Texts in Conversation
The Ugaritic text KTU names the goddesses Athirat and Rahmay, describing newborn gods nursing at their breasts. Genesis 49 echoes this language, referring to the breasts and womb in Joseph’s blessing, but with the goddesses’ names removed.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
KTU 1.23
Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
Ancient Near East
Let me invoke the gracious gods, both gluttonous from birth, who suck at the nipples of Athirat’s breasts, from the paps of Rahmay, Shapsh counts their tendrils,
Date: 2300 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Genesis 49:25
Hebrew Bible
24 But his bow will remain steady, and his hands will be skillful; because of the hands of the Powerful One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel, 25 because of the God of your father, who will help you, because of the Sovereign God, who will bless you with blessings from the sky above, blessings from the deep that lies below, and blessings of the breasts and womb. 26 The blessings of your father are greater than the blessings of the eternal mountains or the desirable things of the age-old hills. They will be on the head of Joseph and on the brow of the prince of his brothers.
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Notes and References
... The phrase šādayim wārāḥam in verse 25e echoes Ugaritic titles of the goddesses Asherah and Anat. The word rḥm is associated with the goddess Anat in KTU 1.6 II 27, 1.15 II 6, and 1.23.16. In KTU 1.23.13 and 28, this title refers to Anat in her pairing with Asherah. In an invocation in KTU 1.23.23-24, the ’beautiful gods’ (’ilm n’mm) are characterized as receiving nourishment from Asherah and Anat: ’iqr’an ’ilm n’mm — I would invoke the beautiful gods, [’agzr ym bn] ym — [voracious ones of the sea, sons of] the sea, ynqm b’ap ḏd — who suck from the teat of the breast, ’aṯrt [wrḥmy] — of Asherah [and Rahmay]. ...
Smith, Mark S.
The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities in Ancient Israel
(p. 78) Eerdmans, 2002
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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