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The king, my lord, knows that the lands of the vizier's and the chief judge's households do not cross the Radanu river. The royal road which goes to Azari is their border. |
When the king transferred me to Que, they removed the local people and their fields were abandoned |
The servants of Bel-aplu-iddina, their guarantor, are not obliged to perform state or military service. |
Now when the king, my lord, sent me to catch the criminals; I went there, raised my eyes and saw the village. 2-3 elders of the country, local people, servants of the king, were present in my audience, so I asked them: "Where is the man who gave it (= the field) to Bel-aplu-iddina? |
Our servants, the elders of the country, said: "They removed our brothers and their field was abandoned. Down came the men of Bel-aplu-iddina and seized the village there by force." |
Now let 2-3 elders of the country, local people, come and settle the issue whose field it is with the servants of Bel-aplu-iddina in the presence of the king, my lord. |
Tomorrow the king, my lord, will again hear many things, but my servants have verily not parceled out anything. |
The king, my lord, sends me everywhere but there is nobody in my rear. Let a messenger of the king my lord come, let them make the king’s tasks clear to him, and let him do his work. |
, Matenni of Tyre had written to the ruler of Danabu, saying: 'Let us raise the king's money and give it to him!' |
When he had sent this word to NN, his brother, the royal delegate NN, showed up, saying: "Give me the tribute." He Matenni spoke with the ruler of Danabu and told him to give the tribute. Now then let all the Sidonites who came with him immediately come to me with the delegate, and I shall assign the tribute and send it to the king. |
Perhaps the king will say: "Are their cornfields cultivated?" Their cornfields and their orchards |
I had an argument with him about the Ukkean and the king’s border, saying: "Why do you conquer a city of his |
I told him: "Bring me the booty, I will return it to the Ukkean. Why do you remain inactive while the Urarṭian is capturing a fort on the king's border? The city lords around you are with you exempt of state service. Fight with them!" |
He said: "If the Urarṭian either sends troops or comes himself, I shall go and fight against them." |
I have asked what my lord ordered me to concerning the Ullubaeans in the service of Inurta-ila’i: the equipment has been piled up, his shortage is all right. |
I will have marching drills with him, and he will then go. I have made an outlet canal and the flood has passed by. |
You have feared Mišaru-naṣir for the sake of Assyria and he frightens you. But fear not and don't be afraid of him. You will bear the responsibility for the land. |
Now, the troops of the chief cupbearer and Aššur-eṭir have sent 100 horses, two chariots, and 300 oxen and they are at your disposal. |
My messengers, who are coming up to you from Dummal, are entrusted to you. Guard them, but they should not take the horses of the delegate! Put them on the secure road and send them peacefully to me! |
You did not fear the cherub, but I am herewith sending to you 30 kor of sesame oil with Šamaš-ereš. |
The silver dues of the prefects and village managers collected from the local population: two talents and 18 minas of silver according to the standard of Carchemish. In addition I have sent to the king, my lord, half a shekel of gold, three togas and three tunics with my messenger. |
, and in addition to them I harvest an extra 1,000 hectares of the sown fields of the city of Laba'u |
Now, let the king my lord give me Assyrian and Itu'ean people so that I can equip them in the desert; there is no Assyrian city-overseer nor any Assyrian gateguards in Ṣupat. |
As to what the king my lord ordered: "The people living on the mounds should come down and build the fort," they have come down; should these ten fortified towns in the desert come down as well? What does the king my lord say? |
The king, my lord, knows my brother Mušeṣi, who made peace. He has gone to the presence of the king, my lord |
Indeed, the king, my lord, knows that he has been keeping an eye on me since the day before yesterday. |
6,000 homers of barley of the village manager Ṣil-Bel is near by. The rest of the barley has not been piled up. |
If the king should say: 'Go there!', the work is in progress. They complain, saying: "From Cutha, from Kar-Nergal." |
I sent horses after them early in the morning at dawn but they could not reach them; they came back |
by the seah of x ‘litres’. They told me: "We shall feed 22 horses and we shall also fatten sheep. In the year of Tu |
There is no wine cellar in the fort. Right now I shall get them there, transport the horses and feed them |
Concerning the people of Puqudu in my presence about whom they ordered from the Palace: "Let them be brought here!" |
, Babê-šumki, Waru; in all four deserters whom I am herewith sending to the king, my lord. Let the king, my lord, question them. |
They have constructed reed huts on the other side of Bab-bitqi and live there. They have 2,000 horses and 90 chariots, but they are not in fighting spirit. |
As they were staying there, they were given an order from above: "I don’t see your faces; incite a fight!" |
As to the chief cupbearer, to whom the Šubrian had written: "Send 300 Itu'eans!", the chief cupbearer wrote to me |
