Dragons in Genesis

Hidden behind the story of the first muder is a wild collection of older myths that include the god Tammuz and the goddess Inanna and a pair of suitors competing for divine favor. There are stories of sun gods riding into the heavens to learn the secrets of the universe. And maybe there's even a version of the tale that says Cain, not Seth, was the ancestor of Noah. And strangeer still is the possibility that Adam wasn't his father.

A look into the mythological and historical inspirations behind the divine garden, man's fall from grace, and the expulsion from Eden. Where was Eden? What was the forbidden knowledge? Was Satan involved? Do other religions have this same story? All these questions and more are addressed in this episode.

A drunk, naked Noah gets castrated and everyone gets their own city and their own language... then they all get new languages again!

42. It's the answer to life, the universe, and everything! It's also the number of gods I found in the Bible. From well-known gods like El Elyon and Yahweh to lesser-known deities like Damuzid and Dagon, to monstrous gods like Yam and Nehushtan, we cover as many deities as we can shake a magic spear at. In this episode we look at Yahweh's family tree, talking about his father, mother, wives, brothers, sisters, friends, enemies, and neighbors. Gods from Mesopotamia to Greece can be found in the bible, and we leave no stone unturned when looking for them.

Are Genesis chapter 1 (the 6 day creation story) and Genesis chapter 2 (Garden of Eden story) part of the same narrative? Were they even written at the same time? Were the inspired by earlier stories? If so, where did those stories come from?