Epic of Gilgamesh XI

Ancient Near East

Go inside the boat, seal the entry! That stated time had arrived. In the morning he let loaves of bread shower down, and in the evening a rain of wheat. I watched the appearance of the weather-- the weather was frightful to behold! I went into the boat and sealed the entry. For the caulking of the boat, to Puzuramurri, the boatman, I gave the palace together with its contents. Just as dawn began to glow there arose from the horizon a black cloud. Adad rumbled inside of it, before him went Shullat and Hanish, heralds going over mountain and land.

Habakkuk 3:5

Hebrew Bible

4 His brightness will be as lightning; a two-pronged lightning bolt flashing from his hand. This is the outward display of his power. 5 Plague will go before him; pestilence will march right behind him. 6 He took his battle position and shook the earth; with a mere look he frightened the nations. The ancient mountains disintegrated; the primeval hills were flattened. His are ancient roads.

 Notes and References

"... Although it is possible that the text alludes in some way to the plagues of the Exodus, it seems more likely in light of the ANE background that verse 5 gives a description of God’s semi-divine military attendants. Perhaps these are members of the heavenly council, or perhaps this is a polemic against well-known deities. It is clear that Resheph was a very prominent god in the ancient Near East, and it is possible that Deber should also be considered an ANE deity. At any rate, in this text these attendants are in complete submission to the Divine Warrior, ready to do the commander’s bidding. Deber acts as the forerunner of the march and Resheph brings up the rear. Similarly, Marduk also deploys attendants to prepare the way for battle (Ee IV 42-43). Erra has seven deities march at his side (COS 1:113: I.1-110), and the storm god Adad is accompanied by his two heralds, Shullat and Hanish (Gilgamesh 11:96-100). Even Baal does not fight alone—he has Kothar-wa-Ḫasis prepare two weapons for him, both of whose names describe their function (ygrš, “Driver,” and ’ymr, “Expeller”). ..."

Patty, Tyler J. Ancient Near Eastern Literature and the Psalm of Habakkuk 3 (pp. 1-24) Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 2015

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