Catalogue information

British Museum

BM 54644

82-5-22,964+ 82-9-18,6889

Sippar›(Sippar), 82-5-22 consignment

joins:

BM 54644+ BM 66895

CDLI:

P461258

Publication

Editions:

Jiménez, forthcomingE. Jiménez, “The Literary Prayers to Marduk”.

Commentary

Literary›Literary Prayer to Marduk 2

None

Base text:

Literary Prayer to Marduk 2

Tablet information

Babylonian

Fragment

Columns:

Lines:

Size:

6,98 × 5,71 cm

Chaldean / early Achaemenid (late 7th / 6th cent) (mostly "Sippar Collection")

Bibliography

Frahm, 2011E. Frahm, Babylonian and Assyrian Text Commentaries. Origins of Interpretation. Ugarit-Verlag, 2011.: 261 fn. 1246

George, 2002A. R. George, “Tablets from Sippar: Supplementary bibliography etc. for Leichty, Catalogues VI-VIII, up to the end of 2000”, Orientalia Nova Series, vol. 71, pp. 55-156, 2002.
[Prayer to Marduk (Lambert)]: 74

Jiménez, forthcomingE. Jiménez, “The Literary Prayers to Marduk”.
[Edition]

Leichty, 1986E. Leichty, Catalogue of the Babylonian Tablets in the British Museum. Volume VI: Tablets from Sippar 1. British Museum Publications, 1986.
[Commentary]: 152

Record

Lambert, 02/2000 (Identification)

Jiménez, 09/2017 (Transliteration)

Jiménez, 09/2017 (Introduction)

Jiménez, 09/2017 (Annotation)

Frahm & Frazer & Wagensonner, 09/2017 (Revision, suggestions)

By Enrique Jiménez |

How to cite

Jiménez, E., 2017, “Commentary on Literary Prayer to Marduk 2 (CCP 1.5),” Cuneiform Commentaries Project (E. Frahm, E. Jiménez, M. Frazer, and K. Wagensonner), 2013–2024; accessed April 20, 2024, at https://ccp.yale.edu/P461258. DOI: 10079/d51c5pv

BibTex XML RIS

Introduction

This small and badly damaged tablet contains a commentary that deals with the first sixty-eight lines of the literary prayer Lord, Sage of the Igigi, a text frequently called, after Lambert’s pioneering edition,1 Marduk no. 2. This text is a long wisdom composition, of over two hundred lines, whose main goal is to extol the god Marduk as punisher of the wicked and benefactor of the pious. It was one of the most popular texts in first millennium BCE Babylon, and scribes frequently copied passages from it during the first stages of their training.

The prayer Lord, Sage of the Igigi is written in a highly literary style: on the one hand, it contains many obscure words and several hapax legomena; on the other, the conciseness of its style makes many of its line very difficult to interpret. Its text is much more complex than that of other long literary prayers, such as the Šamaš Hymn and the prayer Marduk no. 1. This is the reason why Marduk no. 2 is one of the very few Akkadian literary texts to receive an ancient commentary, an honor only shared by Enūma eliš, Ludlul bēl nēmeqi and the Theodicy (for a list of commentaries on Akkadian literary texts, see here).

The commentary is very straightforward: its only interest is to provide philological explanations to difficult words. Most of them are explained by means of synonyms (thus, nagbu, “entire” is explained as napḫaru, “all,” in l. 28). The exegete provides roots for certain words (thus ll. 10, 13, 24, 39, 48, 52–53), once using the technical term ana muḫḫi (l. 15). One of the most interesting explanations can be found in l. 38, in which the word [e]-ri-mu is explained by means of the Sumerian word ne.ru (glossed as e-rim), as raggu, “wicked.”2 Complete lines are quoted twice (ll. 21 and perhaps 50), perhaps with the purpose of providing a periphrasis. Unfortunately, the explanation is broken in both cases.

The tablet is formed by two fragments, BM 54644 (82-5-22, 964) and BM 66895 (82-9-18, 6889), joined by W. G. Lambert. They both belong to the British Museum’s “Sippar Collection,” and probably stem from Achaemenid or Hellenistic Babylon. The edition below is greatly indebted to W. G. Lambert’s copy of the tablet, which is scheduled to be published as no. 115 in the volume of copies of Lambert’s Nachlass prepared for publication by Andrew R. George. Thanks are expressed to A. R. George for making Lambert’s copy available before its publication.

