The Purpose of the Biblical Flood narrative

1970 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essays on the flood in the bible

The Old Testament can be described as “an anthology of the literature of ancient Israel and early Judaism” (Coogen 2008) that contains many forms of writings and stories which address not only myth, main historical events and laws, but also those that follow the Israelites unique relationship with God. The first book of the Old Testament is known as Genesis, which is highly concerned with the world’s creation and its initial stages. It is also the origin of the biblical Flood Narrative concerning Noah and the Ark. The story is characterised by a man that is instructed to build an ark under the guidance of God, and take with him family members and pairs of animals, to survive a catastrophic universal flood. “The flood narrative belongs to the genre of myth. We are meant to read it as a story and allow it to play on our imagination so that we discover its deep reality” (Woods 2014) whilst also taking into consideration the context and audience for which it was originally intended, to discover its theological purpose. This essay will not only address its overall theological purpose but also concentrate on the history associated with the narrative in regards to its origin using geographical reasoning, reference and com parison of similarities and differences of other cultural flood stories, but also source criticism to gain an understanding of different proclamations made by God in reference to the author of the text and how the characteristics of their writing will in turn influence the message received by the reader. Lastly, this paper will focus on the major warning the story is constructed upon and relate it to both present and past audiences. Although stating that the Flood narrative is one of myth, research into the factua... ... middle of paper ... ...ork: Doubleday & Company, Inc, 1964. Towner, Wayne S. Genesis. Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001. Vawter, Bruce. A Pathway Through Genesis. London: Sheed and Ward LTD, 1957. Von Rad, Gerhard. Genesis: A Commentary. London: SCM Press Ltd, 1972 Wenham, G.J. “The Coherence of the Flood Narrative.” Vetus Testamentum 28, 3(1978): 336 – 34. Accessed February 22, 2014. doi: 10.2307/1517042 Woods, Laurie. “THBS 501 Biblical Studies”. Accessed February 17, 2014. http://leo.acu.edu.au/pluginfile.php/650371/mod_folder/content/0/Day%2001/Essential%20Reading/READINGS%201%20and%202.%20Introduction%20to%20Gen%201-11.pdf?forcedownload=1 Woods, Laurie. “The Flood and Tower of Babel”. Accessed February 17, 2014. http://leo.acu.edu.au/pluginfile.php/650371/mod_folder/content/0/Day%2001/Extension%20Reading/The%20Flood%20and%20Tower%20of%20Babel.pdf?forcedownload=1

Show More
Related

  • Analyzing the Epic of Gilgamesh by F. Lorey through a Creationists Viewpoint

    811 Words  | 2 Pages

    It contains useful comparisons and historical data to help support his analysis. The author considers the story to hold very value for Christians. It concerns the typical myths that were tied to pagan people. Despite that theory, there have been many Christians who have studied the afterlife and creation in the epic. He suggests an interesting thought when he starts to explain the story. The author hints that maybe the main character, Gilgamesh, was a historical figure. The base analysis for his line of thought is the story of the flood found in the bible. After looking at the lengths of time of each story, he considers it to not be a problem. To provide some evidence, the author shows a chart of a series of questions about each flood and compares the two. The most striking comparison in the chart was the command to build a boat; "O man of Shuruppak, son of Ubar-Tutu, tear down thy house, build a ship; abandon wealth, seek after life; scorn possessions, save thy life. Bring up the seed of all kinds of living things into the ship which thou shalt build. Let its dimensions be well measured."17 The text from the quote can almost match what the bible said. In both stories the person was commanded to build a boat because a flood is coming due to man’s sins or man’s wickedness. In the conclusion of the article, the author says a bold statement; “the widespread nature of flood traditions throughout the entire human race is exce...

    Read More

  • Creation Untamed Sparknotes

    1079 Words  | 3 Pages

    Noah and the great flood, and the suffering of Job. The biblical excerpts provide the guide to

    Read More

  • The Gods are Angry: Possible Origins of Global Flood Myth

    2088 Words  | 5 Pages

    Most of us have probably heard the famous bible story about Noah’s Ark and The Flood. What most may not know, is that this story is just one of a great many. A variety of ancient cultures, from the Greeks and the Middle East, to Asia and the Americas, have in their mythologies a story of a Great Flood that drowns the earth. These stories mostly contain the same themes: a god or group of gods becomes angry; they flood the earth but save a small group of people. These people build a boat to survive. After the flood they repopulate the earth.

    Read More

  • Comparing the Flood and Creation in Ovid's Metamorphoses and Genesis

    1080 Words  | 3 Pages

      The Biblical account in Genesis,  probably written by Moses around 1500 B.C., and the story of creation and flood in Ovid's Metamorphosis, written somewhere between 8 and 17 A.D., have weathered the criticism and become the most famous.   The Genesis account, however, may be the most prominent of the two accounts.   Within these accounts, are many similarities, as well as differences, which make these two writings well respected, while holding their own in the literary world. Though both accounts of the creation and flood are well respected on their own, when compared side to side, they are drastically different.

