Final answer:
The correct answer is option A) The Epic of Gilgamesh.
Step-by-step explanation:
The text from Mesopotamia that closely resembles the flood account in Genesis 6-9 is A) The Epic of Gilgamesh. This epic contains a flood narrative that is strikingly similar to the biblical story found in Genesis. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the gods decide to send a flood to destroy humanity, but one of the gods warns Utnapishtim, a character analogous to Noah, instructing him to build an ark to save himself, his family, and samples of all living creatures.
Some scholars have noted the parallel between the motivations behind the floods in the Epic of Gilgamesh and the biblical account: although both serve as a means to reset the balance between the gods and humanity, the Mesopotamian gods are described as capricious and cruel, whereas the Genesis account portrays the flood as being sent by Yahweh as a punishment for the sins of humankind.
The Epic of Gilgamesh underscores themes such as the quest for immortality and the nature of heroism, reflecting the sophisticated philosophical engagement with human nature that was present in ancient Mesopotamian society.