Skip to Content
intertextual.bible
Go to Related Reading
About this book

KTU

Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit

About this book

Baal Cycle

KTU 1.2 IV

[…]
If I see and with Yamm is the sieve of destruction.
By Yamm I shall be worm-eaten
and thanks to Nahar, devoured by maggots. There, with a sword I shall destroy. I shall knock down his houses.
Into the underworld will fall my strength, and into the dust my power.
From his mouth his speech barely went forth, from his lips his word, and he gave forth his voice in groaning
beneath the throne of Prince Yamm. And Kothar-wa-Hasis spoke:
Indeed I say to you, O Prince Baal, I repeat, O Charioteer of the Clouds,⁠ now your foe, Baal,⁠
now your foe you must smite; now you must destroy your adversary.⁠
Take your everlasting kingdom, your eternal dominion.⁠
Kothar fashioned two maces, and he pronounced their names: You, your name is “Expeller”.
Expeller, expel Yamm, expel Yamm from his throne,
Nahar from the siege of his dominion! You must leap from the hand of Baal, like a falcon from his fingers.
Strike the shoulders of Prince Yamm,⁠ the chest of Ruler Nahar!
The mace leapt from the hand of Baal, like a falcon from his fingers.
It struck the shoulders of Prince Yamm, the chest of Ruler Nahar.
But Yamm was strong, he did not flinch. His joints did not tremble; his visage was not discomposed.
Kothar fashioned two maces, and he pronounced their names.
You, your name is 'All-Driver' All-Driver, drive Yamm away, drive Yamm from his throne,
Nahar from the siege of his dominion! You must leap from the hand of Baal,
like a falcon from his fingers. Strike the skull of Prince Yamm (Ocean),⁠
the brow of Ruler Nahar (River)! Let Yamm collapse in a heap,
and let him fall to the ground!' Then the mace leapt from the hand of Baal,
like a falcon from his fingers. It struck the skull of Prince Yamm,⁠
the brow of Ruler Nahar. Yamm collapsed in a heap; he fell to the ground.⁠
His joints trembled, and his visage was discomposed.⁠
Baal gathered Up and drank Prince Yamm to the dregs, he exterminated Ruler Nahar.
By name Athtart chided him Dry him Up, O Valiant Baal!
Dry him up, O Charioteer of the Clouds! For our captive is Prince [Yamm], [for]
our captive is Ruler Nahar. And […] goes out […]
Valiant Baal dries him up, and […]⁠
Yamm is surely dead! Baal shall [reign]
[…] And [he answers]
he answers: Yamm is surely dead! […]
[…] And [she answers]
Baal […]
[…]
on his head […]
his enemy […]
between his eyes […]

Texts in conversation

Compare KTU 1.2 IV:25 and Job 9:8

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Hebrew Bible

Share:

Summary

Job 9 gives God sole power to walk on Sea, the enemy fought by Baal in the Baal Cycle, making control of this threatening force a reason that no human can challenge him.

Passages

KTU 1.2 IV:25

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
You, your name is 'All-Driver' All-Driver, drive Yamm away, drive Yamm from his throne, Nahar from the siege of his dominion! You must leap from the hand of Baal, like a falcon from his fingers. Strike the skull of Prince Yamm (Ocean), the brow of Ruler Nahar (River)! Let Yamm collapse in a heap, and let him fall to the ground!' Then the mace leapt from the hand of Baal, like a falcon from his fingers. It struck the skull of Prince Yamm, the brow of Ruler Nahar. Yamm collapsed in a heap; he fell to the ground. His joints trembled, and his visage was discomposed. Baal gathered Up and drank Prince Yamm to the dregs, he exterminated Ruler Nahar. By name Athtart chided him Dry him Up, O Valiant Baal! Dry him up, O Charioteer of the Clouds! For our captive is Prince [Yamm], [for]
1350–1185 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in KTU

Job 9:8

Hebrew Bible
4 He is wise in heart and mighty in strength—who has resisted him and remained safe? 5 He who removes mountains suddenly, who overturns them in his anger, 6 he who shakes the earth out of its place so that its pillars tremble, 7 he who commands the sun, and it does not shine and seals up the stars, 8 he alone spreads out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea. 9 He makes the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades, and the constellations of the southern sky; 10 he does great and unsearchable things, and wonderful things without number. 11 If he passes by me, I cannot see him; if he goes by, I cannot perceive him. 12 If he snatches away, who can turn him back? Who dares to say to him, ‘What are you doing?’ 13 God does not restrain his anger; under him the helpers of Rahab lie crushed.
500–401 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Job

References

“... Ugaritic texts (KTU 1.3 III 38–42; KTU 1.5 I 1–8; and KTU 1.83) refer­ ence Baʿlu and ʿAnatu defeating Yammu and/or Lōtanu. Within the bibli­ cal anthology, many texts emphasize Yahweh’s authority over the sea (Ps 93:1–5; Ps 29:3; Ps 65:8; Nah 1:3b–5; Ps 104; Ps 33; Job 7:12 Job 9:8; Job 38:4a, 8–11, 16); some use the conflict motif to promote Yahweh’s royal author­ ity (Ps 93 and Ps 29); several describe battles against Rahab, Leviathan, dragon/s, Sea, and/or the sea (Ps 89:6–15, Ps 74:12–17, Job 26:10–13), though we also have descriptions of Leviathan as Yahweh’s plaything (Ps 104 and Job 40–41); and many passages interweave the conflict motif with creation themes in order to portray Yahweh’s dominion as universal (Ps 89:6–15, Ps 74:12–17, Ps 104:2–6; Job 38). Ugaritic and biblical literatures promote the prowess of Baʿlu and Yahweh, respectively, through reference to their defeat of Lōtanu/Leviathan, a multi-headed serpent. Judean and Mesopotamian combat traditions share use of the conflict motif to sup­ port the claim that the victorious warrior deity is incomparable. Mari letter A.1968 preserves reference to Adad defeating the sea as well. Though we have no full narratives of Yahweh or Adad defeating divine enemies, these victorious warrior deities, along with Baʿlu, Ninurta, Marduk, and Aššur, attained their kingship and dominion through combat with their enemies. I describe examples of the conflict motif that focus primarily on the status of the victorious deity as primary application of the motif. ...”
Debra Scoggins Ballentine, The Conflict Myth and the Biblical Tradition (New York: Oxford University Press, 2015), 124.

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

Your feedback

KTU 1.2 IV:25 and Job 9:8

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library