Comparing Noah and the Ark and The Story of the Great Flood

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Recommended: Compare the story of the flood in Gilgamesh with Noah's story in Genesis

Comparing Noah and the Ark and The Story of the Great Flood

"The Story of the Great Flood" and the account of Noah and the ark are two similar stories in regards to their general message, however both are very different. The main idea of these two stories is that the life of mankind was filled with sin and each given deity destroyed them. In both accounts, the deity has the same purpose for their action against man. Also mentioned is the working of one god versus multiple gods. These two occurrences highlight differences between divine beings and human beings.

These two stories detail a flooding of the earth in the early times of creation. The story of Noah tells about the Christian God temporarily ridding the world from all the sin and hatred in the hearts of mankind. God was disgusted with the way mankind was living the life He gave them and decided to start over, in a matter of speaking. He spoke to Noah, the man who, according to the story, built a large boat, the ark, to save his family and creatures, two by two, to continue life. After the flood, the people, animals, and creatures on the ark replenished the earth, continuing life.

In "The Story of the Great Flood," the ancient Mesopotamian gods believed that man's behavior was "intolerable." The Council of the Gods agreed to exterminate mankind because of the way they were living. Because of the loyalty of one god, mankind along with all other life continues. After the flood the gods were all amazed with what they did. They were in total shock because they realized that they had killed all life on the earth. Little did they know, two of all the creatures on the earth were saved.

These two stories consist of the same equation. Both include a flood to destroy Earth. Both had survivors to replenish life. In both, their respective deities spoke to the survivors, however the story of Noah only had one god and the other had many.

In the Christian story of Noah, God knew that life would prevail and continue on Earth after the flood. He, God, was also aware of the consequences that he had to look forward to. He knew that all life would be destroyed and then it would start over.

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