Search Results: Genesis

Assyria was the region located in the ancient Near East which, under the Neo-Assyrian Empire, reached from Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) through Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and down through Egypt. The empire began modestly at the city of Ashur...

Jerusalem is a major holy city for the three Western traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It sits on spurs of bedrock between the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea area. To the north and west, it tapers off to the Jezreel Valley...

Anu (also known as An) is an early Mesopotamian sky god who was later viewed as the Father of the Gods and ruler of the heavens, a position which then passed to his son Enlil. He is the son of the couple Anshar and Kishar (heaven and earth...

Ancient Mesopotamian literature developed c. 2600 BCE after scribes, who had formerly been record keepers, began composing original works in the region of Sumer. The Sumerians invented writing c. 3500 BCE, refined the script c. 3200 BCE...

In the book of Genesis in the pre-flood period, Enoch was the son of Jared and the father of Methuselah. There are few details about Enoch. We learn that he lived 365 years, and then Enoch "walked faithfully with God; then he was no more...

Tukulti-Ninurta I (reigned 1244-1208 BCE) was a king of the Assyrian Empire during the period known as the Middle Empire. He was the son of Shalmaneser I (reigned 1274-1245 BCE) who had completed the work of his father, Adad Nirari I, in...

Cain Slaying Abel, oil on oak wood painting by Peter Paul Rubens, produced between 1608 and 1609. Courtauld Institute of Art, London. Cain and Abel were sons of the first humans Adam and Eve in the biblical Book of Genesis. Cain was...

Relief from the Nîmes Cathedral depicting the sacrifices of Cain and Abel. Cain and Abel were sons of the first humans Adam and Eve in the biblical Book of Genesis. Cain was a farmer, and Abel was a shepherd. They both made sacrifices...

The Family of Cain, ink painting by Peter Oliver, after the original image by Paolo Veronese, 1638–47. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Cain and Abel were sons of the first humans Adam and Eve in the biblical Book of Genesis. Cain...

During the period of early Judaism (6th century BCE - 70 CE), Judean religion began to develop ideas which diverged significantly from 10th-to-7th-centuries BCE Israelite and Judean religion. In particular, this period marks a significant...