Ea warns Utnapishtim about the flood in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
In Tablet XI of the Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, the god Ea communicates the coming disaster to Utnapishtim. Because the gods’ decision is not meant to be announced openly, Ea delivers the warning indirectly through a message addressed to a reed wall, allowing Utnapishtim to hear the instructions.
Ea tells him to abandon possessions, build a boat, bring aboard living creatures and skilled workers, and wait for the storm. Ea is associated with wisdom, freshwater, magic, and the subterranean freshwater ocean known as the Apsu. In Sumerian tradition, his corresponding name is Enki.
Enlil, not Ea, is the deity who is especially associated with ordering the flood and later reacting angrily when survivors are discovered. This division of roles is a frequent source of confusion. Marduk and Shamash are important Mesopotamian gods, but neither is the warning deity in this episode.