Tehom
Encyclopedia
Tehom literally the Deep or Abyss
(Greek Septuagint: ábyssos), refers to the Great Deep
of the primordial waters of creation in the Bible
. Tehom is a cognate
of the Akkad
ian word tamtu and Ugarit
ic t-h-m which have similar meaning. As such it was equated with the earlier Sumerian Tiamat
.
It is first mentioned in Genesis 1:2:
It was from here that the waters of Noah's flood had their origin and the place that God temporarily receded the Red Sea for the Israelites to pass over before destroying the pursuing Egyptian army, and the place that God will dry up for the righteous to walk on towards their redemption at the End of Days
(Isaiah 11:15, context entire ch. 11).
In contrast to this, in another book from the Jewish Bible
the drying of the Tehom will be a punishment to the wicked rather than a reward. (Isaiah 19:5)
Gnostics used this text to propose that the original creator god, called the "Pléroma
" or "Bythós" (from the Greek, meaning "Deep") pre-existed Elohim
, and gave rise to such later divinities and spirits by way of emanations, progressively more distant and removed from the original form.
Tehom is also the first of seven "Infernal Habitations" that correspond to the ten Qliphoth
(literally "peels") of Jewish Kabbalistic tradition.
Abyss (religion)
Abyss refers to a bottomless pit, to the underworld, to the deepest ocean floor, or to hell.The English word "abyss" derives from the late Latin abyssimus through French abisme , hence the poetic form "abysm", with examples dating to 1616 and earlier to rhyme with "time"...
(Greek Septuagint: ábyssos), refers to the Great Deep
Deeps
The Deeps is the English term for the Hebrew Tehom , found in the opening verses of the Book of Genesis. It is believed by Biblical scholars to come from the Sumerian word Tiamat, the name given to the Salt Water, and means "The Mother of All Life", , a title similar to one that, in the Bible, was...
of the primordial waters of creation in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. Tehom is a cognate
Cognate
In linguistics, cognates are words that have a common etymological origin. This learned term derives from the Latin cognatus . Cognates within the same language are called doublets. Strictly speaking, loanwords from another language are usually not meant by the term, e.g...
of the Akkad
Akkad
The Akkadian Empire was an empire centered in the city of Akkad and its surrounding region in Mesopotamia....
ian word tamtu and Ugarit
Ugarit
Ugarit was an ancient port city in the eastern Mediterranean at the Ras Shamra headland near Latakia, Syria. It is located near Minet el-Beida in northern Syria. It is some seven miles north of Laodicea ad Mare and approximately fifty miles east of Cyprus...
ic t-h-m which have similar meaning. As such it was equated with the earlier Sumerian Tiamat
Tiamat
In Babylonian mythology, Tiamat is a chaos monster, a primordial goddess of the ocean, mating with Abzû to produce younger gods. It is suggested that there are two parts to the Tiamat mythos, the first in which Tiamat is 'creatrix', through a "Sacred marriage" between salt and fresh water,...
.
It is first mentioned in Genesis 1:2:
- And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. (King James version)
It was from here that the waters of Noah's flood had their origin and the place that God temporarily receded the Red Sea for the Israelites to pass over before destroying the pursuing Egyptian army, and the place that God will dry up for the righteous to walk on towards their redemption at the End of Days
End of Days
End of Days is a 1999 American action horror thriller film directed by Peter Hyams starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Robin Tunney, Rod Steiger, Kevin Pollak, CCH Pounder, Udo Kier and Gabriel Byrne as Satan...
(Isaiah 11:15, context entire ch. 11).
In contrast to this, in another book from the Jewish Bible
Tanakh
The Tanakh is a name used in Judaism for the canon of the Hebrew Bible. The Tanakh is also known as the Masoretic Text or the Miqra. The name is an acronym formed from the initial Hebrew letters of the Masoretic Text's three traditional subdivisions: The Torah , Nevi'im and Ketuvim —hence...
the drying of the Tehom will be a punishment to the wicked rather than a reward. (Isaiah 19:5)
Gnostics used this text to propose that the original creator god, called the "Pléroma
Pleroma
Pleroma generally refers to the totality of divine powers. The word means fullness from comparable to πλήρης which means "full", and is used in Christian theological contexts: both in Gnosticism generally, and by Paul of Tarsus in Colossians Colossians 2:9 KJV .Gnosticism holds that the...
" or "Bythós" (from the Greek, meaning "Deep") pre-existed Elohim
Elohim
Elohim is a grammatically singular or plural noun for "god" or "gods" in both modern and ancient Hebrew language. When used with singular verbs and adjectives elohim is usually singular, "god" or especially, the God. When used with plural verbs and adjectives elohim is usually plural, "gods" or...
, and gave rise to such later divinities and spirits by way of emanations, progressively more distant and removed from the original form.
Tehom is also the first of seven "Infernal Habitations" that correspond to the ten Qliphoth
Qliphoth
Qliphoth/Qelippot, alternatively Klippot/Kellipot etc. refers to the representation of evil or impure spiritual forces in Jewish mysticism.In the Kabbalistic spiritual cosmology, the Kelipot are metaphorical "shells" surrounding holiness...
(literally "peels") of Jewish Kabbalistic tradition.