Noah: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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| birth_date = ~~2948 BC~~

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| death_date = ~~1998 BC~~

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| venerated_in = [[Judaism]] [[Mandaeism]] [[Christianity]] [[Druze faith]]<ref name="Hitti 1928 37">{{cite book|title=The Origins of the Druze People and Religion: With Extracts from Their Sacred Writings| first= Philip K.|last= Hitti|year= 1928| isbn= 9781465546623| page =37 |publisher=Library of Alexandria}}</ref><ref name="Dana 2008 17">{{cite book|title=The Druze in the Middle East: Their Faith, Leadership, Identity and Status| first= Nissim |last= Dana|year= 2008| isbn= 9781903900369| page =17 |publisher=Michigan University press}}</ref> [[Yazidism]] [[Islam]] [[Baháʼí Faith]]

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'''Noah'''{{efn|{{Lang-he|{{Script/Hebrew|נֹחַ}}}} ''Nōaḥ''; {{lang-syr|ܢܘܚ}} ''Nōḥ''; {{lang-am|ኖህ}}, ''Noḥ''; {{lang-ar|نُوح}} ''{{transliteration|ar|ALA-LC|Nūḥ}}''; {{lang-grc|Νῶε}} ''Nôe''}} ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|n|oʊ|.|ə}})<ref>{{cite book|last= Wells|first= John C.|year= 2008|title= Longman Pronunciation Dictionary|edition= 3rd|publisher= Longman|isbn= 9781405881180}}</ref> appears as the last of the [[Antediluvian]] [[Patriarchs (Bible)|patriarchs]] in the traditions of [[Abrahamic religions]]. His story appears in the [[Hebrew Bible]] ([[Book of Genesis]], chapters 5–9), the [[Quran]] and [[Baháʼí literature|Baha'i writings]]. Noah is referenced in various other books of the Bible, including the [[New Testament]], and in associated [[deuterocanonical books]].

The [[Genesis flood narrative]] is among the best-known stories of the [[Bible]]. In this account, God regretted making mankind because they filled the world with evil. Noah then labored faithfully to build the [[Noah's Ark|Ark]] at [[God]]'s command, ultimately saving not only his own family, but mankind itself and all land animals, from extinction during the [[Great Flood|Flood]]~~, which God created after regretting that the world was full of sin~~. Afterwards, God made a [[Covenant (biblical)|covenant]] with Noah and promised never again to destroy ~~all the~~ Earth's ~~creatures~~ with a flood. Noah is also portrayed as a "tiller of the soil" and as a drinker of wine. After the flood, God commands Noah and his sons to "be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth".

The story of Noah in the Pentateuch is similar to the flood narrative in the Mesopotamian [[Epic of Gilgamesh]], composed around 1800 BCE, where a hero builds an ark to survive a divinely sent flood. Scholars suggest that the biblical account was influenced by earlier Mesopotamian traditions, with notable parallels in plot elements and structure. Comparisons are also drawn between Noah and the Greek hero [[Deucalion]], who, like Noah, is warned of a flood, builds an ark, and sends a bird to check on the flood's aftermath.

The myth of the global flood that destroys all life begins to appear in the [[Old Babylonian Empire]] period (20th–16th centuries BCE).<ref>Chen, Y.S. (2013). ''The Primeval Flood Catastrophe: Origins and Early Development in Mesopotamian Traditions''. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0199676200.</ref> The version closest to the biblical story of Noah, as well as its most likely source, is that of [[Utnapishtim]] in the [[Epic of Gilgamesh]].<ref>Nigosian, S.A. (2004). ''From Ancient Writings to Sacred Texts: The Old Testament and Apocrypha''. JHU Press. ISBN 978-0801879883.</ref> It dates to around 1800 BCE and closely parallels the biblical Noah story with elements such as the flood's cause by gods, the construction of an ark, the rescue of animals, and the sending out of birds after the waters recede.

