Texts in Conversation
Genesis uses the reassurance found in a Ugaritic royal letter to promise Isaac protection, presenting God's support in the familiar language of a ruler's care.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
KTU 2.30:21
Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
Ancient Near East
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. And there with my mother, whatever is well, send word back to me. Here with us the king […] […] And now […] And if the Hittite comes up, I will send to you. And if he does not come up, I will surely send. And you, my mother, do not be troubled, and do not let anything into your heart; do not put it there.
Genesis 26:24
Hebrew Bible
21 His servants dug another well, but they quarreled over it too, so Isaac named it Sitnah. 22 Then he moved away from there and dug another well. They did not quarrel over it, so Isaac named it Rehoboth, saying, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we will prosper in the land.” 23 From there Isaac went up to Beer Sheba. 24 The Lord appeared to him that night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.” 25 Then Isaac built an altar there and worshiped the Lord. He pitched his tent there, and his servants dug a well. 26 Now Abimelech had come to him from Gerar along with Ahuzzah his friend and Phicol the commander of his army.
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Notes and References
“... The words “do not fear, for I am with you to save you” ... The wording found in number eight also occurs in Northwest Semitic texts (such as KAI 202 and KTU 2.30 [=UT 1013], lines 16–24) and elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible (e.g., Gen 15.1, 26.24, etc.). ...”
Sommer, Benjamin D.
A Prophet Reads Scripture: Allusion in Isaiah 40-66
(p. 33, 219) Stanford University Press, 1998
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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