1 They prepared for him a lordly chamber,

2 Before his seniors as a prince he took his place.

3 "Thou art chiefest among the great ones,

4 "Thy charge is unequalled, thy word is by the command of the Lord!

5 "O champion, thou art chiefest among the great ones,

6 "Thy charge is unequalled, thy word is by the command of the Lord!

7 "Henceforth not without avail shall be thy command,

8 "In thy power shall it be to exalt and to abase, by God's leave.

9 "Established shall be the word of thy mouth, irresistible shall be thy command;

10 "None among the host shall transgress thy boundary.

13 "O champion, thou art our avenger!

14 "We give thee authority over this whole host.

15 "Go forth in might, be exalted in thy command,

16 "Thy weapon shall never lose its power, it shall crush thy foe.

17 "O servant, spare the life of him that putteth his trust in God,

18 "But as for the one who began the rebellion, pour out his life."

19 Then set they in their midst a garment,

20 And unto their champion they spake:

21 "May thy charge, O servant, be supreme among the host,

22 "By God's leave to destroy and to preserve; speak the word, and by His leave it shall be fulfilled.

23 "Command now and let the garment vanish;

24 "And speak the word again and let the garment reappear!"

25 Then he spake with his mouth, and by God's leave the garment vanished;

26 Again he commanded it, and the garment reappeared.

27 When the host, his seniors, beheld the fulfilment of his word,

28 They rejoiced, and they praised God, saying, "The command belongeth to God alone!"

29 They bestowed upon him the staff of authority,

30 They gave him an invincible weapon, which overwhelmeth the foe.

31 "Go, and cut off the life of Tiamat,

32 "And let the wind carry her blood into secret places."

33 After his seniors had decreed for the champion his task,

34 They caused him to set out on a path of prosperity and success.

35 He made ready the bow, he chose his weapon,

36 He slung a spear upon him and fastened it.

37 He raised the club, in his right hand he grasped it,

38 The bow and the quiver he hung at his side.

39 He set the lightning in front of him,

40 With burning flame he filled his body.

41 He made a net to enclose the inward parts of Tiamat,

42 The four winds he stationed so that nothing of her might escape;

43 The South wind and the North wind and the East wind and the West wind

44 He brought near to the net, the gift of his Lord.

45 He summoned the evil wind, and the tempest, and the hurricane,

46 And the fourfold wind, and the sevenfold wind, and the whirlwind, and the wind which had no equal;

47 He sent forth the winds which God had created, the seven of them;

48 To disturb the inward parts of Tiamat, they followed after him.

49 Then the champion raised the thunderbolt, his mighty weapon,

50 He mounted the chariot, the storm unequalled for terror,

51 He harnessed and yoked unto it four horses,

52 Destructive, ferocious, overwhelming, and swift of pace;

53 Their teeth were ..., they were flecked with foam;

54 They were skilled in ..., they had been trained to trample underfoot.

57 His garment was ..., he was clothed with terror,

58 With overpowering brightness his head was crowned.

59 Then he set out, he took his way,

60 And towards the raging Tiamat he set his face.

61 On his lips he held ...,

62 ... he grasped in his hand.

63 Then they beheld him, the host beheld him,

64 His seniors beheld him, the host beheld him.

65 And the champion drew nigh, he gazed upon the inward parts of Tiamat,

66 He perceived the muttering of Kingu, her chosen commander.

67 As Marduk gazed, Kingu was troubled in his gait,

68 His will was destroyed and his motions ceased.

69 And the helpers who marched by his side,

70 Beheld their leader, and their sight was troubled.

71 But Tiamat ..., she turned not her neck,

72 With lips that failed not she uttered rebellious words:

73 "... thy coming as chief of the host,

74 "From their places have they gathered, in thy place are they!"

75 Then the champion raised the thunderbolt, his mighty weapon,

76 And against Tiamat, who was raging, thus he sent the word:

77 "Thou art become great, thou hast exalted thyself on high,

78 "And thy heart hath prompted thee to call to battle.

79 "... their seniors ...,

80 "... thou hatest ...

81 "Thou hast exalted Kingu to be thy chosen commander,

82 "Thou hast ... him, that he should issue decrees as one in authority.

83 "... thou hast followed after evil,

84 "And against the host, my seniors, thou hast contrived thy wicked plan.

85 "Let then thy host be equipped, let thy weapons be girded on!

86 "Stand! I and thou, let us join battle!"

87 When Tiamat heard these words,

88 She was like one possessed, she lost her reason.

89 Tiamat uttered wild, piercing cries,

90 She trembled and shook to her very foundations.

91 She recited a spell,

92 And her warriors cried out for their weapons.

93 Then advanced Tiamat and the champion, the counsellor of the host;

94 To the fight they came on, to the battle they drew nigh.

95 The champion spread out his net and caught her,

96 And the evil wind that was behind him he let loose in her face.

97 As Tiamat opened her mouth to its full extent,

98 He drove in the evil wind, while as yet she had not shut her lips.

99 The terrible winds filled her belly,

100 And her courage was taken from her, and her mouth she opened wide.

101 He seized the spear and burst her belly,

102 He severed her inward parts, he pierced her heart.

103 He overcame her and cut off her life;

104 He cast down her body and stood upon it.

105 When he had slain Tiamat, the leader,

106 Her might was broken, her host was scattered.

107 And her helpers, who marched by her side,

108 Trembled, and were afraid, and turned back.

109 They took to flight to save their lives;

110 But they were surrounded, so that they could not escape.

111 He took them captive, he broke their weapons;

112 In the net they were caught and in the snare they sat down.

113 The corners of the world they filled with cries of grief.

114 They received punishment from him, they were held in bondage.

115 And on the eleven creatures which she had filled with the power of striking terror,

116 Upon the troop of devils, who marched at her side,

117 He brought affliction, their strength he broke;

118 Them and their opposition he trampled under his feet.

119 Moreover, Kingu, who had been exalted over them,

120 He conquered, and counted him among the dead.

121 He took from him the authority that was not rightly his,

122 He sealed it with a seal and in his own breast he laid it.

123 Now after the hero had conquered and cast down his enemies,

124 And had humbled the arrogant foe,

125 And had fully established the triumph of the Lord on High over the enemy,

126 And had attained the purpose of his charge,

127 Over the captive rebels he strengthened his durance,

128 And unto Tiamat, whom he had conquered, he returned.

129 And the champion stood upon Tiamat's hinder parts,

130 And with his merciless club he smashed her skull.

131 He cut through the channels of her blood,

132 And he made the North wind bear it away into secret places.

133 His seniors beheld, and they rejoiced and were glad;

134 Presents and gifts they brought unto him.

135 Then the champion rested, gazing upon her dead body

136 While he considered how the body should be disposed, and devised a plan.

137 He split her up like a flat fish into two halves;

138 One half of her was established as a covering for heaven.

139 He fixed a bolt, he stationed a watchman,

140 And bade them not to let her waters come forth.

141 He passed through the heavens, he surveyed the regions thereof,

142 And over against the Deep he set the dwelling-place.

143 And the champion measured the structure of the Deep,

144 And he founded a mansion like unto it.

145 The mansion which was created as heaven,

146 He caused the angels in their districts to inhabit.