==Biblical narrative==

[[File:Noah mosaic.JPG|thumb|upright |12th-century Venetian [[mosaic]] depiction of Noah sending the [[dove]]]]

Tenth and final of the pre-Flood ([[antediluvian]]) Patriarchs, son to [[Lamech (father of Noah)|Lamech]] and ~~an unnamed~~a mother whose name is unmentioned,<ref>Fullom, S.W. (1855). [https://books.google.com/books?id=ELtYAAAAcAAJ&q=noah+mother ''The History of Woman, and Her Connexion with Religion, Civilization, & Domestic Manners, from the Earliest Period'']. p.10</ref> Noah is 500 years old before his sons [[Shem]], [[Ham, son of Noah|Ham]] and [[Japheth]] are born.<ref name=Bechtel>{{CE1913 |last=Bechtel |first=Florentine Stanislaus |title=Noe |volume=11}}</ref>

===Genesis flood narrative===

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===After the flood===

After the flood, Noah offered burnt offerings to God. God accepted the sacrifice, and made a covenant with Noah, and through him with all mankind, that he would not waste the earth or destroy man by another deluge.<ref name=Bechtel/>

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[[File:Noah-Curses-Ham.jpg|thumb|upright|''Noah curses Ham'' by [[Gustave Doré]]]]

In the context of Noah's drunkenness,<ref>{{Bibleverse||Genesis|9:18–27|HE}}</ref> relates two facts: (1) Noah became drunken and "he was uncovered within his tent", and (2) [[Ham (son of Noah)|Ham]] "saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without".{{sfn|Rashkow|2004|p=53}}<ref name="Bergsma/Hahn"/>

Because of its brevity and textual inconsistencies, it has been suggested that this narrative is a "splinter from a more substantial tale".{{sfn|Speiser|1964|p=62}}<ref>T. A. Bergren. ''Biblical Figures Outside the Bible'', 2002, ({{ISBN|1563384116}}, {{ISBN|978-1-56338-411-0}}), p. 136</ref> A fuller account would explain what exactly Ham had done to his father, or why Noah directed a curse at [[Canaan (son of Ham)|Canaan]] for Ham's misdeed, or how Noah realised what had occurred. In the field of [[psychological biblical criticism]], [[J. Harold Ellens|J. H. Ellens]] and W. G. Rollins have analysed the unconventional behavior that occurs between Noah and Ham as revolving around sexuality and the exposure of genitalia as compared with other Hebrew Bible texts, such as Habakkuk 2:15<ref>{{Bibleverse|Habakkuk|2:15|HE}}</ref> and Lamentations 4:21.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Lamentations|4:21|HE}}</ref>{{sfn|Rashkow|2004|p=53}}

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Noah has several titles in Islam, based primarily on praise for him in the Quran, including "Trustworthy Messenger of God" ({{qref|26|107}}) and "Grateful Servant of God" ({{qref|17|3}}).<ref name=Skolnik287 >{{cite book | editor-last1=Skolnik | editor-first1=Fred | editor-last2=Berenbaum | editor-first2=Michael | editor3=Thomson Gale (Firm) | title=Encyclopaedia Judaica | year=2007 | isbn=978-0-02-865943-5 | oclc=123527471 | url=http://catalog.hathitrust.org/api/volumes/oclc/70174939.html | access-date=29 November 2019 | first1=Dwight | last1=Young | chapter=Noah | edition=2nd | quote=The earliest Mesopotamian flood account, written in the Sumerian language, calls the deluge hero Ziusudra, which is thought to carry the connotation “he who laid hold on life of distant days.” | volume=15 | pages=287–291 | chapter-url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/philosophy-and-religion/biblical-proper-names-biographies/noah}}</ref><ref name="Enc Islam">{{cite book|last=Gibb|first=Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen|author-link=Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen Gibb|title=The Encyclopaedia of Islam: NED-SAM|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OO4pAQAAMAAJ|year=1995|publisher=Brill|pages=108–109|isbn=9789004098343}}</ref>