1. W. G. Lambert, “Three Literary Prayers of the Babylonians”, Archiv für Orientforschung, vol. 19, pp. 47-66, 1959. Pp. 61–68. The text was recently reedited by T. Oshima, Babylonian Prayers to Marduk. Mohr Siebeck, 2011. Pp. 216–270. A new edition of the prayer with many new manuscripts is in preparation by the present editor.
2. On the rare word erīmu, see I. L. Finkel, “The Lament of Nabû-šuma-ukîn”, in 2000 v. Chr. Politische, wirtschaftliche und kulturelle Entwicklung im Zeichen einer Jahrtausendwende, J. - W. Meyer and Sommerfeld, W. , Eds. SDV, 1999, pp. 323-342. P. 234.

Edition

ccpo

BM 054644 + BM 066895 (unpublished unassigned ?) [commentaries]


Obverse
11	[...] ⸢x⸣ [x x x x x x x]	[…] … […]
22	[...] ⸢x ri-du⸣-tu₄ ⸢x⸣ [x x x x x]1	[…] … “pursuit” … […]
33	[...] ⸢x-ri-mu⸣ : ḫi-[is]-⸢sa^?⸣-[tu₄ x x] ⸢x x⸣ [x x x]2	[…] …. “M[ention” (= Marduk II l. 2 = 4) …] … […].
44	[...]-⸢x⸣-du : par-ri-⸢ku⸣ [: x x x x] ⸢x⸣ [x] ⸢x x⸣ [(x)]	[…] … “Exalted” (= Marduk II l. 2 = 4) [means …] … [(…)].
55	[...] ⸢x x⸣-ru : ⸢x bu^?-ur^?⸣ [x x x]-⸢ur x x x⸣ [x]	[…] … “Well” (= Marduk II l. 6) … […]
66	[...]-bi : ⸢x⸣ [x x x] ⸢:⸣ na-ši-⸢ir⸣ ⸢: na⸣-[šá-ru x] ⸢x x⸣	[…] … […]. “Who lets loose” (= Marduk II l. 7) (stems from) “to l[et loose” …] …
77	[...] ⸢x-a^? zi-it x⸣ : ⸢rab-bu^?⸣ x x [x x x]	…
88	[...]-⸢am⸣-ma ⸢:⸣ [x] ⸢x x ti^? x bi^? x⸣ [x x] ⸢x x⸣ ka-lu-ú	[…] … […] … “to hold back”
99	[...] ⸢x⸣ : ti-ik : ni-id : ⸢x⸣-[x x x x]	[…] … “(Rain)drop” (= Marduk II l. 10) means “flow.” … […].
1010	[... mu-kam-mir^?] ⸢iš⸣-pik-ku : ku-um^?-⸢mu-ur^?⸣ [x x x x]	[… “He who piles] stores of grain” (= Marduk II l. 11) — “to pile up” […]
1111	[...] ⸢x⸣-me^?-⸢ḫu^?⸣ : ma-lu-ú [x x x x]3	[…] … means “to fill up” […]
1212	[...] ⸢x x-ru⸣ : ta-at-⸢tu⸣-[ru] ⸢x⸣ [x x x x]	[…] … “profit” (= Marduk II l. 12) … […].
1313	[... pa-qid : pa]-⸢qa⸣-du : ma-nu-ú : ik-x x [x x x x]4	[… “He who entrusts” (= Marduk II l. 15) – “to e]ntrust” means “to count.” … […].
1414	[...] ⸢x⸣-da : ⸢tab^?⸣-ta-a-tú x x ⸢ka⸣-[x x x x]	[…] … […]
1515	[(...) piš-šá-ti ana] UGU pa-šá-šú : ši-ga-ri : ⸢si⸣-[ga-ri (x x)]	[(…) “Ointment” (= Marduk II l. 15) s]tems from “to anoint.” “šigaru” (= Marduk II l. 15) means “bo[lt” (…)].
1616	[...] ⸢x⸣ : zi-bi : ma-⸢aṣ^!⸣-ḫa-tu₄ ⸢x x x⸣ [x x x]5	[…] … “Food offering” (= Marduk II l. 16) means “flour” … […]
1717	[...] ⸢: né-re^?-eš^?⸣ : a-⸢na^? né-e^!-ri⸣ [x] ⸢x⸣ [x x]	[…] … […]
1818	[...] ⸢x⸣-bi ⸢x šá x x x ur^?⸣ a ⸢: x⸣	[…] … […]
1919	[...] ⸢x⸣-tu₄ : na-⸢x x x⸣ : EN-ERIDU^ki : ^dIDIM6	[…] … “Bēl-Eridu” (= Marduk II l. 17) is Ea.
2020	[... ú]-⸢sa^?-tú^?⸣ : gi-mi-il7	[…] “Assistance” (= Marduk II l. 18) means “help
2121	[U₄-ME SÙ-ME ...] ⸢:⸣ ḫa-⸢áš-šá-a⸣ taḫ-su-us nak^!(EME-)rat EME	[“for many days” …] “You mentioned the fifty (names), (whose) language is strange” (= Marduk II l. 22);
2222	[... a]-⸢bir^?⸣-ti-⸢i⸣ : bi-⸢il^?-x⸣-si re-ʾ-i x x-tú	[… “abi]rtî (?, Marduk II l. 23) means … of the shepherd …
2323	[...] ⸢mun-nab⸣-tu₄ : ḫa-ab-tu₄ : ⸢tu-šad⸣-ma-aq ma-⸢ag⸣-ri-im-⸢ma⸣	[… “fu]gitive” (= Marduk II l. 24) means “plundered.” “You favor the obedient” (Marduk II l. 25?)
2424	[...] a-pi-ir :^! a^!-pa^!-ri : ma-lu-ú : a-pa-ri : na-da-nu	[…] “fed” (= Marduk II l. 27) (stems from) “to feed”, (which means) “to fill”; “to feed” means “to give,”
2525	[a-pa-ri : ra]-a-mu : ma-ti-tan : ma-⸢ta⸣-a-tu₄	[“to feed” means “to g]rant.” “matītān” (= Marduk II l. 27) means “(all) lands.”
2626	[...]-⸢ul^?⸣-lu-⸢ú^?⸣ : šu-te-mu-qa : ⸢su⸣-ul-lu-ú	[…] … “To pray” (Marduk II l. 30) means “to implore.”