I wrote to the chief cupbearer as follows: "Write to the Šubrian like this: "Instead of requesting Itu’eans from me, send them to me, and then I will come." |
The king has much delayed answering me. Let me come to the king, my lord, and see the king, my lord! |
If I do not come back here, already in the night of the next day the king's people will challenge me, so let me come and see the king, my lord. |
I am right now waiting for their rearguard. Whether or not they do give me king's men, I shall clarify whatever news they have, and when I come, I will tell it to the king, my lord. |
The king, my lord, gave orders: "All governors may raise food and fodder from Šamaš-ahu-iddina with you, and Adad-issiya and Bel-lešir are to support Abi-lešir!" |
The king, my lord, should sent word that they are to write down their desert villages. Ever since the king my lord has levied pack animals from Hamath, I have been on my own, and he (= Abi-lešir) and they (= Adad-issiya and Bel-lešir) have been on their own. Tomorrow the king my lord will surely kill me, saying: "You are but a bunch of do-nothings!" |
The following is my bread and fodder per calendar month: 105 homers of fodder, 123 homers of bread, total 228 homers, Šamaš-ahu-iddina; 75 homers of fodder, 15 homers of bread, total 90 homers, Abi-lešir; 600 homers of bread of 2,000 full-time (lit. ‘free') soldiers of the king of Commagene. In all 918 homers a month, this household. |
The king my lord knows the situation of the road stations: we take care of three stretches while they take care of two stretches each. Now, the king my lord should know that they are rebelling against this arrangement, while we |
he refuses to come. His messengers are going to Mukin-zeri and the messengers of Mukin-zeri are going to him. A letter of Zakir was brought to Merodach-baladan with the following message: "Who do you think you are among the chieftains of Chaldea who are left for you? Why do you remain inactive while the Chaldean land is getting paralyzed? Is it pleasing to you that Balassu is giving Chaldea to destruction?" |
They intercepted the letter which was brought to Merodach-baladan and read it in our presence. But Balassu got very scared, saying: "You must come this moment and deport me! I will go with you. How can I become an enemy of my sister's son? Mukin-zeri is dragging the army here and will destroy the land." |
Perhaps the king, my lord, will say: "Do not cross the river. The king, my lord, knows that the trees are already cut. |
, saying: "Did we not go to the help of the Larakeans? How would we not come to your help?" Let the army go to him, and let them make him confident. |
To the king, my lord: your servant Sin-ahhe-riba. Good health to the king, my lord! Assyria is well, the temples are well, all the forts of the king are well; the king, my lord, can be glad indeed. |
To the king, my lord: your servant Ašipâ. Good health to the king, my lord! May Nabû and Marduk bless the king, my lord. |
We have exterminated all that there was of them, they did not damage any of the harvest. The gods of the king, my lord, destroyed them. |
Now NN who lives in my neighbourhood, has told him: "Make a rebellion!" I am now telling everything to the king, as do the eyes of the king, my lord. |
Is it really possible that a man worth as much as a cook of the king, my lord, is conspiring against the Kingdom and making the land of the king slip from the king's hands? Or is the man half-witted? |
I have now written to the king, my lord. May the king not forsake me, but let the king command my life! The curse of the king says: "He who sins against the king, his lord, is dead, even if he has been released." |
They have broken into the plough store, and he has robbed 200 Dilbateans of my barley rations for a whole year, from their harvest, plus one mina of silver. Right now I cannot continue cultivation and go out to the open country. |
How can a man who has made a revolt against the king, my lord, and conspired against the Kingdom, enjoy |
I came to the Palace to pay homage to the king. After my departure, the Itu'eans who hold land in the province committed a theft in the district. Instead of the fine imposed on them, they plundered the sheep which were being grazed in the district and are holding them. |
All the towns of the Itu'eans have violated the sheep of the queen, the governor and the magnates, which are being grazed in the province, and their |
I have personally brought the people of Sin-šabši into the king, my lord's presence: once to the Review Palace and once to Nineveh. |
But not all of them have crossed over. They keep watch at the highest point on the other side of the river and their |
As to the order that the king, my lord, gave me: "Review the troops of Mazamua and write me!" – here are the facts: |
x> 10 chariots, 20 large-wheeled chariots, 10 of them horse-drawn, 10 mule-drawn; in all 20 teams. |
All together, 1,430 king's men, including the previous ones which have been here, plus the ones whom the royal bodyguard brought. |
Perhaps the king, my lord, now says: "Where are the rest of the troops?" My major-domo is delayed but will later bring the rest of the troops. |
To the king, my lord: your servants Šamaš-bunaya and Nabû-nammir. Good health to the king, my lord! May Nabû and Marduk bless the king, my lord! |
We went to Babylon on the 28th. We stood in front of the Marduk gate and spoke with the Babylonians. |
