Guide
Creation and the Beginning of the World in Genesis
The Hebrew Bible begins with the creation of the world and the first generations of humans.
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The biblical story begins with creation, which progresses through several stages, culminating in the creation of humans. The humans commit wrongful acts, and eventually God sends a flood to destroy the earth. A remnant—Noah, his family, and the animals in the ark—is saved. The flood is an undoing of creation, and after it, life begins anew. In response to human hubris, God divides humanity into different nations, speaking different languages, and scatters them over the whole earth.
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Related Primary Sources
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Creation and the Early History of Humanity
When God began to create heaven and earth—the earth being unformed and void, with darkness over the surface of the deep and a wind from God sweeping over the…
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The Flood
This is the line of Noah.—Noah was a righteous man; he was blameless in his age; Noah walked with God.—Noah begot three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
The earth became corrupt before…
Primary Source
The Tower of Babel
Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words. And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, “Come, let…
Primary Source
The Flood Story in the Atrahasis Epic
The flood story in the Atrahasis Epic, Babylonia, 17th century BCE. The epic relates the early history of humanity from creation through the flood. Apart from its polytheistic perspective, it has many…