    Read More

  • Analysis of John MacArthur's The Battle for the Beginning

    1369 Words  | 3 Pages

    MacArthur, John. The Battle for the Beginning: The Bible on Creation and the Fall of Adam.

    Read More

  • Flood Stories of the Epic of Gilgamesh and Book of Genesis of the Christian Bible

    951 Words  | 2 Pages

    The amazing stories of the great flood that are described in The Epic of Gilgamesh which is translated by N.K. Sandars and “The Story of the Flood” which is the King James version, both stories similarly. Many of the events of each story are very similar in ways and very different in some of them. From reading both stories I concluded that there was a huge flood that took place in that area of the world. Even though the way both stories describe the flood; The Epic of Gilgamesh is more imaginable. I say that because it is more realistic to have rain for six days, six nights than for forty days, forty nights. Both flood stories have a major similarity and difference though. Both stories described the same flood but they did it in different ways.

    Read More

  • The DEA

    1627 Words  | 4 Pages

    The story of the great flood has been debated many times as far as its historical accuracy. Many experts seem to think that such an event would be unnatural while others believe that this great worldwide flood actually did occur. In today’s society, more people are beginning to question catastrophic events that occur in nature. This great flood seems to be a very common example of this. This research paper will investigate the Holy Bible’s reliability as scientific and historical literature by focusing on its recording of the great flood. Many people are interested in these world phenomena’s; this paper will aim to end some of the controversy about this particular phenomenon.

    Read More

  • Bible: The Book of Daniel

    2250 Words  | 5 Pages

    ... Print. The. 2003 Hartman, Louis F. & Lella, Alexander A. The Anchor Bible, The Book Of Daniel. New Haven & London: Yale University Press. Print, 1978 Cook, Stephen L. Apocalyptic Literature.

    Read More

  • The Differences Between Enuma Elish-The Epic of Creation and Genesis 1:1-3:24

    618 Words  | 2 Pages

    In this paper I will discuss three similarities and four differences between Enuma Elish-The Epic of Creation (King,1902) and Genesis 1:1-3:24 as described by Michael Fishbane (Fishbane, 1979). These writings are selected to describe the story of creation of the earth and the inhabitants of the earth. However, each author has a very different view and way of explaining what they have interpreted the sacred texts to mean.

    Read More

  • Who is Melchizedek?

    1051 Words  | 3 Pages

    Franz Delitzsch, A New Commentary on Genesis: Vol. I (New York: Scribner & Welford, 1889), p. 409.

    Read More

  • Evidence for the Biblical Flood

    1979 Words  | 4 Pages

    “And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy the earth. Make yourself an ark…” (Genesis 6:13-14, English Standard Version) “For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die.” (Genesis 6:17, ESV) “And of every living thing of all flesh you shall bring two of every sort into the ark to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female.” (Genesis 6:19, ESV) “Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.” (Genesis 6:22, ESV) “In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the second month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened. And rain fell upon the earth forty days and forty nights.” (Genesis 7:11-12, ESV) Everyone has heard the story of Noah’s ark and the great Flood. But is that all it is? Just a story? If a catastrophe of this scale really happened, it would have left plenty of evidence behind. And it did. The fossil record shows evidence of a small period of time in which all the major groups of life (phyla) appear without ancestors. (Wieland, n.d.) This alleged explosion of evolution is called the Cambrian explosion. However, Christians believe the Cambrian explosion is actually the Flood, in which all life on earth is rapidly buried by sediments picked up from the flood waters. Another piece of evidence for the Flood is the perfectly preserved mammoths. The mammoths show signs of being instantly buried and frozen, many while standing up. (Brown, 1995-2013) Evidence for this is fou...

    Read More

  • Caesar Agustus

    1043 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hyma, Albert, and Mary Stanton, Dr. Streams of Civilization: Earliest times to theDiscovery of the New World. Vol. 1. Arlington Heights, IL: Christian Liberty, 1976. Print N.D

    Read More

  • Inexplicable Supernatural Events In The Bible

    1470 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Exodus of the Hebrew people out of Egypt as depicted in the Holy Bible is controversial. A literal, Biblical reading depicts inexplicable supernatural events suggesting the influence of the God of the Hebrews. There are three main theories about the Exodus Event. The first is that the event occurred exactly as accounted in the Bible, miraculous events included. Secondly, that the Exodus did occur, just not as the Bible describes. The last is that the event never occurred. The explanation of these theories will be presented in this paper.

    Read More

  • What is Worldview?

    1025 Words  | 3 Pages

    As the first book of the Old Testament convey, Genesis, and its Greek meaning “in the beginning,” life originated with God in the Garden of Eden. Accor...

    Read More

  • The Myth of Exodus

    1187 Words  | 3 Pages

    There are many themes running through the Old Testament myth of Exodus – slavery, rescue and redemption, guidance, commandments on how to live, the creation of a nation, and God’s power over other gods. In this paper I will explore what appears to be the chief reasoning behind the creation of the Exodus myth – the explanation of the creation of a monotheistic religion and the similarities of the Exodus myth to the ancient myths, as well as how one should approach the reading of the myth.

    Read More

More about The Purpose of the Biblical Flood narrative

Open Document