Marduk’s arming against Tiamat from the Enuma Elish, the Babylonian account of creation.
They erected for him a ample throne.
Facing his fathers, he sat down, presiding.
“You are the most honored of the great gods,
Your decree is unrivaled, your command is Anu
You, Marduk are the most honored of the great gods,
Your decree is unrivaled, your word is Anu.
From this day unchangeable shall be your pronouncement.
To raise or bring low—these shall be in your hand.
Your utterance shall be true, your command shall be unimpeachable.
No one among the gods shall transgress your bounds!
Adornment being wanted for the seats of the gods,
Let the place of their shrines ever be in your place.
O Marduk, you are indeed our avenger.
We have granted you kingship over the entire universe.
Your word shall be supreme when you sit in assembly.
Your weapons shall not fail; they shall smash your foes!
O lord, spare the life of him who trusts you,
But pour out the life11 of the god who seized evil.”
Having placed in their midst a piece of cloth,
They addressed themselves to Marduk, their first-born
“Lord, truly your decree is first among gods.
Say but to wreck or create; it shall be.
Open your mouth; the cloth will vanish!
Speak again, and the cloth shall be whole!”
At the word emerged from his mouth the cloth vanished.
He spoke again, his fathers, saw the outcome of his word,
When the gods, his fathers, saw the outcome of his word,
Joyfully they paid homage: “Marduk is king!”
They conferred on him scepter, throne, and vestment;
They gave him unequaled weapons that ward off the foes:
“Go and terminate the life of Tiamat.
May the winds bear her blood to places undisclosed.”
Marduk’s destiny thus fixed, the gods, his fathers,
Caused him to go the way of success and achievement.
He constructed a bow, marked it as his weapon,
Attached thereto the arrow, grasped it in his right hand;
He raised the mace, grasped it in his right hand;
He hung bow and quiver at his side.
In front of him he sat the lightening,
He filled his body with blazing flame.
He then made a net to enfold Tiamat,
He stationed the four winds that nothing of her might escape,
The South Wind, the North Wind, the East Wind, the West Wind.
Close to his side he held the net, the gift of his father, Anu.
He brought forth Imhullu “the Evil Wind,” the Whirlwind, the Hurricane,
The Fourfold Wind, the Sevenfold Wind, the Cyclone, the Matchless Wind;
Then he sent forth the seven winds he had brought forth.
To stir up the inside of Tiamat they rose up behind him.
Then the lord raised up the flood-storm, his mighty weapon.
He mounted the storm-chariot irresistible and terrifying.
He harnessed and yoked to it a team-of-four,
The Killer, the Relentless, the Trampler, the Swift.
Sharp were their poison bearing teeth.
They were versed in ravage, skilled in destruction.
On his right he posted the Smiter, fearsome in battle,
On the left the Combat, which repels all the zealous.
His cloak was an armor of terror,
His head was turbaned with his fearsome halo.
The lord went forth and followed his course,
He set his face Towards the raging Tiamat.
He held a spell between his lips;
A plant to put out poison was grasped in his hand.
Then they milled about him, the gods milled about him,
The gods, his fathers, milled about him, the gods milled about him.
Extracts 