PENITENTIAL PSALMS.
Project Gutenberg EPUB3 edition
Jastrow, Morris
The penitent, it will be seen, does not know whether it is a god or a goddess whom he has offended. He therefore appeals to both. He goes on to say that he is not even aware of the sin that he has committed:
The sin that I have committed I know not.
And yet he must have sinned or he would not suffer as he does. In addition to his confession, he imposes the hardship of fasting upon himself by way of penance:
Food I have not eaten;
Clear water I have not drunk.
The reference to fasting occurs so frequently in these psalms that one is tempted to conclude that such a bodily castigation was demanded by the ritual of the Babylonians:[477]
An offence have I unwittingly committed against my god,
A sin against my goddess unwillingly been guilty of,
O lord, my sins are many, great are my transgressions,
O my god, my sins are many, great are my transgressions,
O my goddess, my sins are many, great are my transgressions,
Known or unknown god, my sins are many, great are my transgressions.
Again the sinner protests his innocence of the wrong he has done. He only knows that
The lord has looked upon me in the rage of his heart,
A god has visited me in his wrath,
A goddess has become angry with me and brought me into pain,
A known or unknown god has oppressed me,
A known or unknown goddess has brought sorrow upon me.
I seek for help, but no one takes my hand.
I weep, but no one approaches me.
I call aloud, but no one hears me.
Full of woe, I grovel in the dust without looking up.
To my merciful god I turn, speaking with sighs.
The feet of my goddess I kiss imploringly (?).
To the known or unknown god do I speak with sighs,
To the known or unknown goddess do I speak with sighs.
O lord, look upon me, accept my lament,
O goddess, look upon me, accept my lament,
O known or unknown goddess, look upon me, accept my lament!
In this strain he proceeds for some time, until he is interrupted by the priest, who briefly adds:
O lord, do not cast aside thy servant,
Overflowing with tears,[478] take him by the hand!
The penitent closes the prayer by another and still more earnest appeal:
The sin I have committed change to mercy,
The wrong I have done, may the wind carry off.
Tear asunder my many transgressions as a garment.
My god, my sins are seven times seven,[479] forgive me my sins.
My goddess, my sins are seven times seven, forgive me my sins,
Known or unknown god, my sins are seven times seven, forgive me my sins.
Known or unknown goddess, my sins are seven times seven, forgive me my sins.