Texts in Conversation
In Genesis 18, Abraham's meal for divine guests shares Danel's household hospitality in the Tale of Aqhat, giving a wife's food preparations a role in the family's relationship with God.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
KTU 1.17 V:16
Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
Ancient Near East
the man of healing, then the hero, the devotee of Hrnm, calls aloud to his wife: “Listen, lady Danatay, prepare a lamb from the flock for the appetite of Kothar- wa-Hasis, for the hunger of Hayyin, skilled of hand. Feed, give drink to the gods; serve and honor them, the lord of Hikpat, the god of all of it.” She hears, lady Danatay; she prepares a lamb from the flock for the appetite of Kothar-wa-Hasis, for the hunger of Hayyin, skilled of hand. Afterward Kothar- wa-Hasis arrives; into Danel's hand he gives the bow, on his knees he places the arrows. Then lady Danatay feeds, gives drink to the gods, serves and honors them, the lord of Hikpat, the god of all of it. Kothar departs to his tent, Hayyin departs to his dwelling. Then Danel, the man
Genesis 18:6
Hebrew Bible
3 He said, “My lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by and leave your servant. 4 Let a little water be brought so that you may all wash your feet and rest under the tree. 5 And let me get a bit of food so that you may refresh yourselves since you have passed by your servant’s home. After that you may be on your way.” “All right,” they replied, “you may do as you say.” 6 So Abraham hurried into the tent and said to Sarah, “Quick! Take three measures of fine flour, knead it, and make bread.” 7 Then Abraham ran to the herd and chose a fine, tender calf, and gave it to a servant, who quickly prepared it. 8 Abraham then took some curds and milk, along with the calf that had been prepared, and placed the food before them. They ate while he was standing near them under a tree.
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Notes and References
“... The stories about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and his sons in
Genesis 12–50 have broad and specific correlations with the
Kirta and Aqhat tales from Ugarit dating to the fourteenth
century BCE [...] Within this framework of general correlations, the biblical
stories contain specific motifs similar to those found in the
Ugaritic tales. [...] providing a hospitality meal for guests, including having the
wife aid in preparations (Gen 18:3–8 [cf. Gen 19:1–22]; KTU
1.15 iv 1–16; vi 1–5 [cf. 1.16 15–24]; 1.17 v 14–33) [...] The overall range of similarities is such to allow for
positing a cultural affinity between the two bodies of
literature, especially given the geographical, linguistic, and
general chronological proximity of the biblical texts to Ugarit. ...”
Baden, Joel S., Jeffrey Stackert, and Christoph Berner (eds.)
The Oxford Handbook of the Pentateuch
(p. 729–730) Oxford University Press, 2021
* 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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