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KTU

Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit

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Kirta

KTU 1.14 I

([Pertaining to "Kir]ta.")
[ ] kin[g ]
[ ] . . . . [ ]
[ Kirta (the Noble) ]
[ Naaman, the La]d of El[ ]
[ ] . . . . . . . kinship
[ ] sept. The house
of [a k]ing is destroyed, that had seven
[bro]thers, eight mother's sons.
Kirta in offspring is ruined,
Kirta is undermined of establishment.
His lawful wife he did find,
his legitimate spouse:
he married the woman, and she "departed."
Flesh of kinship had he:
A third died in health;
A quarter by disease.
A fifth was gathered by Rashap;⁠
A sixth by the Lad of Yamm.
A seventh part, by the sword it was felled.
He sees his progeny, Kirta,
He sees his progeny ruined,⁠
wholly undermined his seat,
and in its entirety a posterity perishing,
and in its totality a succession.
He enters his cubicle, he weeps,
an inner chamber and cries.
His tears drop
like shekels to the ground.
His bed was soaked⁠
by his weeping, and he slept⁠
a slumber in his crying.
Sleep prevails (over him?)
and he lies, slumber
and he reclines. And in his dream⁠
El descends, in his vision
the Father of Man (Adam). And he approaches
asking Kirta: "What ails you,⁠
Kirta, that he weeps,
that he cries, Naaman the Lad⁠
of El? Is it the kingship of Bull his father
that he desires, or authority
like the Father of Man (Adam)?" [ ? ]
[Here El doubtless offers
Kirta 'silver and gold and perpetual
slaves,' etc. (cf. ll. 53 ff.; 126 ff.;
137 ff.; 250 ff.; 269 ff.; 282 ff.).
But Kirta replies:
"What need]
[have I of silver and yellow-glittering]

Texts in conversation

Compare KTU 1.14 I:35 and Genesis 15:2

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Hebrew Bible

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Summary

The Legend of Kirta and Genesis 15 both describe a childless hero who appeals to the deity for offspring. In Kirta, El appears in a dream and responds; in Genesis, God appears in a vision and promises Abram descendants like the stars.

Passages

KTU 1.14 I:35

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
He enters his cubicle, he weeps, an inner chamber and cries. His tears drop like shekels to the ground. His bed was soaked by his weeping, and he slept a slumber in his crying. Sleep prevails (over him?) and he lies, slumber and he reclines. And in his dream El descends, in his vision the Father of Man (Adam). And he approaches asking Kirta: "What ails you, Kirta, that he weeps, that he cries, Naaman the Lad of El? Is it the kingship of Bull his father that he desires, or authority like the Father of Man (Adam)?" [ ? ]
1350–1185 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in KTU

Genesis 15:2

Hebrew Bible
1 After these things the Lord’s message came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram! I am your shield and the one who will reward you in great abundance.” 2 But Abram said, “O Sovereign Lord, what will you give me since I continue to be childless, and my heir is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 Abram added, “Since you have not given me a descendant, then look, one born in my house will be my heir!” 4 But look, the Lord’s message came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but instead a son who comes from your own body will be your heir.” 5 The Lord took him outside and said, “Gaze into the sky and count the stars—if you are able to count them!” Then he said to him, “So will your descendants be.” 6 Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord credited it as righteousness to him.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Genesis

References

"... This theme, so important for each of the ancestral cycles, also proves to be the primary theme of both epic poems found at Ugarit, the Aqhat and Kirta Epics. In the Aqhat Epic, Daniel, a righteous judge (probably king), earnestly seeks help from the gods to obtain an heir. His patron deity, Baal, comes before the council of the gods, with El presiding, and urges El to grant Daniel and his wife a son. El agrees to bless the couple, and they do have a son, Aqhat. In the Kirta Epic, the hero's family has been wiped out at the beginning of the story. The devastated Kirta falls asleep, weeping, on his bed. In his sleep, El appears to him and gives him instructions on how to win the hand of the beautiful Hurraya, daughter of the king of Udm, in marriage. El and the other gods attend the wedding, and El pronounces a blessing upon the couple: Hurraya will bear Kirta seven/eight sons. It is clear in both stories that granting an heir to the hero is strictly the prerogative of El. Baal, although intimately involved in the fertility of the earth, cannot provide children to humans ..."
Wayne T. Pitard, “Voices from the Dust: The Tablets from Ugarit and the Bible,” in Mesopotamia and the Bible: Comparative Explorations, ed. Mark W. Chavalas and K. Lawson Younger Jr., JSOTSup 341 (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002), 259.

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 1.14 I:35 and Genesis 15:2

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