Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1875-04-29
&eadiug fur the Sabbath,
CONDUCTED BY
REV. ROBERT LATHAM.
[Orginal.l
THE CHALDEAN HISTORY OF THE FLOOD.
Besorus, Chaldean priest who lived three

lOhginal.l
THE CHALDEAN HISTORY OF THE FLOOD.
Besorus, Chaldean priest who lived three
centuries before Christ, wrote history of the
flood, some fragments of which have been
preserved by the Greek historians 1nas-
much as he wrote after the Jewish captivity,
and differed very slightly from the Scripture
record, there was great reason to doubt,
whether he may not have obtained his infor-
nation from the captured Jews, rather than
from alleged inscriptions on Chaldean monu-
ments. But all doubt on this question is now
happily removed.
In 1912, NJ. Botta was appointed French
Consul at Mosul Some of his workmen,
digging a we'll at Khorsahad, struck upon the
walls of the palace built by Sargon, king of
Assyria, seven hundred and twenty years be.
fore Christ. The winged bulls and other
splendid sculptures and antiquities, thence
taken by NJ. Botta to Paris, suficed to arouse
the spirit of other explorers, amongst whom
Mr.. Layard, assisted by Sir Stratford Can
Ding met the first remarkable success. He
soon discovered the palaces of Sennacherib
and Esarhaddon, also some minor monuments,
all of which he subsequently described and
illustrated. After him Sir Henry Rawlinson,
author Of the historical evidences Of the Bible,
discovered many monuments, which he sent
to the British Museum, and persevered until
he discovered the key to reading the inscrip-
tions upon them. Thus the whole volume of
ancient Assyrian and Babylouish history was
opened to subsequent explorers. This volume
George Smith has read and translated with
great assiduity and remarkable results, which
he has lately published. Chief amongst his
discoveries ale the tablets of the "Izdubar
Legends" There we're twelve of them, but
only the 9Th, 9Th, 9th, 10th, 18th, and 18th,
have yet been found. The 18th contains the
Chaldean history of the deluge. Izdubar was
Nimrod, and his chief city, Erech. (See Gen
esis 10: 1O) He was mighty hunter, and
his friend and hunting companion. Heabani,
an astrooger and soothsayer, was killed by
wild beast. Izdubar, was inconsolable for
Heabanis death and the 9th tablet is in
scribed with funeral ode on the occasion. 1t
bewails Heabani as covered with the mantle
of darkness" lifting his bow''-"not
grasping his mace"-"not sharing the noble
banquet" The bitterest vail of all is this
"Thy wife whom thou lowest, thou dost not
kiss; thy wife whom thou hatest, thou dost not
strike." Izdubar in his grief and detection,
grows incurably sick, and is warned in a
dream to seek the aid of Hasisadra-the
Noah of the Bible According to this Chal-
dean history, he had not survived the flood /;
but at its close had been translated to hea.
ven-or rather to the spirit state-in far of
city, where he built the ark That city is
named Surippak-"the ark city"-and lay on
the Persian gulf near the mouth of the Eu-
pirates river. Monuments found in Babylon
show that it bore that name up to the 18th
century before Christ, at which time it was
captured by Hammenabi, king of Babylon
There Izdubar hastens to seek the aid of the
spirit of Hasisadra. After long and diff
cult journey, in which he encounters giants
and demons, he reaches the spirit of Hasisa-
dra, which tells the history of the deluge, and
there directs Urhamsi to cure Izdubar by
bathing him seven times in the sea. Thus the
leprosy is cast of, and Izdubar goes home in
youthful beauty.
To condense this history of the flood, set
forth in the many columns of the tablet, we
might say in brief that it differs very little
from the Bible history in the main facts, but
is very much longer in it's multitude Of details.
1t represents the people as destroyed for their
wickedness by Hea-god of the sea. He
warns Hasisadra to build the ark. Its d.
mensions are given in cubits, but the key to
the figures has not been discovered. Hasisa-
dra, though then living and ruling in city
which he had founded on the Persian gulf, is
nevertheless commanded to build the ship on
dry land He hesitated, saying, "The young
and the old will deride me-" The reply Of
Hea is mutilated, but it causes the ship to be
built-"on the earth fixed" The frame, the
planks, the roof, he mentions, and then says,
''three measures of bitumen I poured over the
outside-three measures I poured over the
inside" Then come boxes and baskets con-
tanning articles for the sacrifice. Swine in
goat-skins I collected like the waters of a
river" Food, as the dust of the earth" Hea
"gathered the beasts of the field" Women
servants, female slaves and boatmen also were
taken in. The ark was entered and the door
shut. Then follows the description of the
terrible storm. Thus: "The raging of a storm
in the morning arose from the horizon Of
heaven extending wide" "Vul in the midst
of it thundered." "Nebo went in 'front.'
throne bearers went over mountains and
plains" "The spirits carried destruction /;
in their glory they swept the earth. Of Vul
the flood reached to heaven" "The bright
earth to a waste was turned" "Brother saw
not his brother" "In heaven the gods sought
refuge. They assembled to the heaven of
Anu" Gall to corruption turned, and there
1, in presence of the gods prophesied evil
to evil were devoted all my people-like the
young fishes, they filled the sea-" "The gods
were weeping, in seats, seated in lamentation,
covered were their lips for the coming evil"
81 perceived the sea making a tossing, and the
ub olo of nonLind turnad IN corru DtiOn-like