2727	[ŠÀ.KÚŠ.Ù : muš-ta]-⸢lu⸣ : ŠÀ.KÚŠ.Ù : ma-li-ku^!8	[šà.kúš.ù means “circumsp]ect” (Marduk II l. 31), šà.kúš.ù means “advisor.”
2828	[...] x-la/te-ma-lu : it-pe-šú : le-ʾ-ú9	[…] … “Expert” (= Marduk II l. 34?) means “competent.”
2929	[...]-du-ú : nag-bi : nap-ḫa-ri	[…] … “Entire” (= Marduk II l. 35) means “all.”
3030	[...] al-li : a-a-in-nu : al-lu-⸢ú⸣	[…] “Whence” (= Marduk II l. 35) means “where.” “Whence” (= Marduk II l. 35)
3131	[... šu-ut-lu-mu :] ⸢na^?⸣-da-nu : šá-lum-ma-tú : zi-⸢i⸣-mu	[means … “To bequeath” (= Marduk II l. 38) means] “to give.” “Splendor” (= Marduk II l. 39) means “face,”
3232	[... šá]-⸢lum⸣-ma-tú : bu-ú-nu :. SU.LIM : šá-lum-ma-tu₄	[… “sp]lendor” means “face”, su.lim means “splendor”
3333	[SU^?.LIM^? : bu-un]-⸢na^?⸣-nu-ú : na-šá-a re-šá-a-ka10	[su.lim (?) means “phys]ique.” “You are exalted” (= Marduk II l. 40)
3434	[...] ⸢x⸣ : ta-ši-la-a-tú :	[means …] … “Joy” (= Marduk II l. 40) means
3535	[...] ⸢x⸣ ap-su^?-⸢ú^?⸣11	[…] “Apsû.”
3636	[... ^d]⸢LAMMA^?⸣ ⸢: la-mas-sa^?⸣-[tu₄^?] ⸢x x x⸣	[…] lamma (= Marduk II l. 41) means “tutelary deity.” …
3737	[...] ⸢ra⸣-šub-ba-tú : ⸢zi-i⸣-mu :	[…] “awe” (= Marduk II l. 42) “face.”
3838	[... e^?-ri-mu :] ⸢NE⸣^e-^rim.RU : rag-gu : tu-⸢ár⸣-ri : 12	[… erīmu (Marduk II l. 43?)] – erím, read /erim/, means “evil.” tuʾarri (= Marduk II l. 43)
3939	[a-ru-ú : na]-ka-si : ga-ap-šiš : ga-pa-⸢šú⸣ [:] ⸢ra⸣-bu-ú ⸢:⸣	[(stems from) “to cut off,” which means “to c]ut.” “Risen” (= Marduk II l. 43) (stems from) “to rise upwards,” (which) [means] “to be large.”
4040	[... te-na-na-a] ⸢:⸣ e-nu-ú : šá-nu-⸢ú⸣ : ⸢x x⸣ [x] ⸢di-x⸣ [x x (x)]	[… “Revolutionary” (= Marduk II l. 46)] (stems from) “to revolutionize” (which) means “to change.” … […]
4141	[...] ⸢ar⸣-šá-a-tú : ^lúSI.NU.SÁ : ar-šú ⸢x x⸣ [x x x]13	[…] “Impure things” (= Marduk II l. 47) – lú.si-nu-sá means “impure” … […].
4242	[... za]-ʾ-i-ri : ar-šú : x x x šá-⸢qa^?⸣ [x x x]	[… “En]emy” (= Marduk II l. 47) means “impure” … […]
4343	[... me-na] ⸢:⸣ ma-nu-⸢ú : x x la⸣ mi-na-tu šá ⸢x⸣ [x x x]	[… “Co]unt” (= Marduk II l. 48) (stems from) “to count” … dimensions of … […]
4444	[...] ⸢ma⸣-lu-ú : tu-uš-te-šir i-šá-ri [x x (x)]	[…] means “to fill.” “You make the righteous prosper […]” (= Marduk II l. 49).
4545	[...] : i-šá-ri : ki-i-nu : mu-ki-in ⸢IGI⸣.[SÁ^e]	[…]; “righteous” means “pious.” “Establisher of pr[esents]” (= Marduk II l. 50).
4646	[...] ⸢ŠÀ^!⸣.TAM : qa-a-pu <:> na-da-nu : [x x x]14	[…] šatam (= Marduk II l. 50) means “to entrust” (<i.e.>) “to give”; […]
4747	[...] a-lak-tú : ṭè-e-me : liš-nak-ki-⸢ir^?⸣	[…] “Way” (= Marduk II l. 51) means “behavior.” “May he alter” (= Marduk II l. 53?)
4848	[... tu-še]-⸢me⸣ : e-mu-ú : ma-šá-lu : ⸢te⸣-[x x]	[means … “You tu]rn into” (= Marduk II l. 59) (stems from) “to become,” (which) means “to resemble.”
4949	[...] ⸢:⸣ ka-ra-as-si-na ši-⸢it⸣-[nu (x x)]	[…]; “their purpose changes” (= Marduk II l. 60) [(…)]
5050	[...] ⸢x⸣ kit-mu-us ⸢DINGIR i-red^?⸣-[di (x x)]	[…] the adorant, follows his god (= Marduk II l. 62),
5151	[...] ⸢x⸣ : ka-⸢x⸣-[x : pa]-⸢liḫ⸣ [DINGIR] ⸢la⸣ áš-ru	[…] … [… “The son of] the rever[ent], the impious” (= Marduk II l. 63).
5252	[...] ⸢šá-ni-tu₄⸣ [x x x] ki-i tu-šar-ši-du-uš15	[…] “A second time” (= Marduk II 64) means […]. “You lay his foundations” (cp. Marduk II l. 65),
5353	[(...) šur-šu-du :] ⸢ku-un^!?⸣-nu : ar-šá-a-tú : ⸢x⸣-[x x]16	[… “to lay the foundations” means] “to establish.” “Impure things” (= Marduk II l. 65) means … […].
5454	[...]-⸢x⸣-mu : ki-i i-te-en-nu [(x x)]	[…] … “When he has punished” (= Marduk II l. 68) [(…)]
5555	[...] ⸢x x x x⸣ [x x]	[…] … […]

