Reading akkadian PRayeRs & Hymns An Introduction

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26. lid-lu-lu TE.ÉN
READING AKKADIAN PRAYERS AND HYMNS: AN INTRODUCTION
here and in line 23. The whole phrase, darâtu dalīlīka lidlulū, is bound tightly by both alliteration
and consonance.
ana darâtu dalīlīka
Line 26: Although Maul adopts LID as the best reading, he suggests that the first sign
in the line might be read NI (297). In other words, the first sign may be an example of the
poorly attested líd reading. One’s decision on this does not affect the meaning. Maul’s copy
appears to favor reading lid (542). Lidlulū is a 3mp precative from dalālu. The subject of
dalālu has changed from the supplicant, line 23, to those who see the supplicant here.
TE.ÉN follows the prayer just as ÉN precedes it. Together they form an inclusio, delineating
the beginning and the end of the prayer.
lidlulū TE.ÉN
COMPARATIVE SUGGESTIONS:
Shamash 25 deals with dispelling the evil portent of snakes, ṣerru, hunting
in one’s house. While there are several different words for “snake” and “serpent”
in Hebrew, שׁ חָ
ָנ is the most frequently used and is likely the closest semantic
equivalent to Akkadian ṣerru (ṣēru). Jer 8:17 and Qoh 10:11 both mention spells
( שׁ חַ
ַל)
against snakes. However, unlike the underlying assumption of Shamash
25, the Qohelet passage highlights the uselessness of the charmer after the snake
bites. In the Jeremiah passage, it is Yahweh himself who will send uncharmable
snakes. 1
In much the same way as Shamash 25, biblical Psalms frequently contain
petitions followed by vows of praise. For example, Ps 7 begins with an invocation
followed by a rather complex petition, including a lament, and ends with a
vow of praise. Other psalms ending with vows or vow-like elements include Pss
13, 14, 21, 22, 35, 53, 54, 56, 57, 59, 61, 69, 79 and 109.
Although šar šamê u erṣetim in line 1 may be echoed in Jdt 9:12, and later
theology clearly identified the Judean and Israelite monotheistic god with the
king of heaven and earth, surprisingly the Hebrew Bible does not contain a precise
parallel to šar šamê u erṣetim, “king of heaven and earth.” 1 Chron 29:10–12
may well provide an extended paraphrase of the divine epithet. Zech 14:9 and
Dan 4:34 separately reflect the two halves of the epithet: Zech 14:9 proclaims
Yahweh, ץרֶ ָא ה־ל ָ ָכּ־ל ַע ךְ ֶל ֶמ , “king over all the earth,” and Dan 4:34 (in Aramaic)
1 Two incantations tablets treated by Finkel, “Incantations,” 223–29, may provide closer parallels
to Jer 8:17b than does Shamash 25 (See CBS 7005:13 and IM 5192:2, cited in note 4 above). On
snakes that cannot be conjured, see also the Sumerian Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the Netherworld
version A, lines 42, 85, 129, and 140 (ur 2-bi-a muš tu 6 nu-zu-a-e gud 3 im-ma-ni-ib-us 2, “At its
roots, a snake immune to incantations made itself a nest.” [ETCSL trans.]).