Liberal Academics Ignore the Most Ancient Account of Noah's Flood

Unknown to many today is the earliest Flood tablet ever found. It pre-dates the 5 written books of Moses by at least 800 years. It was discovered in the ancient Babylonian city of Nippur in the 1890s. The tablet was so encrusted that its value was not immediately recognized, but by 1909 Dr. Hermann Hilprecht had discerned the figures and translated the text. Given the catalogue designation CBM 13532, it dates from about 2200 B.C., or soon after the Flood itself. More importantly, while the differences between Genesis and Gilgamesh are striking, the similarities between Genesis and this tablet are obvious. There is no detail that differs from Genesis, and nothing extra is added.

Hilprecht’s translation reads as follows, with damaged sections reconstructed by Fritz Hommel and unreadable portions of the text noted:

The springs of the deep will I open. A flood will I send which will affect all of mankind at once. But seek thou deliverance before the flood breaks forth, for over all living beings, however many there are, will I bring annihilation, destruction, ruin. Take wood and pitch and build a large ship!….cubits be its complete height…. a houseboat shall it be, containing those who preserve their life….with a strong roofing cover it…. the ship which thou makest, take into it….the animals of the field, the birds of the air and the reptiles, two of each, instead of (their whole number)….and the family of the….¹

This clear text stands as both a confirmation of Scripture and a condemnation of liberal “scholarship.” It so clearly undermines the “critical” view that it never sees the light of day. Professor Hilprecht himself was hardly a defender of Scripture, yet he was a recognized expert in ancient languages. His translation originally caused quite a storm of controversy among academics, for it undercut their position that Genesis carries no authority, but no challenge was ever levied against his translation. Nevertheless, it remains hidden today. Few know of the tablet, or of its strong testimony to Scripture’s authority.

(excerpted from John D. Morris, Genesis, Gilgamesh, and an Early Flood Tablet, Acts & Facts, November 2011, Institute for Creation Research)

Marko comments: We have Dr. Bill Cooper to thank for rediscovering this tablet and Hilprecht's work. Cooper is a tireless investigator into historical truth and how it confirms the accuracy of Scripture. His tremendous work After the Flood, (available for free in an online edition), chronicles the early histories of northern Europe, and the striking echoes found there to the Table of Nations recorded in Genesis chapter 10. His new rediscovery demonstrates how liberal academics have once again selectively ignored this most priceless tablet, and steer people away from the historical truth of Scripture to sheer ignorance.

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Reference

1. Pinches, G. and F. Hommel. 1910. The Oldest Library in the World and the New Deluge Tablets. Expository Times. 21: 369. Pinches’ editorial marks were omitted for clarity.

Source: Dr. Bill Cooper, The Earliest Flood Tablet, Pamphlet 382, May 2011, published by the Creation Science Movement, Portsmouth, UK.