Texts in Conversation
Mesopotamian tradition places the world tree on a divine mountain at the center of the world, fed by springs that water a paradise like Dilmun. Ezekiel echoes that tradition when a river flows from the Jerusalem temple, feeding fruit trees on its banks.
Share:
2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Enki and Ninhursag
A Paradise Myth
Ancient Near East
“Let Utu stand in heaven. From the breast of Nanna, From the mouth from which the waters of the earth flow, Bring sweet water from the earth. Let him bring the water up into your great canals. Let him make your city drink from the waters of abundance. Let Dilmun drink from the waters of abundance. Let your well of bitter water become a well of sweet water. Let your furrowed fields and farms bear grain. Let your city become the house of the riverbank.” Now Utu stood in heaven. From the breast of Nanna, From the mouth from which the waters of the earth flow,
Date: 1900 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Ezekiel 47:1
Hebrew Bible
6 He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?” Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I had returned, I noticed a vast number of trees on the banks of the river, on both sides. 8 He said to me, “These waters go out toward the eastern region and flow down into the rift valley; when they enter the Dead Sea, where the sea is stagnant, the waters become fresh. 9 Every living creature that swarms where the river flows will live; there will be many fish, for these waters flow there. It will become fresh, and everything will live where the river flows. 10 Fishermen will stand beside it; from En Gedi to En Eglaim they will spread nets. They will catch many kinds of fish, like the fish of the Great Sea. 11 But its swamps and its marshes will not become fresh; they will remain salty. 12 On both sides of the river’s banks, every kind of tree will grow for food. Their leaves will not wither nor will their fruit fail, but they will bear fruit every month because their water source flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.”
Tags:
Search:
Notes and References
... The divine garden is often the source of life-giving waters that refresh the earth. The land of Dilmun, the most celebrated example of the garden of the gods in Mesopotamian literature, is described in the Sumerian myth called Enki and Ninhursag. The land is watered by the "waters of abundance" from the earth which gush forth to fertilize the land (lines 55-64; ANET, 38). In Ugaritic myth, the high god El dwells "at the sources of the (two) rivers, in the midst of the (double) deep" (CTA 3.5.14-15, etc.). Ezekiel 47:1-12, Zechariah 14:1-21, and Joel 4:16-18 all picture life-giving water rushing forth from the sanctuary on Mt. Zion. In the Ezekiel text this water fertilizes even the area of the Dead Sea. Every creature that comes to the stream lives, and its fish are prolific (verses 9-10). Ezekiel is shown two great trees (or forests) growing on its banks (verse 7) ...
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.