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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:55 and Genesis 49:4

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Hebrew Bible

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Summary

In Genesis 49, Jacob's rejection of Reuben shares Kirta's curse against his son in the Legend of Kirta, using a father's judgment to show how misconduct can cost an heir his expected authority.

Passages

KTU 1.16 VI:55

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
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

Genesis 49:4

Hebrew Bible
3 Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might and the beginning of my strength, outstanding in dignity, outstanding in power. 4 You are destructive like water and will not excel, for you got on your father’s bed, then you defiled it—he got on my couch! 5 Simeon and Levi are brothers, weapons of violence are their knives! 6 O my soul, do not come into their council, do not be united to their assembly, my heart, for in their anger they have killed men, and for pleasure they have hamstrung oxen. 7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce, and their fury, for it was cruel. I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel! 8 Judah, your brothers will praise you. Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies, your father’s sons will bow down before you.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Genesis

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 [...] The biblical and Ugaritic stories concern a father, portrayed as pious or favored by the god(s), who lacks an heir or a wife. The deity or deities promise the father that he will have offspring to carry on the line, but this promise is compromised in some manner. The challenge is remedied, although in some cases the expected heir fails to qualify or does not survive to inherit, and a younger or socially liminal (female in the Ugaritic texts) family member either inherits or comes to the aid of the father’s interests. [...] Within this framework of general correlations, the biblical stories contain specific motifs similar to those found in the Ugaritic tales. [...] rebellion or impiety by the heir or child (Gen 27:30–45; 35:22; 37:1–36; KTU 1.16 vi 25– 59; 1.17 vi 11–47; cf. Gen 4:1–16); a father’s blessing or cursing his children (Gen 27:25–29, 38–40; 48:8–20; 49:1–27, 28; KTU 1.16 vi 55–59; 1.19 iv 29–41; cf. Gen 9:20–27). [...] 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. ...”
Joel S. Baden and Jeffrey Stackert, eds., The Oxford Handbook of the Pentateuch (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021), 729–730.

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:55 and Genesis 49:4

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