the responsibilities that human beings were given, the power that the gods have, and more. Some scholars have posited that one may have been lifted from the other, but there is not enough evidence to support that idea.
The Creation Story in the Sumerian Religion
An, the god of the Sumerians, divided the universe between his two sons. One of them was Enlil, his most beloved son, who was to take over supreme authority after his father. The other one was Nudimmud, the god in charge of the sky. An had authority over his kingdom, which the Sumerians equated to a high mountain. On the mountain of the Earth and the sky, An created an assembly of eminent gods known as the Anunnaki. According to this religion, in the beginning, there was an extensive primordial ocean, and from this infinite sea, the Earth and the sky were born. Basically, the ground and the universe were joined, and An and his favorite son Enlil then separated them.
After that separation, An saw it necessary to create other gods whose obligation was to work for food. At this time, human beings did not exist. Then Ammou, the goddess of fresh water, told her son to create human beings so that they would offer food as a sacrifice to the gods. Enki created the first men with clay. He, however, had to deal with his stubborn wife, the goddess Ninhursag. This goddess bragged that she was capable of destroying what her husband had created. Enki stopped her, but she had her own power, and with it, she created deformed human beings known as “monsters.” An, Enlil, and Enki then formed a protective trinity for human beings.
Human beings had also been made in the likeness of the gods. The gods, on the other hand, were immortal and possessed immense power. According to the story, the gods had a kind of magnificent light that made human beings both respectful and afraid. Everything belonged to the gods. People would take food to them, and the high priest would receive it on their behalf.
The Creation Story According to The Bible
According to the Bible, the universe was created by God. He started by creating heaven and Earth. At first, there was nothing on the Earth; it was filled with darkness and God’s spirit was hovering over the water. God then separated the darkness from the light, and light appeared. That happened on the first day. On the second day, he created the sky. On the third day, he created plants, trees, seas, and land. On the fourth day, God created the stars, the moon, and the sun. On the fifth day, he created animals that fly and sea creatures. On the sixth day, he created animals that live on land. Finally, also on the sixth day, he created human beings in his likeness and image. And by the seventh day, he had already completed all the work, so he rested.
In the Bible, there is also a second version of creation where God started by creating Adam out of dust and breathed life into him. God realized that Adam was lonely and none of the animals made him happy. Therefore, he decided to create a helper for him. God made Adam fall into a deep sleep and removed one of his ribs. Out of it, he made his wife Eve. They were both placed in the Garden of Eden, and they were given the responsibility of taking care of God’s creation.
How the Creation Story in the Sumerian Culture Is Similar to The Bible
In both religions, the universe had not started off as separated, so God separated the universe. In the Sumerian religion, God divided the universe among his two sons and put them in charge of creation. God in the Bible performed the creation himself.
In both religions, God took his time creating human beings; neither religion spends time discussing the time it took to create other creatures; however, there are the details of dust and clay in the creation of human beings. On top of that, human beings were created in the image and likeness of the gods, meaning that, in both cases, human beings were special. Furthermore, when God realized that Adam was bored, he created a helper for him. This means that he valued Adam. Similarly, Ammou asked her son to create human beings so that they could offer sacrifices to the gods. Since they wanted the sacrifices to be offered by human beings and not by any other creatures, this meant that humanity was valued in both religions.
In both cases, human beings were also put in charge of other creatures. This shows that the gods saw that human beings had the potential for being responsible.
According to both stories, the gods are powerful. With a word, they can create what they want. In the Bible, God uses the phrase “Let there be,” and whatever he mentions appears. In the Sumerian religion, Enki’s wife has powers, and even after her husband prevents her from destroying what he has created, she creates monsters.
Summary
The creation stories in these two religions read quite similarly. In both, only the universe existed, before God put everything in order, making the world a beautiful place. In both stories, human beings were created differently from other creatures, and they were given more responsibilities. The gods also have the power to create things just by speaking them into existence. In both religions, human beings are made from clay and the gods breathe air into them. Likewise, human beings are made in the likeness and image of God, and the gods have expectations of them. In the Sumerian religion, the gods expect human beings to offer sacrifices, and in the Bible, God also expects human beings to make offerings to him. After all was said and done, the gods were pleased with their work, and human beings took over from there, carrying out their responsibilities according to what the gods decreed.
