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KTU

Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit

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Baal, Anat and the Birth of a Bull

KTU 1.10 I

[…] the Maiden Anat
[…]
[…] that the sons of El do not know⁠
[…] the assembly of the stars⁠
[…] the circle of the heavens
[Mighty] Baal
[…] Rider on the Clouds
[…]
[…] sits on the ground
[…]
[…]
[…]
[…] he gives
[the Maiden] Anat
[the In-law of] the Peoples
[…]
[sits] on the ground
[…] flesh
[…]
[…]
[…]
[…]

Texts in conversation

Compare KTU 1.10 I:3 and Genesis 3:5

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Hebrew Bible

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Summary

Genesis' promise of knowledge like God's may contrast with Ugaritic limits on what some gods know, making knowledge part of the boundary between human and divine life.

Passages

KTU 1.10 I:3

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
[…] the Maiden Anat […] […] that the sons of El do not know […] the assembly of the stars […] the circle of the heavens [Mighty] Baal […] Rider on the Clouds […] […] sits on the ground […] […] […] […] he gives [the Maiden] Anat [the In-law of] the Peoples […] [sits] on the ground […] flesh
1350–1185 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in KTU

Genesis 3:5

Hebrew Bible
2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit from the trees of the orchard; 3 but concerning the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the orchard God said, ‘You must not eat from it, and you must not touch it, or else you will die.’” 4 The serpent said to the woman, “Surely you will not die, 5 for God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will open and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 When the woman saw that the tree produced fruit that was good for food, was attractive to the eye, and was desirable for making one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate it. She also gave some of it to her husband who was with her, and he ate it.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Genesis

References

“... King David is recognised, in a woman’s wish, as being equal to the messenger of God in having knowledge of good and evil; hence, since the messenger of God can acknowledge what is good, he also can exe­ cute right judgement (v. 17b). She reveals her connection with Joab to the king since he immediately discovered a plot (v. 20b)173; the com­ parison is stressed again in a speech of Mephibosheth in order to appeal to the king’s responsibility (2 Sam 19.28). ... Parker interprets that the “mention of Anat and Baal in the im­ mediate [broken] context suggests that these two may share the knowl­ edge denied to the bn //” 179. The bn il, paralleled with two other cola in the following lines, supports the idea that they are members of the di­ vine council, identified as stars (cf. Job 38.7). These phrases, juxtaposed intentionally between Anat (line 1) and Baal (line 6) in the text, may be set in order to emphasise the higher deities’ comparatively distin­ guished abilities from these of the lesser deities. The context alludes to the cosmic secret, which is not opened yet to the lesser deities. Ac­ ...”
Sang Youl Cho, Lesser Deities in the Ugaritic Texts and the Hebrew Bible: A Comparative Study of Their Nature and Roles, Deities and Angels of the Ancient World 2 (Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias, 2007), 41–42.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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KTU 1.10 I:3 and Genesis 3:5

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