Texts in Conversation

Joshua 8 shares Ugarit's practice of naming every group in a public ceremony, as KTU 1.40 names men, women and foreigners, making the law reading a way to unite the whole community.
Share:
2500 BCE
1000+ CE

KTU 1.40:35

Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
Ancient Near East
And return to the recitation: [the uprightness], the uprightness of the daughters of Ugarit, and the well-being of the stranger within the walls of Ugarit, and the well-being of […], or […], or by the word of the Qatian, or by the word of the Dadmian, or [by the word of] the Hurrian, or by the word of the Hittite, or by the word of the Alashian, or by the word of […], or by the word of […], or by the word of […], or by the word of […], […], in your [anger], [or in] your impatience, or in […], […], or […] [regarding the sacrifices] or regarding the gift offering, the sacrifice we make. This is the gift offering we [offer]. [This is the victim that is] slaughtered. May it be lifted up to the father of the sons of El,
Date: 1350 - 1185 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)

Joshua 8:35

Hebrew Bible
33 All the people, rulers, leaders, and judges were standing on either side of the ark, in front of the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord. Both resident foreigners and native Israelites were there. Half the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and the other half in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the Lord’s servant had previously instructed them to do for the formal blessing ceremony. 34 Then Joshua read aloud all the words of the law, including the blessings and the curses, just as they are written in the law scroll. 35 Joshua read aloud every commandment Moses had given before the whole assembly of Israel, including the women, children, and resident foreigners who lived among them.
Date: 6th Century B.C.E. (Final composition) (based on scholarly estimates)
Search:

Notes and References

#6961
“... Sanders draws attention to KTU 1.40, a ritual for national atonement and unity that is the most important and broadly produced ritual known from Ugarit. [...] Among those atoned by the ritual are male and female members, even addressed directly with gender specific imperatives, as we see them listed in Josh 8:35 and Neh 8 numerous times. Like the Esarhaddon treaties, foreigners and natives are listed, as they are in Josh 8:33.57 The sovereign and the citizens are included, as in 2 Kgs 23. The lists are rounded out with other groups of leaders such as elders, officers, judges, prophets, levitical priests, inhabitants of the city and the region (Judah), young and great, and Neh 8’s catch-all “those who could understand.” [...] KTU 1.40 presents a model for this kind of addressee list in a unity ritual, demonstrating that a populace list may serve not merely to bind addressees to treaty obligations, but may also serve to unify and even benefit the whole society by atoning them. ...”

* 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

Do you have questions or comments about these texts? Please submit them here.

Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.

User Comments

,

Find Similar Texts

Search by the same Books

Search by the same Reference

Compare the same Books

Compare the same Text Groups

Go to Intertext