Zasinnu, a servant of Mukin-zeri and some Chaldeans with him came out and stood with the Babylonians before the city-gate. We spoke to the Babylonians as follows: "The king has sent us to you, saying: 'Let me speak with the Babylonians through your mouths. I shall establish the amnesty of Babylon and your privileged status and shall come to Babylon.'" |
and the servants of Mukin-zeri be entrusted to you until the king comes, we shall return to Kar-Nergal." |
In this manner we have been speaking with the Babylonians. We shall send any news of them and a white donkey to the king, our lord. |
The Litamaeans have written to us, saying: "We are the king's servants. We shall come on the 30th to speak with you, and our leaders will go to the king." As soon as they come, we will bring them before the king, my lord. |
As to what I wrote to the king, my lord: "I shall be late as I am assembling the people wherever they are." I have now asked the sheikhs, and they told me: "Not a single one is left. These are all there are." |
The king, my lord, told me: "If you had appealed to me, I would have given you 40,000 homers of barley." |
Now does the king know that I have no barley? How long still? Let 6,000-3,000 homers be given to me, and let 3,000 homers also be given to Šamaš-bunaya. This is what I am herewith appealing for to the king, my lord. |
As to what the king, my lord, wrote to me: "I am giving them (= the other magnates) the later captives." Let them share these with me, and I will then share the later captives with them. |
Perhaps the king, my lord, will say: "How are they to enter into the presence of Šamaš-bunaya? When are they to be stocked?" There are 150 walled towns of Šamaš-bunaya in Arrapha. Let them be brought in there. |
does not come into the king, my lord's presence. From this the king, my lord, should understand that I am sick and |
After Mukin-zeri set up camp against me in Bit-Amukani, I did not die thanks to the protection of the king, my lord. |
Now why did I not have bread to eat for four days on the distant road? The king, my lord, should not say: "What is it? Why didn't you write to me?" |
On the 22nd of Marchesvan VIII I brought the money into the New Palace and put it into a cedar box. The royal signet ring and the land are well. |
As to the men about whom the king wrote me, I have assigned all the available king's men and entrusted them to the major-domo. |
As to the Aramean troops about whom the king, my lord, wrote to me: "Equip them! They are going on a campaign." I will give them their travel provisions, sackcloth, leather bags, sandals and oil. |
I have no donkey stallions available, but if I did have donkey stallions available, I would offer my carts too for the campaign. |
They say that this cornfield that is under cultivation is for the deportees who are coming. When they come from Damascus, there are 100 homers of wheat and 20 homers of barley to send them from Orontes. |
The king installed Ilu-mušezib, a baker of Bel-emuranni, in Hatarikka. When the king passed by, Kubaba-ereš a member of his community and the members of the community of his relatives made him run away. They should make inquiries and return the man to me. |
When the king had passed by, the members of the community came and made the man escape. His name is Tuqunu; let the king, my lord, ask Kimumai and the members of the community whether he is a servant of mine. |
At this moment they have cross-examined the people and are gathering them, and I am herewith sending them to the king, my lord. |
Earlier on he said to me as follows: "Should he ask for the people, I will not hold back even a single one of those in my presence, but will set free and give them all to the king, my lord." |
As to the news of Daltâ, he is not leaving his house and nobody is entering into his presence. I have heard that he is collecting the rest of the tribute and delivering his tax. |
I have received the tribute of the land of Zakrutu, 40 horses. They promised to give the rest of the tribute. |
work assignment? By the god of the king, my lord, it is not a work assignment of the Palace or anybody. He has been assigned but 50 courses of brick. This accomplishment is altogether that of Nergal-eṭir. |
The Ashdodite king has written to me: "The king has placed the cities Qadarua, Lidu and Hadidu in the treaty. |
As to the news of the troops about which the king, my lord, wrote to me: "Why did you not send them?" |
The troops, some 50 men of the Itu’eans set out from the course of the Tigris to the other side of the river by the road of Sippar with their |
Your servant, the governor of Nippur: I would gladly die for the king, my lord! May Enlil, Ninurta and Nusku bless the king, my lord! Say to the king, my lord: |
On account of the temple of Aššur, I have sent the leftovers of the land to invigorate the life of the king, my lord. |
Since the king is residing in the land, I have sent an express messenger for a reply of the king, my lord, and he will bring it. I have written truthfully to the king, my lord |
As to what the king, my lord, wrote to me: "Let your guard be strong." The gods of the king, my lord, have been returned. The king, my lord, can be glad. |
, has deserted to me. I am herewith sending him to the king, my lord. As to the news of the town of Bar-Uri, he told me as follows: "They are selling half a homer of barley for |
and is building it up in its entirety on a massive scale from the main meadowland of Dahinu as far as the mountain pass from where the water flows into the city. |
This month the king, my lord, will go up to Urarṭu! Aššur and Šamaš have delivered Ṭurušpâ into the hands of the king, my lord! |