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KTU

Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit

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Kirta

KTU 1.16 VI

[D]eath, be broken; Sha'taqat,
prevail."—And so Sha'taqat departs;
into Kirta's house she goes.
Bkt she penetrates and enters,
Nṣrt she enters to its innermost recess.
Towns she flies over a hundred,
villages she flies over a multitude.
The invalid she⁠ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ,
the suffering one upon his/her head,
and proceeds to wash him clean of sweat.
His desire for bread she opens,
his appetite for food.
Death, on the one hand, is broken; Sha'taqat,
on the other, has prevailed.—Then Kirta
the Noble commands, raising his voice
and calling: "Listen, O Lady
Hurraya. Prepare a lamb
that I may eat, a lamb that I may dine."
Lady Hurraya listens.
She prepares a lamb and he eats,
a lamb and he dines. Behold a day
and a second, Kirta returns to his former estate;
he sits upon the throne of kingship;
upon the dais, the seat of authority.
Yassib also sits in the palace,⁠
and his inward parts instruct him:⁠
"Go to your father, Yassib. Go
[to] your fa[ther] and speak, repeat
to Kir[ta the Noble]: Lis[ten]
and incline [(your) ear. For . . . . . . . . . ]
. . . . and . . . . . [ ]
You have let your hand fall into mischief.
You used to judge the cause of the widow,
to adjudicate the case of the wretched.
Since you have become a brother of the bed of sickness,
a companion of the bed of suffering,
descend from the kingship—I will be king;
in your authority I will sit."—
Yassib the Lad departs. Into his
father's presence he enters. He lifts up his voice
and cries: "Listen, please, O Kirta
the Noble! Listen, and incline (your) ear.
For . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . You have let your
hand fall into mischief. You used to judge the⁠
cause of the widow, to adjudicate the⁠
case of the wretched, to drive out
those who prey upon the poor, to feed⁠
before you the orphan, behind
your back the widow. Since
you have become a brother of the bed of sickness, a companion
of the bed of suffering, descend from the kingship—
I will be king; in your authority I will
sit."—And [K]irta the Noble answers:
"May Horon break, O my son, may Horon break⁠
your head, Athtart Name of Baal your
skull. May you fall into . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(Colophon:) Written by Ilimilku; donated by

Texts in conversation

Compare KTU 1.16 VI:46 and Psalm 72:4

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Hebrew Bible

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Summary

Psalm 72 shares Kirta's standard of protecting the poor and helpless, which his own son uses to demand the throne when Kirta fails it, making care for vulnerable people a test of a king's right to rule.

Passages

KTU 1.16 VI:46

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . You have let your hand fall into mischief. You used to judge the cause of the widow, to adjudicate the case of the wretched, to drive out those who prey upon the poor, to feed before you the orphan, behind your back the widow. Since you have become a brother of the bed of sickness, a companion of the bed of suffering, descend from the kingship— I will be king; in your authority I will sit."—And [K]irta the Noble answers: "May Horon break, O my son, may Horon break your head, Athtart Name of Baal your skull. May you fall into . . . . . . . . . . .
1350–1185 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in KTU

Psalm 72:4

Hebrew Bible
1 For Solomon. O God, grant the king the ability to make just decisions. Grant the king’s son the ability to make fair decisions. 2 Then he will judge your people fairly and your oppressed ones equitably. 3 The mountains will bring news of peace to the people, and the hills will announce justice. 4 He will defend the oppressed among the people; he will deliver the children of the poor and crush the oppressor. 5 People will fear you as long as the sun and moon remain in the sky, for generation after generation. 6 He will descend like rain on the mown grass, like showers that drench the earth. 7 During his days the godly will flourish; peace will prevail as long as the moon remains in the sky. 8 May he rule from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

References

“... Th e Psalms contain rather dramatic exam- ples of a divine assembly scene in Psalms 82 and 89 (esp. vv. 5–7; cf. 1 Kgs. 22:19; Isa. 6; Dan. 7; cf. “the seat of the gods” in Ezek. 28:2). Psalm 82 is a particularly notable case. According to verse 1: “God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment.” According to verses 2–7, God indicts the other gods 11 for failing to maintain traditional standards of justice (commonly involving care for the poor and needy as well as the orphan and the widow; see Pss. 33:5; 37:28; 68:6–7[5–6]; 74:21; 99:4; 89:16[15] = 97:2; 111:7). Th is is a standard of justice expected of human kings in Ugaritic tradition (KTU 1.16 VI 45–50, SAC 95) and biblical thinking (Ps. 72:4). So, in Psalm 82:6–7, God declares these divine fi gures not as gods but as mortals. Th e psalm closes in verse 8 with a request made to God to judge the earth, “for all the nations belong to you.” ...”
Mark S. Smith, “Canaanite Backgrounds to the Psalms,” in The Oxford Handbook of the Psalms, ed. William P. Brown (New York: Oxford University Press, 2014), 48.

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 1.16 VI:46 and Psalm 72:4

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