25. _a-a ^dimmer Mu-ul-lil sag zi sag nê-la šú ti ba-ni-ib-ag_ O father Bêl, the head of life, the head of strength, the power of life thou makest thyself! _a-a ^dimmer Mu-ul-lil_ (see lines 2 and 3). _sag_ (see line 5). _zi_ equals _napištu_ like _ti_ (see line 16, also 23). _nê-la_ (see on line 8). _šú_ equals _ḳâtu_, “hand”. The sign also has a value _kád_ which is evidently derived from the Semitic _ḳâtu_. _ti_ (see on line 24). If we read the sign as TIL, then Bêl is “the power of life”. If we read BALA, then Bêl is “the power of royalty”, signifying perhaps that royal authority is vested in Bêl. _ba-ni-ib-ag_ is a verb, _ba_ is an indeterminate verbal prefix, but is much used for the second person (MSL. p. XXVI). _ni-ib_ (see on line 21). _ag_ equals _epêšu_, “make”. The sign is old Babylonian. 26. _šú-gil niš-ĭa mu-bi im_ Altogether there are twenty-five lines in the tablet. _šú-gil_ equals _napḥaru_, “what is collected”, “totality”, “entirety”. _šú_ is a prefix to the causative stem (see on line 25). _gil_ equals _paḥâru_, “collect”. _nišĭa_: the signs for the numerals twenty and five are the same as in Assyrian, _niš_ is the Sumerian numeral for “twenty”. _ĭa_ is the Sumerian numeral for “five”. _mu-bi im_: _mu-bi_ equals “his name”, each line of the Hymn being considered a name of Bêl. In our translation we may read “its lines”. _im_, the same sign as _nì_ (line 1). _im_ is sometimes equal to _ṭîṭu_, “clay”, or _duppu_, “tablet”. 27. _êr(A.ŠI) lim(b)-ma_ Hymn of praise. _êr_ is a value derived from two signs, A and ŠI, taken together. The most common meaning of the value is _bikîtu_, “lamentation”, or “song” (see _i-de_, line 6). _lim-ma_: the phonetic complement _ma_ indicates that the preceding value should end with _m_. Dr. Lau regards this as the sign _lib(m)_ = _kûru_, “woe”, (Br. 7271); hence _êr-lim-ma_ would mean a penitential psalm. Chapter II Tablet 13930, Plates 16 and 17, Hymn to Sin Obverse 1. _mà-gur(ḤAR) azag an-na še-ir-ma-al nì(IM)-te-na_ O shining ship of the heavens, majestic alone! 2. _a-a ^dimmer Šis-^ki ù-mu-un-e Šis-unu-^ki-ma_ O father Nannar, lord of Ur! 3. _a-a ^dimmer Šis-^ki ù-mu-un-e È(BIT)-ner-nu-gál(IG)_ O father Nannar, lord of E-gišširgal! 4. _a-a ^dimmer Šis-^ki ù-mu-un ^dimmer Áš-suḥ-ud_ O father Nannar, lord of Namra⋅it! 5. _ù-mu-un ^dimmer Šis-^ki ṭú-mu sag ^dingir En-lil-lá_ O lord Nannar, chief son of Bêl! 6. _síg(DIRIG)-ga-zu-ne síg(DIRIG)-ga-zu-ne_ When thou art full, when thou art full, 7. _i-de(NE) a-a-zu i-de(NE) ^dimmer Mu-ul-lil-ra še-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne_ When before thy father, before Bêl thou art sovereign, 8. _a-a ^dimmer Šis-^ki še-ir-ma-al-la-zu-ne gaba zi(g)-ga-zu-ne_ O father Nannar, when thou art sovereign, when thou liftest up the breast,