Introduction
Hesiod’s work Theogony is a reflection of the worldview of the Greeks in the era of the formation of a class society. In a broad sense, it presents the genealogy of the gods, becoming a harbinger of ancient Greek philosophy. The epic poem was the first attempt to systematize the history of the world’s origin, exploring and explaining abstract concepts about Chaos, Erebus – eternal darkness – and Ether. Theogony reflected the natural science views of the ancient Greeks through fantasy tales and myths.
Meanwhile, in the Old Testament, as in the Bible in general, neither theology nor philosophy is truly present. Indeed, the biblical writers did pose theological or philosophical questions, but none of them ever attempted to present a whole and complete scientific system. Unlike Hesiod’s systematization presented in Theogony, there is no unified naturalistic approach to the world’s order in the Old Testament. While both works attempt to explain the role of gods in human life, defining the complex nature of divine presence, their approaches are fundamentally different.
Differences Between Hesiod’s Theogony and the Old Testament
As established above, the poem Theogony attempts to understand the world. Chaos, earth, underworld, ocean, sun and moon, day and night, and other phenomena of the Cosmos, as well as terrestrial nature and life, are depicted in the images of gods, titans, nymphs, and their offspring (Scully & Loney, 210). In their totality, all these concepts represent a mythological picture of the universe.
This was the first attempt to realize a gigantic idea: to bring numerous legends about the origin of the gods together to link them into a story about the origin of the world. Hesiod writes: “[Muses] sing of the genes of men and the strong Giants, thus pleasing the noose of Zeus, who abides in Olympus” (50). In this regard, the poem of Hesiod is the ancestor of early Greek natural philosophy – the doctrine of the forces and laws of nature.
While Theogony takes a philosophical, almost scientific approach to establishing the intricate rules that regulate the universe’s existence, the Old Testament uses its narrative to prove the reality of God. Biblical poetry, even when it comes to intensely lyrical descriptions of nature, is not an end in itself but rather serves another primary goal. In any story, myth, or discussion, the goal is to provide evidence of God’s presence in every aspect of life. The Psalm of David 24:1 states that “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein” (King James Bible, 471).
In this regard, the Old Testament uses its basis not in history, poetry, or philosophy but in a living testimony of a person – a story about an experienced meeting with a living, real, close God. The God in the Old Testament appears next to a person, as Psalm 25:5 adds, God teaches humans and leads them into faith (King James Bible, 471). Everything else is just a means: historical evidence, biographies of individuals, preaching, and philosophical reflections all serve this ultimate result.
As opposed to the biblical narrative of God’s omnipresence, Hesiod explores not the evidence of divine presence but the gods’ role and place in the world. He also discusses the laws that govern everything and the good morals of the gods (Scully & Loney, 212). There is no need for Hesiod to seek proof of the gods’ existence, as both he and his audience already know they are real.
Rather, Theogony strives to systematize the relationship between gods and the world, using narratives about mythical creatures as metaphors for natural phenomena. The poem establishes what Chaos, Ether, and Night are, what the relation of Chaos to the Earth is, the concept of cosmogonic Eros, and the role gods and other mythic figures play in that system. However, Hesiod’s work is still completely devoid of any truly philosophical reflection, being as direct as the mythology of Homer.
Similarities Between Hesiod’s Theogony and the Old Testament
Despite the differences in the approaches to the divine presence and its role in human life, Theogony and the Old Testament do have certain similarities. Hesiod’s concept of good and evil aligns heavily with the biblical narratives. Good is everything that a person creates and achieves through hard work and overcoming difficulties, illnesses, and temptations. Evil, on the other hand, embodies everything acquired as a result of deceit, cunning, violence, bribery, and perjury, as opposed to what was received in the process of fair exchange in open and creative competition. Both texts explore these concepts through stories, using major mythological figures as examples, creating compelling narratives.
In particular, the tale of Pandora’s box can be considered a Greek representation of the biblical lesson about temptation and divine retribution. Zeus tests people with his gift, as Pandora’s box is a repository of feelings and passions. At the behest of Zeus, the gods give her not only virtues but also weaknesses, as she is human and thus imperfect. In Hesiod’s logic, Pandora herself is the embodiment of temptation – she awakens in men the desire for wealth, and not in the most pious ways (Hesiod, 585).
Overwhelmed by passions, men become ready to commit the most unseemly deeds, and for this, the gods punish humanity with the misfortunes from Pandora’s box. With this tale, Hesiod explains that the actual progression of humanity cannot be built on deceit and hate, and only through hard labor can a person achieve greatness. The Old Testament similarly condones greed and violence – the Gospel of Luke explicitly states that God had warned humanity from covetousness as it is the way to sin.
Conclusion
Faith in God can be a driving force for becoming a better, kinder, and wiser person through continuous learning and self-improvement. In my opinion, the most admirable aspect of belief in God or any other deity is the desire to bring into the lives of others something greater than just one’s presence. The world can be a cruel and dark place, but with faith, one can focus on improving the situation around oneself and inspiring others to learn the ways of humility, kindness, and selflessness.
In humanity, I see unlimited potential for both destruction and creation, and only through self-awareness can each human choose the truly right path for themselves. It troubles me greatly that, more often than not, people can be rather violent towards each other, especially if they do not see eye-to-eye, be it in social, cultural, historical, or religious questions. However, I do believe that with common effort, humanity as a whole can achieve even such ambitious goals as ending world hunger, traveling to space, or establishing earth-wide peace.
Works Cited
Hesiod. “Theogony.” Translated by Gregory Nagy and J. Banks, Harvard | The Center for Hellenic Studies. 2022. Web.
King James Bible. The King James Version of the Old Testament of the Holy Bible. 2020. Web.
Scully, Stephen, and Alexander Loney. The Oxford Handbook of Hesiod. Oxford University Press, 2018.