Texts in Conversation
Numbers shares the Ugaritic image of El as a powerful bull, using that divine strength to explain Israel's ability to defeat enemy nations.
Share:
2500 BCE
1000+ CE
KTU 1.3 V:35
Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
Ancient Near East
And Virgin Anat replied: “Your word, El, is wise; you are everlastingly wise; a life of good fortune is your word. Our king is Valiant, Baal is our ruler; there is none who is above him. We should all carry his chalice, we should all carry his cup.” Groaning, he cries to Bull El his father, to El the king who begot him. He cries to Athirat and her sons, to the goddess and the band of her kinsmen: “There is no house for Baal like the gods, nor dwelling like the sons of Athirat. El has a home, his sons have shelters, the Great Lady-who-tramples-Yamm has a home, Pidray daughter of Light has a home, Tallay daughter of Shower has a shelter; Arsay, daughter of Snatcher-for-ever has a home, the perfect brides have homes.”
Numbers 24:8
Hebrew Bible
7 He will pour the water out of his buckets, and their descendants will be like abundant water; their king will be greater than Agag, and their kingdom will be exalted. 8 God brought them out of Egypt. They have, as it were, the strength of a young bull; they will devour hostile people, and will break their bones, and will pierce them through with arrows. 9 They crouch and lie down like a lion, and as a lioness, who can stir him? Blessed is the one who blesses you, and cursed is the one who curses you!’” 10 Then Balak became very angry at Balaam, and he struck his hands together. Balak said to Balaam, “I called you to curse my enemies, and look, you have done nothing but bless them these three times!
Search:
Notes and References
“... Early El traditions in Israel appear not only in Exod 6:3, but also in
Genesis 49 (El parallel to Shadday in Gen 49:25, plus Asherah under-
lying "Breasts and Womb" in the same verse?); in Numbers 23-24 ("El,
who brought them from Egypt,'' has (horns) like the horns of the wild
ox" [cf. Ugaritic title, "Bull El" in KTU 1.3 V 35-36, l.414-15, etc.] in
Num 23:22 = 24:8; and El parallel to Shadday in Num 24:4)12; and in
1 Samuel 1-3 (El names, e. g., Elqanah; tradition of the tent of meeting;
El's manner of dream-appearance at night).13 In addition, other fea-
tures of El showed through the biblical text: El's title "creator," *qny
(Gen 14:19, 22); El's tent-abode as consisting of qrs in Ugaritic (cf.
qercisim for the 'ohel mo'ed in Exodus 26-40; Num 3:36, 4:31). Even if
all of the biblical texts are not particularly early, they still bear the
imprint of older tra,iition about El. ...”
Smith, Mark S.
Biblical Narrative between Ugaritic and Akkadian Literature, Part I: Ugarit and the Hebrew Bible: Consideration of Comparative Research
(p. 10) Revue biblique, 2007
* 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.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.
User Comments
,