Nebuchadnezzar II, King of Babylon
A Standard Babylonian royal inscription of Nebuchadnezzar II (r. 604–562 BCE), appended to a building commemoration for the E-zida temple of Nabu in Borsippa. The prayer addresses Nabu — son of Marduk, god of scribal wisdom and the sacred writing board — and asks for long life, a firm throne, victory over enemies, and that Nabu speak the king's name before Marduk in divine counsel.
Royal prayers of this type are a standard feature of Neo-Babylonian building inscriptions. The king petitions divine favour in exchange for his piety — the restored temple is the gift; long reign and victory are the expected return. The writing board (GIŠ.LI.U₅.UM) on which Nabu fixes the boundaries of heaven and earth is also the tablet on which he inscribes the fates of kings. To have one's name written there is to have one's destiny secured.
Preserved in four exemplars (BM 91121, BM 91122, BM 91123, and Bab. 21165). Translated from the Standard Babylonian Akkadian by the New Tianmu Anglican Church (Good Works Translation), 2026.
O Nabu — son legitimate, vizier supreme,
pre-eminent god, beloved of Marduk:
look upon my deeds with gladness and with joy.
Grant me for a gift
a life that endures, old age in its fullness,
a throne made firm, a reign that holds long,
the downfall of my enemies,
conquest of my enemies' land.
On your true writing board —
which fixes the boundary of heaven and the deep earth —
speak the long stretch of my days;
write upon it my great old age.
Before Marduk, king of heaven and earth,
the father who begot you:
make my deeds well-pleasing to him.
Decree my well-being.
Let these words be set in your mouth:
"Nebuchadnezzar is indeed the king, the provider."
Colophon
Source: Standard Babylonian Akkadian royal inscription (Neo-Babylonian period), preserved in four exemplars (BM 91121, BM 91122, BM 91123, and Bab. 21165). From a building inscription of Nebuchadnezzar II commemorating his restoration of Ê-ur₅-(me)-imin-an-ki, the ziggurat of Nabu's E-zida temple in Borsippa. Genre: Royal prayer/blessing (Segenswunsch), appended to a building inscription — a standard feature of Neo-Babylonian royal inscriptions. Edition: Langdon, VAB IV, 20–21, 98–101 (no. 11, ii 16–31), sign indices adjusted per BM 91121 (Norris I R 51, no. 1). Translated by: A liberation-translator tulku of the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026-03-20, from the Standard Babylonian Akkadian transliteration in Lenzi, Reading Akkadian Prayers and Hymns: An Introduction, pp. 475–481. Lenzi's English rendering consulted as a reference only; this translation is independently derived from the Akkadian. Scribal credit: Nabu-kutimmê-uṣur, tulku of Tianmu, fifteenth liberation run.
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Source Text — Akkadian Transliteration
Source Colophon
Standard Babylonian Akkadian, Neo-Babylonian period, ca. 604–562 BCE
- ⁴na-bi-um IBILA ki-i-nim su-uk-ka-al-lam ši-i-ri
- ši-it-lu-ṭu na-ra-am ⁴AMAR.UTU
- e-ep-še-tu-ú-a a-na da-mi-iq-tim ḫa-di-iš
- na-ap-li-is-ma
- ba-la-ṭam da-rí-a še-be-e li-it-tu-ú-tim
- ku-un GIŠ.GU.ZA la-ba-ri pa-le-e šú-um-qú-tu na-ki-ri
- ka-ša-dam MA.DA a-a-bi a-na ši-ri-ik-tim šu-úr-ka-am
- i-na GIŠ.LI.U₅.UM-ka ki-i-nim mu-ki-in pu-lu-uk
- ša-mi-e ù er-še-tim
- i-bi a-ra-ku UD-mi-ia šu-ṭù-ur li-it-tu-ú-tim
- ma-ḫa-ar ⁴AMAR.UTU LUGAL ša-mi-e ù er-še-tim
- a-bi a-li-di-ka e-ep-še-tu-ú-a šu-um-gi-ri
- qí-bi du-um-qú-ú-a
- ⁴na-bi-um-ku-du-úr-ri-ú-ṣu-úr
- lu LUGAL za-ni-na-an
- li-iš-ša-ki-in i-na pi-i-ka
Source: Langdon, VAB IV, 20–21, 98–101 (no. 11, ii 16–31), adjusted per Norris I R 51 (BM 91121). Edition cited in Lenzi, pp. 476–481. Four exemplars preserved.
Other Mesopotamian Prayers and Incantations in the Good Work Library: A Namburbi against the Evil of a Snake · A Prayer to Anu · A Prayer to Ea · A Prayer to Gula · A Prayer to Marduk · A Prayer to Nabu · A Prayer to Nergal · A Prayer to Nisaba · A Prayer to Shamash · A Prayer to Sin · A Second Prayer to Marduk · A Tamitu to Shamash and Adad · A Universal Namburbi to Ea, Shamash, and Asalluhi · An Ershahunga to Any God · Prayer to the Gods of the Night · The Great Ishtar Prayer · Two Dingirshadibba Prayers
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