Cosmic Garden and Mountain Imagery in the Old Testament

People in the ancient Near East believed that the gods lived in lush gardens or mountains, as both settings reflected luxury and remoteness—qualities associated with the gods. Gardens and mountains also contrasted with typical living conditions. Most people in the ancient Near East lived in arid climates and relied on what they grew or gathered for food. But, in their view, gardens—where the gods lived—had an abundance of water and a wide range of fresh vegetation for food, shade, and beauty.

People in the ancient Near East thought of mountains as divine abodes because they were extremely remote. They rarely ascended mountains unless required by the grazing cycles of their livestock; hence, mountain dwellings allowed gods to remain separate from humanity. This perception was so widespread that people in areas without natural mountains (such as Mesopotamia or Egypt) created artificial ones. For example, in Mesopotamia, the human-made ziggurat was a mountain-temple where the gods met humanity.

Mountains were also associated with creation. For example, Egyptians believed that the creator god, Atum, lived in a watery abyss—“the Nun”—prior to creation. At creation, Atum rose from the abyss on a primeval mound. The pyramids commemorate the rise of the first mound out of the watery abyss. The single-story temples that replaced pyramids maintained this mound concept: they were built with a slight incline. As worshipers moved toward the holy place at the heart of the temple, they would pass through columned halls decorated with various plants found in the Nile. In effect, worshipers imitated traveling up a mound that rose from the waters as they moved through the temple. The high point of the mound-incline was believed to be the home of the deity.

In addition to places of residence, the temples were also understood to be places where worshipers offered sacrifices and made petitions—and where deities issued cosmic decrees. People in the ancient Near East believed that temples were the headquarters where the gods maintained cosmic order and dispensed their will. Since ancient Semitic people believed their gods lived in tents on sacred mountains, mountains were also considered temples that marked the center of the cosmos.

The cosmic garden and mountain imagery of the Old Testament reflects wider beliefs of the ancient Near East. A close parallel can be found in ancient texts from Ugarit, a city-state of ancient Syria. In the text, Ugarit’s high god, El, lives on a mountain with a lush garden. The mountain is situated at the “source of the two rivers,” amid “the fountains of the double-deep.” El and his divine council (or “heavenly host”) assemble on the cosmic mountain—the place where heaven and earth meet—and issue divine decrees from the “tents of El” or “tabernacle” (KTU 1.1.III:23; 1.2.III:5). El’s coregent, Baal, has his own divine mountain abode and temple-house. His meeting place is the “heights of Tsaphanu,” and his palace is “a house of the clearness of lapis lazuli” with a courtyard of “paved bricks.”

Old Testament Usage of Cosmic Garden and Mountain Imagery

The Old Testament uses all of these descriptive terms for the dwelling place and temple of Yahweh, the God of Israel: Yahweh dwells on mountains (Sinai or Zion; e.g., Exod 34:26; 1 Kgs 8:10; Psa 48:1–2); the Jerusalem temple is located in the “mount of assembly” (Isa 14:13; Psa 82:1); Mount Zion is described as a watery habitation (Isa 33:20–22; Ezek 47:1–12; Zech 14:8; Joel 3:18; compare Heb 4:18). In Ezekiel, Eden is referred to as both a garden and a mountain: Ezekiel 28:13–16 equates the “holy mountain of God” with Eden, the “garden of God”; Eden appears in Ezekiel 28:2 as the “seat of the gods,” the place where Yahweh runs the cosmos with His heavenly host (compare 1 Kgs 22:19–23). In Genesis, Eden—a lush, well-watered garden (Gen 2:6–15)—is where Yahweh first announces His will for humans, likely to the heavenly host (Gen 1:26; 3:14–19, 22–24).

These motifs also appear in descriptions of Mount Sinai and the wilderness wanderings of Israel. God dispenses His laws for Israel from Mount Sinai—the “mountain of God.” These laws are then dispersed by angels—the heavenly host (Acts 7:38, 53; Gal 3:19; Heb 2:2; compare Deut 33:2). When Moses, Aaron, and 70 of the elders ascend Mount Sinai at God’s command, they see Yahweh and feast with Him (Exod 24:9–11). Later, Yahweh moves from Sinai to dwell with His people in the tabernacle tent (Exod 25–40). He also meets with Moses in the tent of meeting (e.g., Exod 33:9–11). The internal tabernacle tent structure is later moved to the temple, leading to the description of the temple on Mount Zion as Yahweh’s tent (Isa 33:20; Psa 26:8; 74:7; 1 Chr 9:23).

Both the tabernacle and the temple preserved the garden and mountain imagery. If God dwelled in the holy of holies, the area outside the holy of holies represented the garden of Eden. The curtains of this internal structure were decorated with cherubim (Exod 26:1; compare Exod 25:17–22), as was the veil separating the holy of holies (most holy place) from the rest of the holy place (Exod 26:31). The cherubim guarded the way to the divine presence as they did in Eden (Gen 3:24). Outside the veil stood the golden lampstand—the menorah—which represented the tree of life (see Exod 25:31–40). The lampstand—composed of a central shaft or “trunk” with six branches on either side—resembled a tree, and was covered with almond blossoms, a symbol of life and its renewal (see Jer 1:11–12; 31:26–27; Psa 127:1; Prov 8:34; compare Eccl 12:5). The temple in Jerusalem also had numerous carvings of lush plant life and cherubim (1 Kgs 7).

Michael S. Heiser

Further Reading

Tabernacle CLBD

Ark of the Covenant CLBD

Cherubim CLBD

Theology of Eden DOT: P

Garden of God (Place) AYBD

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