THE STORY OF THE CREATION.

 FROM THE RUINS OF NINEVEH.

("New York Herald.")

From under the buried ruins of the ancient city of Nineveh come stone tablets telling a new story of the creation of the world. The tablets were found under the ruins of the great palace of Sennacherib by Professor Smith, the famous English Assyriologist, where they had lain, hidden from the sight of man, for more than 2000 years. Sennacherib sent messengers and copyists to all parts of the world to gather up the important documents bearing upon the origin of the world, the birth of man, and the deluge. Some of these messengers were sent to the then ancient city of Borsippa, in Babylonia, where, in the Temple of Nebo, they found wonderful tablets relating to the creation, which were supposed to have been written about 2600 B.C. These tablets, together with copies of those that could not be moved, were taken to the palace, where they were considered the most important documents that the library possessed. They were written in the cuneiform language, and were even then in a somewhat mutilated state, owing to their great age. They remained in the library during the whole of the time the palace existed. Six of these tablets have now been recovered. They bear the indelible stamp of the utmost antiquity, and bring to light many new features of the creation not mentioned in the Bible. On one point —namely, the creation of the sun, moon, and stars—they give an account radically different from that contained in the Old Testament. They place the order as follows:—First, the stars; second, the zodiac ; then the seasons, the equinoxes, the solstices, the night, the month, the day, and, last, the sun. In the Bible this order is just reversed, the Hebrew account giving it as follows :— First, the sun ; second, the day; then the moon, the night, and, last the stars. The portion of the first tablet that has been deciphered reads :—" 1. At that time on high, the heavens were unnamed. 2. Below, on the wide earth, a name was not recorded. 3. The first born ocean was their generator. 4. The chaotic sea was the bearing mother of them all 5. Their waters, as one, were folded together. 6. The cornfield was unharvested, the pasture had not sprung up. 7. When as yet the gods had not come forth any of them. 8. A name was not recorded; order did not exist. 9. Then were made the great gods. 10. Lakthonn and Lakhamn came forth. 11. Until they spread. 12. Far extended were the days, until the gods An-sar and Ki-sar were made. 13 The god Anu."
The numerals indicate the lines as they were inscribed upon the tablet. The tablets then go on to tell that the great serpent of chaos and night was slain. The imprisoned earth was released and divided from the heavens, the three great gods came forth to assume the government of it. The first of the three gods was named Anu, and bore the title of "Father of all the Gods." The second was called Bel, and he performed the duties of guardian of the country. He was the establisher of riches, wealth, and possessions, and also lord of the mountains. The third god was named Ea. He was the lord of the ocean ; the protector of good men ; the lord of the house of knowledge; the lord of the far-seeing eye; the lord who knows all things: The position occupied by Ea in these writings has a great similarity to that occupied by Jehovah in the Bible.
The tablet relating to the creation of animal life and of man is very much mutilated. The portion of it that has been deciphered reads:—" 1. When the gods in their assembly had created great beasts. 2. They made perfect the mighty monsters. 3. They caused the flying creatures to come forth. 4. The cattle of the field, the wild beasts of the field, and the creeping things 5. For the living creatures, 6. The cattle and the creeping things of the city they sent forth. 7. The assembly of creeping things and all the creation. 8. Which is the assembly of my family. 9. Ea, the lord of the illustrious-face, the multitude of creeping things he made strong."
This inscription as will be seen, bears in parts a strong resemblance and a dissimilarity to the Bible version. The lower part of this tablet is in such a mutilated state that the translators have not been able to make out the inscriptions. It is here, probably, that the account of the creation of man was inscribed, and it is the hope of the translators that other fragments of this tablet will be unearthed, with the help of which they may be able to decipher the story. The fragments of the lines that they are able to make out read :—" For thy redemption did he create mankind ; even he, the merciful one, with whom is life." In another corner are the words :—" Mayest thou be great, for a noble companion art thou. Let thy manhood be increased. With the dominion of all the gods I have caused thy hand to be filled." If this applies to the creation of man, as it certainly appears to, it is a remarkable parallel to the Biblical account, although it is, of course, in a very different style of wording. Further down on the tablet are the still more wonderful words :—" Woman from the flank of man was called," which certainly accords with the creation of Eve as recorded in the Bible.
The fifth tablet relates to the creation of the heavenly bodies and of the making of day and night. It corresponds with the fourth day in the Biblical account. The first twenty-four lines only have been translated. They read: —" 1. He made pleasant the position of the great gods. 2. The constellations he arranged them ; the double stars he fixed. 3. He ordained the year and appointed the zodiac signs over it. 4. The twelve months of constellations by threes he fixed. 5. From the day when the year commenced to its close. 6. He established the position of the crossing stars, and for the seasons their bounds. 7. Not to make fault or error of any kind. 8. The abode of Bel and Ea along with himself he fixed. 9. He opened great gates on either side. 10. The bolts he made strong on the right hand and left. 11. In the mass he made a stairway. 12. The illuminator he caused to shine to rule at the night. 13. He appointed him to establish the night until the coming forth of the day. 14. Saying, ' Each month without fail by thy disc keep thou watch.' 15. 'At the beginning of the month, at the rising of the nigh.' 16. 'Horns shall shine forth to announce the night.' 17. 'On the seventh day to a disc it fills up.' 18. 'Open thou and cause the rays of thy face to shine.' 19. 'At that time the sun on the horizon of heaven at thy coming.' 20. 'Shalt divide the form.' 21. 'Toward the path of the sun thou drawest near.' 22. 'Then the shining of the sun shall change.' 23. 'Seeking his path.' 24. 'Set than as by law decreed.' "