1Si vera lectio, the word ridûtu, “pursuit,” may explain ḫissatu, “mention,” which appears in Marduk II l. 2 = 4.

2At the beginning, perhaps serrēmu, “onager”? Note that šitmuru (Marduk II l. 2 = 4) is elsewhere said of horses.

3The word before malû might be related to the verb šamāḫu.

4The equation paqādu = manû is well attested: see CAD P 115b.

5The reading aṣ^! is courtesy of K. Wagensonner.

6The name in the base text is ^dEN-AN.KI.

7Compare the commentary on the Theodicy (CCP 1.4) o 16: ú-sat : gi-mil U₄-ME SÙ-ME, “‘assistance’ means ‘aid for many days’.”

8The last equation is rare, but it attested e.g. in Nabnītu IV/IVa 196 (MSL 16, 84).

9itpēšu comments perhaps on l. 34, although the manuscripts read i-te-ep-sú.

10The first half of the line probably contained a notarikon analysis of the word SU.LIM that was used to justify the equation between šalummatu and zīmu etc. The equation between SU.LIM and bunannû, if the reading is certain, is elsewhere unattested.

11The line might comment on the name Damgalnuna, which appears in Marduk II l. 41.

12The line may contain a notarikon analysis of the word rašubbatu. If correctly read, the strange word erīmu, “enemy” (on which see Finkel CDOG 2 p. 234) would appear in Marduk II l. 43 (now x-ri-mu, restauration suggested by E. Frahm). At the end, the commentary explains the very difficult tu-UB-RI (corrected in AHw 222b to tu-up-paq^!, and other authors following this), as stemming from arû, “to cut off” (the equation arû = nakāsu is well attested, see CAD A/2 317a).