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KTU

Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit

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Letter of the King to the Queen Mother

KTU 2.72

[To the queen my mother]
[say:]
[Message of] the king, [your son.]
At the feet of my mother [I fall.]
With my mother may it be well. [May the gods]
guard you and keep you well.
Here with me all is well.
There with you, whatever
is well, send word back to me.
Why did you send this soldier?
then […] of the king
[…]
[…]
[…] of the king
And you send two […]
to me, and you break my heart.
And the tablet of the daughter of the king of Amurru,
when my mother speaks
before the city
if now […]
[…]
the city, then what
I have sent the tablet
of the daughter of the king of Amurru.
Ybnn went
to the king of Amurru
and he brought a hundred
of gold and […]
for the king of Amurru. And he took
oil in his horn
and poured it on the head⁠
of the daughter of the king of Amurru.
Whatever […]
that my mother […]
[…]
[…]
[…] you know […]
[…] your enemy, and I
[…]

Texts in conversation

Compare KTU 2.72:31 and Ezekiel 16:9

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Hebrew Bible

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Summary

The marriage image in Ezekiel 16 may draw on the bride's anointing known from Ugarit, where a letter mentions a princess of Amurru anointed with oil, making God's care for Jerusalem a solemn marriage commitment.

Passages

KTU 2.72:31

Ancient Near East, Ugaritic · Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
With my mother may it be well. [May the gods] guard you and keep you well. Here with me all is well. There with you, whatever is well, send word back to me. Why did you send this soldier? then […] of the king […] […] […] of the king And you send two […] to me, and you break my heart. And the tablet of the daughter of the king of Amurru, when my mother speaks before the city if now […] […] the city, then what I have sent the tablet of the daughter of the king of Amurru. Ybnn went to the king of Amurru and he brought a hundred of gold and […] for the king of Amurru. And he took oil in his horn and poured it on the head of the daughter of the king of Amurru.
1350–1185 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in KTU

Ezekiel 16:9

Hebrew Bible
8 “‘Then I passed by you and watched you, noticing that you had reached the age for love. I spread my cloak over you and covered your nakedness. I swore a solemn oath to you and entered into a marriage covenant with you, declares the Sovereign Lord, and you became mine. 9 “‘Then I bathed you in water, washed the blood off you, and anointed you with fragrant oil. 10 I dressed you in embroidered clothing and put fine leather sandals on your feet. I wrapped you with fine linen and covered you with silk. 11 I adorned you with jewelry. I put bracelets on your hands and a necklace around your neck. 12 I put a ring in your nose, earrings on your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head.
600–501 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Ezekiel

References

“... Both in Ugarit and biblical Israel religious connotations of marriage can be determined, as was the case in Mesopotamia (in contrast to Egypt). [...] Anoint- ment of a bride, performed as a religious rite of purification in the an- cient Near East, seems to have occurred in biblical Israel, too (Ezek. 16:8-12). Wedding partners, furthermore, could take an oath in the name of YHWH (Ezek. 16:8; Mai. 2:14; Prov. 2:17; Ruth 3:13). [...] A reference to marriage as a religious institution may also be found in the non-literary text KTU 2.72:29-32. This letter mentions a daugh- ter of the king of Amurru who was anointed with oil. ...”
Hennie J. Marsman, Women in Ugarit and Israel: Their Social and Religious Position in the Context of the Ancient Near East (Leiden: Brill, 2003), PDF 716, 718.

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 2.72:31 and Ezekiel 16:9

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