This shows how day was created out of the eternal night, and also the instructions given to the moon, which is mentioned as the "Illuminator." It also shows that the moon was created before the sun, whereas in the Bible the sun is given the priority. This difference in these two accounts is very important, affecting as it does the whole story of the work of the creation on the fourth day. It in still more important from the fact that it illustrates clearly that the account could not have been copied from ancient Chaldean records. Besides this, it would appear that the opening chapters of the Bible were not compiled until centuries after the beliefs, as inscribed on the tablets, had been forgotten.
The portion of the tablet relating to the creation of the sun speaks of it as "the child of the moon," and further on says :—

"1. Oh ! Lord, illuminator of the darkness, opener of the face of the sky. 2. Merciful God. Who setteth up the fallen, who keepeth the weak. 3. Unto thy light turn the great gods. 4. The spirits of earth gaze towards thy face. 5. The tongues of the host as one cry thou directest. 6. Smiling, their heads they look to the light of the sun. 7. Like a wife thou art—glad and making glad. 8. 'Thou art the light in the vault of the far off heavens. 9. Thou art the eye centre of all the widespread lands. 10. Men from far and near behold thee and rejoice. 11. The great gods smelt the sweet Saviour, the food of the shining heavens. 12. He who hath not turned his head to sin, thou wilt prosper. 13. He shall eat of thy food and be blessed by thee."
The inscriptions on the tablet relating to the Sabbath are very remarkable, as they lay down the commandment that mankind shall abstain from all labours and pleasures on that day. Translated, the lines read :— " 1. The seventh day is a resting day to Merodach and Zarpoint. A hold day, a Sabbath. 2. The shepherd of mighty nations most not eat flesh cooked at the fire, or in the smoke. 3. His clothes he changes not. A washing he must not make. 4. He must not offer sacrifices. 5. The king must not drive in his chariot. He must not issue royal decrees. 6. In a secret place the augur a muttering makes not. 7. Medicine for the sickness of his body one must not apply. 8. For making a curse it is not fit. 9. In the night the king makes his free will offering before Merodach and Istar. Sacrifice he slays. 10. The lifting of his hand finds favour with his god."
This version of the Sabbath, although lengthier and much more severe than that in the Bible, closely corresponds with it. The translations of various parts of the tablets show that long before the time of Moses documents of a religious character were studied in Chaldea, and they also serve to illustrate the fact that great civilisations preceded the history of the Hebrew people. They show that these civilisations lived thousands of years before Moses was born, or a word of the Bible was written. These tablets, together with other recent and startling finds, have a very important bearing upon the religion of the world as it is believed in to-day—namely, is the Bible correct when considered in the light of a historical record ? How does it compare with these other and older versions of the origin of the world ?
Within the last few years, the ruins of six great Chaldean or Babylonian cities have been excavated, with the result that the history of man has been traced back about eight thousand years. These cities are Nineveh, Babylon, Sippora, Telio, Ur, and Nippur. The excavations have proved that even at that remote period, 8000 years ago, the world around Chaldea was in a very advanced state of civilisation. These explorations have brought to light seven distinct accounts of the creation. They have each been carefully studied by the most eminent scholars in both this country and abroad, and the consensus of the opinion of these learned men is that they all corroborate the main features of the origin of the world as given in the Bible.

Queenslander (Brisbane, Qld. : 1866 - 1939), Saturday 23 October 1897, page 798