"The assertion, first recorded and then transmitted by the Sumerians, that "Man" was created by the Nefilim, appears at first sight to clash both with the theory of evolution and with the Judeo-Christian tenets based on the Bible. But in fact, the information contained in the Sumerian texts - and only that information - can affirm the validity of the theory of evolution and the truth of the biblical tale - and show that there really is no conflict at all between the two.
"....The Sumerian texts state that when the Nefilim first came to Earth, the arts of grain cultivation, fruit planting, and cattle raising had not yet extended to Earth. The biblical account likewise places the creation of Man in the sixth "day" of phase of the evolutionary process....
"....All the Sumerian texts assert that the gods created Man to do their work. Putting the explanation in words uttered by Marduk, the Creation epic reports the decision:
I will produce a lowly Primitive;
"Man" shall be his name.
I will create a Primitive Worker;
He will be charged with the service of the gods,
that they might have their ease.
"....That man was created to be a servant of the gods did not strike to ancient peoples as a peculiar idea at all. In biblical times, the deity was "Lord," "Sovereign," "King," "Ruler," "Master." The term that is commonly translated as "worship" was in fact "avod" ("work"). Ancient and biblical Man did not "worship" his god; he worked for him.
"....In the Sumerian versions, the decision to create Man was adopted by the gods in their Assembly. Significantly, the Book of Genesis - purportedly exalting the achievements of a sole Deity - uses the plural Elohim (literally, "deities") to denote "God," and reports an astonishing remark:
And Elohim said:
"Let us make Man in our image,
after our likeness."
"Whom did the sole but plural Deity address, and who were the "us" in whose plural image and plural likeness Man was to be made? The book of Genesis does not provide the answer. Then, when Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the Tree of Knowing, Elohim issued a warning to the same unnamed colleagues: "Behold, Man has become as one of us, to know good and evil."
"Since the biblical story of Creation, like the other tales of beginnings in Genesis, stems from Sumerian origins, the answer is obvious. Condensing the many gods into a Supreme Deity, the biblical tale is but an edited version of the Sumerian reports of the discussions in the Assembly of the Gods.
"The Old Testament took pains to make clear that Man was neither a god nor from the heavens. "The Heavens are the Heavens of the Lord, unto Mankind Earth He hath given." The new being was called "the Adam" because he was created of the "adama," the Earth's soil. He was, in other words, "the Earthling."
"Lacking only certain "knowing" and a divine span of life, the Adam was in all other respects created in the image (selem) and likeness (dmut) of his Creator(s). The use of both terms in the texts was meant to leave no doubt that
"Man was similar to the Gods both physically and emotionally, externally and internally.
"....Although the biblical admonition against the worship of pagan images gave rise to the notion that the Hebrew God had neither image nor likeness, not only the Genesis tale but other biblical reports attest to the contrary. The god of the ancient Hebrews could be seen face-to-face, could be wrestled with, could be heard and spoken to, he had a head and feet, hands and fingers, and a waist. The biblical God and his emissaries looked like men and acted like men - because men were created to look like and act like the gods.
"But in this very simplicity lies a great mystery. How could a new creature possibly be a virtual physical, mental, and emotional replica of the Nefilim? How, indeed, was Man created?
2006-06-23
12:01:49
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9 answers
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Anonymous