The Quran focuses on several instances from Noah's life more than others, and one of the most significant events is the Flood. God makes a [[covenant (biblical)|covenant]] with Noah just as he did with Abraham, [[Moses in Islam|Moses]], [[Jesus in Islam|Jesus]] and [[Muhammad in Islam|Muhammad]] later on ({{qref|33|7|pl=y}}). Noah is later reviled by his people and reproached by them for being a mere human messenger and not an angel ({{qref|10|72-74|pl=y}}). Moreover, the people mock Noah's words and call him a liar ({{qref|7|62|pl=y}}), and they even suggest that Noah is possessed by a devil when the prophet ceases to preach ({{qref|54|9|pl=y}}). Only the lowest of classes in the community join Noah in believing in God's message ({{qref|11|29|pl=y}}), and Noah's narrative further describes him preaching both in private and public. The Quran narrates that Noah received a revelation to build an [[Noah's Ark|Ark]], after his people refused to believe in his message and hear the warning. The narrative goes on to describe that waters poured forth from both the earth and the Heavens, destroying all the sinners. Even one of his sons disbelieved him, stayed behind, and was drowned. After the Flood ended, the Ark rested atop [[Mount Judi]] ({{qref|11|44|b=y}}).

[[File:Noah's ark and the deluge.JPG|thumb|upright|Ottoman depiction of Noah's ark and the deluge from ''[[Zubdat al-Tawarikh|Zubdat-al Tawarikh]]'', 1583]]

Also, Islamic beliefs deny the idea of Noah being the first person to drink wine and experience the aftereffects of doing so.<ref name=Skolnik287 /><ref name = "Enc Islam"/>

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===Ancient Greek===

Noah has often been compared to [[Deucalion]], the son of [[Prometheus]] and [[~~Pronoia~~Hesione (Oceanid)|Hesinoe]] in [[Greek mythology]]. Like Noah, Deucalion is warned of the flood (by [[Zeus]] and [[Poseidon]]); he builds an ark and staffs it with creatures – and when he completes his voyage, gives thanks and takes advice from the gods on how to repopulate the Earth. Deucalion also sends a pigeon to find out about the situation of the world and the bird returns with an olive branch.<ref>'{{Britannica|159650|Deucalion}}</ref><ref>Wajdenbaum, P., [https://books.google.com/books?id=3kiPBAAAQBAJ&q=noah&pg=PA92 ''Argonauts of the Desert: Structural Analysis of the Hebrew Bible''], Routledge, 2014, pp. 104–108.</ref> Deucalion, in some versions of the myth, also becomes the inventor of wine, like Noah.<ref>Anderson, G., [https://books.google.com/books?id=G9IQt92pbjwC&dq=noah+deucalion&pg=PA130 ''Greek and Roman Folklore: A Handbook''], Greenwood Publishing Group, 2006. pp. 129–130.</ref> [[Philo]]<ref>Lewis, JP.; Lewis, JP., [https://books.google.com/books?id=mO_H2lVTyhkC&q=philo+noah&pg=PA101 ''A Study of the Interpretation of Noah and the Flood in Jewish and Christian Literature''], BRILL, 1968, p. 47.</ref> and [[Justin (historian)|Justin]] equate Deucalion with Noah, and [[Josephus]] used the story of Deucalion as evidence that the flood actually occurred and that, therefore, Noah existed.<ref>Peters, DM., [https://books.google.com/books?id=MXU3PTrFe6gC&q=manu+noah&pg=PA4 ''Noah Traditions in the Dead Sea Scrolls: Conversations and Controversies of Antiquity''], Society of Biblical Lit, 2008, p. 4.</ref><ref>Feldman, LH., [https://books.google.com/books?id=S349d-yRgCIC&q=deucalion&pg=PA166 ''Josephus's Interpretation of the Bible''], University of California Press, 1998, p. 133.</ref>

The motif of a [[weather deity]] who headed the pantheon causing the great flood and then the trickster who [[Creation of life from clay|created men from clay]] saving man is also present in [[Sumerian Mythology]], as [[Enlil]], instead of Zeus, causes the flood, and [[Enki]], rather than Prometheus, saves man. Stephanie West has written that this is perhaps due to the Greeks borrowing stories from the Near East.<ref>West, S. (1994). Prometheus Orientalized. Museum Helveticum, 51(3), 129–149.</ref>

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[[Category:People whose existence is disputed]]

[[Category:Prophets in the Druze faith]]

[[Category:Legendary progenitors]]