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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:8 and Genesis 27:4

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Hebrew Bible

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Summary

In the Legend of Kirta, the ill king asks for food after his recovery, and his son Yassib demands he step down from the throne. In Genesis 27, the aging Isaac asks Esau to hunt game so he may bless him before death, triggering a succession crisis.

Passages

KTU 1.16 VI:8

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
[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.
1350–1185 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in KTU

Genesis 27:4

Hebrew Bible
1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he was almost blind, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son!” “Here I am!” Esau replied. 2 Isaac said, “Since I am so old, I could die at any time. 3 Therefore, take your weapons—your quiver and your bow—and go out into the open fields and hunt down some wild game for me. 4 Then prepare for me some tasty food, the kind I love, and bring it to me. Then I will eat it so that I may bless you before I die.” 5 Now Rebekah had been listening while Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau went out to the open fields to hunt down some wild game and bring it back, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father tell your brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me some wild game and prepare for me some tasty food. Then I will eat it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before I die.’
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Genesis

References

"... a child’s acquiring hunted food for the father, a type of filial duty (Genesis 27:1–40; KTU 1.17 v 33–39); travel to another city or region to acquire a wife (Genesis 24:1–67; KTU 1.14 ii 30–iii 44; iv 8–1.15 i 8); the death or threat to the life of the heir or the father (Genesis 22:1–19; 32:4–13, 14–33; 33:1–15; in Kirta, see KTU 1.15 iii 26–30 followed thematically by v 11–23; 1.16 i 1–vi 14; in Aqhat see 1.17 vi–18 iv); trickery, including use of disguises (Genesis 25:21–33; 27:1–41; 29:24–30; 30:25–43; 31:19–35; KTU 1.19 iv 33–63); rebellion or impiety by the heir or child (Genesis 27:30–45; 35:22; 37:1–36; KTU 1.16 vi 25–59; 1.17 vi 11–47; compare Genesis 4:1–16); a father’s blessing or cursing his children (Genesis 27:25–29, 38–40; 48:8–20; 49:1–27, 28; KTU 1.16 vi 55–59; 1.19 iv 29–41; compare Genesis 9:20–27) ..."
Joel S. Baden and Jeffrey Stackert, eds., The Oxford Handbook of the Pentateuch (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021), 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:8 and Genesis 27:4

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