King James Bible
"And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates."
The Hiddekel (known today as the Tigris) is identified as the third of four rivers flowing from Eden. This geographical marker connects the paradise narrative to real-world locations familiar to ancient readers, grounding the Eden account in recognizable Middle Eastern geography. The directional reference to Assyria provides a specific geographical orientation, using a landmark that would become a major empire centuries later. This detail helps locate Eden in the broader Mesopotamian region, the cradle of ancient civilization. The Euphrates, still known by this name today, was the most significant river in the ancient Near East. Its mention without additional description suggests it was so well-known to the original audience that no further identification was necessary, completing the four-river system that watered Eden.