Hebrew And Greek Beliefs On Gods And The Begining Of The Human Race Essay, Research Paper

Hebrew and Greek beliefs on gods and the beginning of the human race

When reading the different writings of the ancient Greeks and the ancient Hebrews we see their different views on who or what created all that is living and their beliefs in gods. In this paper we will look at the beginning of the earth and the beginning of the human race in both of their views.

From reading the works of Hesiod from the hand out of the differences between the Greek beliefs to the Hebrew beliefs about the creation of physical world become apparent. This is evident in the introduction of the creation of the earth by Hesiod. “Tell how the first gods and earth came to be, and rivers, and the boundless sea with its raging swell, and the gleaming stars and the wide heaven above, and the gods who were born of them, givers of good things?. These things declare to us from the beginning, ye Muses who dwell in the house of Olympus, and tell me which first came to be?. Verily at first Chaos came to be, but next wide-bosomed Earth [Ghea]?and Rros [Love] fairest among the deathless gods?. From Chaos came forth Erebus and black Night; of Night were born Aether [the upper air] and Day?”(Hesiod). This interpretation tells us the Greeks believe that many gods make up all that exists. The Hebrews believe that “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). In the Hebrew bible there is references to God creating all that exists in six days “And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made: and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made”(Gen. 2:2). In the book of Genesis 1:1-31 explains how the one god created the earth and heavens with all that makes them up. The difference is the Hebrews belief was in on god whereas, the Greeks believe in many gods.

In the beginning of the human species it was related as a more sophisticated exploration of the situation of men and woman in relation to one another and to their environment. This is evident in the introduction of the theme of a separate creation of woman in Genesis 2:18-24, which, among other things, argues for the complementarity of the two sexes. The impulse to provide explanations can also be seen in the way the story is used to attribute the imperfections of the world to human error “It is a consequence of primordial disobedience that the earth yields its fruits grudgingly” (Gen.3: 17-19) and “that woman’s social position is inferior to that of man in” (Gen.3: 16). In the first account, the Hebrew common noun “Adam” is used, as a generic term for all human beings, regardless of gender and Eve is not mentioned at all. In the second account, Adam is created from the dust of the earth, whereas Eve is created from Adam’s rib and given to him by God to be his wife. In this respect the biblical story of Adam and Eve differs only in details from many other myths of the ancient Greek’s.

Ancient Greeks and the ancient Hebrews have different views on who or what created all that is living and their beliefs in gods. In the Hebrew tradition, the break from mythology took a different direction than it had taken among the Greeks. Here, the source of tension was not the incompatibility of myth and reason – as it had been with the Greeks – but the incompatibility of polytheism and Hebrew monotheism. Greek thinkers resolved the primary tension of myth versus reason by identifying the divine figures in mythology as natural elements and forces, such as the sun and the wind. The Hebrew Bible resolved the primary tension of polytheism versus monotheism by concentrating on the role of a supreme god, known as Jehovah, and by minimizing and eliminating the roles of all other characters who could be considered divine.