a writer, much less of a person such as the author of the Priestly document. In addition, there are the manifold parallels from heathen creation myths which totally agree with this introduction, that the world was originally water and darkness.6 One further notes the word בֹּהוּ [bōhû], shown to be ancient by the Phoenician βάαυ [baau],7 and תְהוֹם [tĕhôm] (also ancient because of the lack of an article). But even leaving this out of consideration, it is apparent to us from Jewish literature,