Enlil & Divine Rulership
His word, once spoken, cannot be called back — the storm that builds cities and the storm that flattens them.
Enlil, whose great temple the Ekur stood at Nippur, was for the Sumerians the working king of the gods — the one whose command (his 'word') set the world's order, granted or withdrew kingship from cities, and could not be reversed. He is awesome and dangerous as much as benevolent: his decree brings prosperity, but his anger brings the storm and the sack of cities. Much Sumerian theology is meditation on the irreversible, sometimes terrifying, authority of Enlil's word.
Key passages(20)
An adab to Enlil for Išme-Dagan (Išme-Dagan H)
…… the prince of gods …… seated upon all the divine powers, Nunamnir, the lord of just decrees, who possesses fully the great divine powers, Father Enlil, made your fearsomeness manifest in heaven and
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Enlil's commands are by far the loftiest, his words commands are holy, his utterances are immutable! The fate he decides is everlasting, his glance makes the mountains anxious, his …… reaches (?) into
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Not only did the lord make the world appear in its correct form -- the lord who never changes the destinies which he determines: Enlil, who will make the human seed of the Land come forth up from the
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To Enlil, king of all lands. When to Lugal-zage-si, king of Uruk, king of the Land, išib priest of An, lumah priest of Nisaba, child of Bubu, ruler of Umma, lumah priest of Nisaba, the one looked upon
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For the god Enlil, king of the gods, lord of heaven and netherworld, prince [... ], one who renders decisions, who [ se order ] cannot be changed, foremost of the Igīgū gods, hero of the Anunnakū gods
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Išme-Dagan and Enlil's Chariot: a tigi to Enlil (Išme-Dagan I)
August chariot! Enlil, the lord of wisdom, the father of the gods, ordered your construction in the E-kur, his exalted shrine. He instructed Išme-Dagan, the wise shepherd called by an auspicious name,
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A prayer to Enlil for Rīm-Sîn (Rīm-Sîn A)
May Enlil, king of heaven and earth, whose utterances are trusty and whose words are ……, …… the shepherd Rīm-Sîn, …… my king ……. May he who gives him life-giving (?) food-offerings in Nibru stand in p
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Enlil, the eminent one, the sovereign lord, whose utterance is trustworthy; Nunamnir, the eternal shepherd of the Land, who hails from the great mountain; the great counsellor, the first and foremost
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By his firm command, Enlil, the king of all lands, the father of all gods....... (Uš) removed the stela and repositioned it towards the plain of Lagaš. By (Enlil’s) just command, Ninĝirsu, Enlil’s war
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Nam-zid-tara walked by Enlil, who said to him: Where have you come from, Nam-zid-tara? From Enlil's temple. My turn of duty is finished. I serve at the place of the gudug priests, with their sheep. I
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After he had blessed Lugal-kiĝeneš-dudu, Enlil, the king of all lands, combined the title of en and the title of king for him: he ruled then as en in Unug, while he ruled as king in Urim. In his great
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A praise poem of Išme-Dagan (Išme-Dagan A + V)
Enlil, by far …… He to whom the great gods pay attention; foundation deposit of the Anuna, living …… of the Enki deities; he whose great divine powers know no opponents, whose …… excel all others, who
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An adab to Enlil for Būr-Suen (Būr-Suen B)
…… who alone surpasses heaven and earth, the exalted one, prominent among the Anuna gods, whose utterances cannot be overturned! Nunamnir, whose decisions cannot be altered, proud one imbued with terr
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Enlil, the king of all lands, the father of all gods, fixed the border between Ninĝirsu and Šara by his firm command. By the order of Ištaran, Me-silim, king of Kiš measured it off and erected a stela
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For the god Enlil, lord of the lands, his lord: Ashurbanipal, (5) his obedient shepherd, mighty king, king of the four quarters (of the world), (re) built Ekur, his beloved temple, with baked bricks.
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For the god Enlil, king of the gods, sovereign of heaven (and) netherworld, prince (who decides) the fates, (5) his lord: Ashurbanipal, his obedient shepherd, mighty king, king of the world, (re) buil
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Enlil, the king of all lands, entrusted Utu-heĝal, the powerful man, king of Unug, the king of the four quarters, the king whose orders cannot be countermanded, with wiping out the name of Gutium, the
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To Ellil, the supreme (and) elevated lord, the eternal king, the exalted leader, the lord of heaven and earth, the one who determines the fates, the very proud nobleman, whose rule cannot be rivalled
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A hymn to Nibru and Išme-Dagan (Išme-Dagan W)
City whose terrifying splendour extends over heaven and earth, whose towers are exceptionally grand, shrine Nibru! Your power reaches to the edges of the uttermost extent of heaven and earth. Of all t
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A praise poem of Enlil-bāni (Enlil-bāni A)
Enlil-bāni, wondrous king among the princes! Created by An, elevated by Enlil, like Utu the light of all lands, born to princedom, girded with all the divine powers, watched over by Enlil and listened
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