Divine Mediation and the Rise of Civilization in Mesopotamian Literature, Genesis 1–11, and Jewish Apocalyptic

This paper examines the role of divine mediation in the rise of civilization in Mesopotamian literature, the lack thereof in Genesis 1-11, and the return of divine mediation in Jewish apocalyptic literature. A brief survey of Mesopotamian literature shows that civilization was understood to have originated by divine means. The specific means varied from the use of divine intermediaries to the direct creation of aspects of civilization by the gods and their bestowal of humanity. In Gen 1-11, by contrast, civilization does not arise through divine means. There are no divine mediators, and God does not play any role in the development of the arts of civilization. The primary texts analyzed are Gen 4:17-22; 10:8-12; 11:1-9, all of which are consistent in presenting the rise of civilization as the work of humans without divine assistance. The absence of divine mediation of civilization is further highlighted by a brief examination of the return of the mythological motif of divine instruction in the arts of civilization in Jewish apocalyptic literature. 1 Enoch and Jubilees follow roughly the same pattern as the one found in Mesopotamian myths, with civilization arising from the teachings of the Watchers.The key to the absence of the divine instruction motif in Gen 1-11 is the reception of forbidden divine knowledge by humans in the Eden story of Gen 3. The developments in Gen 4-11 are the working out of the divine knowledge obtained by Adam and Eve. This association between civilization and the forbidden divine knowledge obtained in Eden colors civilization in Gen 4-11 negatively. The result is that responsibility for civilization, and the evils which accompany it, is shifted to humans. In the post-exilic era, divine mediation returns as part of a broader phenomenon of the resurfacing of early myths in apocalyptic literature and should be understood as an attempt to address the problem of evil by once again shifting responsibility back to the divine (i.e., demonic) realm.