Nebuchadnezzar II 027

(i 1) Nebuchadnezzar (II), king of Babylon, pious prince, favorite of the god Marduk, the exalted ruler who is the beloved of the god Nabû, the one who deliberates (and) acquires wisdom, the one who constantly seeks out life, the pious (and) unceasing one, the one who brings great gifts into Esagil, the wise (and) pious one who provides for Esagil and Ezida, foremost heir of Nabopolassar, king of Babylon, am I.

(i 16) When the god Marduk, the great lord, raised up my head (and) gave me a widespread people to shepherd, I myself am constantly present (and) unfailing towards the god Marduk, my lord, (and) [I] constantly sought out the sanctuaries of the god Nabû, his (Marduk’s) true heir, the one who loves my royal majesty, (and) I [consta]ntly pondered [things that] were pleasing to them.

(i 30) [At th]at time, I was attentive towards the god Marduk, the supreme one, the mighty one, the exalted one, the venerated [he]ro, [the one who directs] the assembly of [Ig]īgū [and Anun]nakū gods, the great ...s, the Enlil of the gods, the eminent one, the bright light, the glory of gods — his ancestors — the one who resides in Esagil, the lord of Babylon, the great lord, my lord.

(ii 1) (With regard to) Etemenanki, the ziggurat of Babylon, whose emplacement Nabopolassar, the king of Babylon, my father who engendered me, had had purified through the craft of the exorcist, the wisdom of the gods Ea and Marduk, and whose foundation(s) he had firmly placed on the surface (lit. “breast”) of the netherworld, whose four walls he had raised thirty cubits on the outside using bitumen and baked brick, but whose superstructure he had not raised up (to its summit), I set to work raising the superstructure of Etemenanki to have (its summit) rival the heavens.

(ii 19) I mustered the widespread people whom the god Marduk, my lord, had entrusted to me (and) whom the hero, the god Šamaš, had given me to shepherd, all of the lands, everywhere, (and) every single inhabited settlement from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea, far-off lands, the widespread people of the inhabited world, kings of remote mountains and distant islands that are in the Upper and Lower Seas, whose lead-rope(s) the god Marduk, my lord, placed in my hand to pull his chariot pole, and I imposed (the carrying of) basket(s) on the workmen of the gods Šamaš and Marduk in order to build Etemenanki.

(ii 45) (With regard to) Ur, Uruk, Larsa, Eridu, Kullaba, Nēmed-[La]guda, Ugar-Sîn, the entire land of the Lower Sea, from its uppermost part to its lowermost part, Nippur, Isin, Larak, Dilbat, Marad, Puqūdu, Bīt-D[akkūri], Bīt-Amuk(k)āni, Bīt-[Šillāni], Birāt[u], Dēr, Agade, [Dūr-Šarrukku], Arrapḫa, Laḫī[ru, ...], the entirety of the lands of Ak[kad and Assyria],

(iii 6) kings of Across the Riv[er] (Syria-Palestine), provincial governors of the land of Ḫatti, from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea, the land of Sumer and Akka[d], al[l of] the land of Subartu (Assyria), king(s) of remote islands that are in the midst of the Upper Sea, king(s) of remote islands that are in the midst of the Lower Sea, (and) governors of the land of Ḫatti, (who are) across the Euphrates River, to the west (lit. “entering of the sun”), over whom I exercise dominion by the word of the god Marduk, my lord, and who bring (beams of) hard cedar from Mount Lebanon to my city, Babylon,

(iii 30) the entirety of the widespread people of the inhabited world, whom the god Marduk, my lord, had granted me, to build Etemenanki, I had them undertake the work and I imposed (the carrying of) basket(s) on them.

(iii 36) I filled in its base with a high thirty cubit infill. I plated thick (beams of) cedar (and) large (beams of) musukkannu-wood with bronze and had (them) set up in great numbers.

(iii 42) [...] it foundation(s) [...] strong, [I c]lad (it) [...]. For the šīpu, [...], crossbeam(s), giškanakku(s), [sikkūr]u šāqilu lock(s), [...] roof, [...] ... [...] ...

(iii 1') [I secured] their structure(s) with strong [...] (and) iron.

(iii 3') [(With regard to), Eteme]nanki, [I built (and) completed] its ent[ire] structure [using bitume]n and baked brick. [...].

(iv 4) For the god Marduk, my lord, I skillfully built a h[oly] shrine, a well-adorn[ed] bedroo[m], as (it was in) distant days, on its summit.

(iv 10) O Marduk, my lord, majestic one of the gods, noble one, by your command the cult center of the gods is built (and) its brickwork is created so that the sukku-shrine will constantly renew itself (and) the temple will be perfect. By your exalted word, which cannot be altered, may my gištaggû-offering(s) be perfectly executed, may my handiwork be completed, may everything that I have built endure and stay in good repair forever (and) I may be sated with its luxuriousness. Firmly establish the throne of my royal majesty like Etemenanki for eternity (and) secure (it) forever.

(iv 30) O Etemenanki, pray for me, Nebuchadnezzar (II), the king who renovated you. When I have completed your construction by the commands of the god Marduk, O house, speak favorably (about me) to the god Marduk, my lord. May I be sated with walking in your presence (until) the attainment of very old age (and) may my descendants rule over the black-headed (people) forever.