Bible-Genesis — The Biblical Account¶
Zecharia Sitchin considered the Book of Genesis to be a highly compressed and edited version of much older Sumerian accounts of creation, the early history of humanity, and the Great Flood. He argued that the biblical scribes, during the Babylonian Exile (6th century BCE), adapted the Enuma Elish and Atra Hasis epics into a monotheistic framework.
Sitchin's Reading of Genesis¶
Day One: The Solar System¶
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep." (Genesis 1:1-2)
Sitchin read "the deep" (Hebrew: tehom) as a reference to Tiamat. The "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) described Tiamat's shattered state after the collision with Nibiru.
The Firmament (Rakia)¶
"Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters." (Genesis 1:6)
Sitchin interpreted the "firmament" as the Earth's atmosphere and, more specifically, the Van Allen radiation belts — the "waters above" being cosmic waters or plasma trapped by the magnetic field.
The Garden of Eden¶
"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden." (Genesis 2:8)
Sitchin localized E.Din ("the righteous abode of the righteous ones") in Mesopotamia, specifically the Eridu region. The four rivers of Eden (Pishon, Gihon, Tigris, Euphrates) were, in his reading, geographical features of ancient Mesopotamia.
The Nefilim¶
"The Nefilim were on the earth in those days, and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bore children to them." (Genesis 6:4)
Sitchin read Nefilim as "those who have come down" — the Anunnaki astronauts. The "sons of God" (bene elohim) were the Anunnaki, and the "daughters of men" were human women. The offspring were the hybrid Nephilim.
"At that time the Nefilim were upon the Earth, and also afterward, when the sons of the Elohim (the Anunnaki) came unto the daughters of the Adam, and they bore children unto them." — Sitchin's translation of Genesis 6:4
The Tower of Babel¶
"Let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven." (Genesis 11:4)
Sitchin saw the Tower of Babel as a launch tower for rocketships (SHEM). The "confusion of tongues" was actually Enlil's order to destroy the spaceport at Sippar during the Pyramid Wars.
Key Biblical Passages Reinterpreted¶
| Genesis Passage | Sitchin's Interpretation |
|---|---|
| Genesis 1:1-2 | Creation of Earth from Tiamat's remains |
| Genesis 1:26 "Let us make man" | Plural indicating the Anunnaki council |
| Genesis 2:7 "Breath of life" | The Nefesh — the Anunnaki genetic essence |
| Genesis 3:22 "Man has become like one of us" | Humanity carrying Anunnaki genetic material |
| Genesis 6:1-4 | Interbreeding between Anunnaki and humans |
| Genesis 11:1-9 | The spaceport at Babylon |
The Hebrew Language¶
Sitchin frequently argued that understanding Hebrew (which he read fluently) was essential to correctly translating Genesis. He pointed to:
- Elohim — a plural noun ("gods") treated as singular in later monotheistic redaction
- Nefesh — not "soul" but "soul/spirit" or "living being"
- Shem — not just "name" but also "vehicle" or "rocketship" (SHEM)
- Tehom — linguistically linked to Tiamat
See Also¶
- Enuma Elish — The Babylonian parallel to Genesis 1
- Atra Hasis — The flood story parallel to Genesis 6-9
- E.Din — The Garden of Eden
- Adamu — The first human
- Old Testament — The Old Testament in broader context
- Sumer — The Sumerian origins of biblical narratives
Sources¶
- Sitchin, Z. (1976). The 12th Planet. Chapter 8.
- Sitchin, Z. (1985). The Wars of Gods and Men. Chapters 6-8.
- Sitchin, Z. (1990). Genesis Revisited. New York: Avon Books.
- Heiser, M. S. (2015). The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible.