. In Ugaritic and Hebrew, Baal's epithet as the storm god was He Who Rides on the Clouds. In distress some would naturally revert to the old ways of reviving or reactivating the rain-god prayer, mourning, self-laceration, dancing, and water-pouring (I Kings 18:2628; Hos. Today, some evangelicals attempt to prepare the people for what is to come, but their teaching is a mixture of right and wrong. Ginsberg, Kitvei Ugarit (1936); J. Oberman, Ugaritic Mythology (1948); A.S. Kapelrud, Baal in the Ras Shamra Texts (1952); M. Dahood, in: Studi Semitici, 1 (1958), 7578; N. Habel, Yahweh Versus Baal: A Conflict of Religious Cultures (1964); J. A second interpretation is that since the falling away contains the definite article, it refers to a unique event in man's history, far greater than anything that has happened before. While it is acceptable to say that it was in what is now Jordan, to point to a particular cave and say, This is it. is ridiculous. (verses 9-11). Through the window, a cleft in the clouds, Baal gave forth his holy voice which convulsed the earth and sent his enemies scurrying to the hills and woods. Two practices in particular are mentioned in Scripture. YHWH's victory over the waters is connected either with the rescue of Israel at the Exodus (Ps. That afon designated the "north" in Hebrew is presumably due to the fact that Mount Casius lies directly north of Palestine. While they gave lip service to the Creator, they adopted most of the Canaanitish religion with its lewd immorality, and in actual practice, patterned their life after it. In Judah the murder of the queen mother, *Athaliah , and of Mattan, priest of Baal, and the smashing of the altars and cult images in the Baal temple (II Kings 11:18) did not wipe out the cult (II Kings 12:34). (II Kings 17:35-38). All this was part of his fertility role, which, when fulfilled, meant an abundance of crops and fertility for animals and mankind. Download our mobile app for on-the-go access to the Jewish Virtual Library, Encyclopaedia Judaica, 1998 - 2023 American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. Did the Ancient Israelites Think Children Were People. 14:13). Since their rejection of the house of David under Jeroboam I, the Israelites had practiced a syncretistic religion (Amos 5:21-26; 8:14; I Kings 12:25-33). ( The first is the Assyrian crisis, discussed here.) There was tremendous evil to overcome. The Canaanites worshiped Baal as the sun god and as the storm godhe is usually depicted holding a lightning boltwho defeated enemies and produced crops. In others, they rejected Yahweh worship altogether and fully turned themselves over to the idols of Canaan (2 Kgs 17:14-17). What Is the Meaning of Psalm 91 and Why Is it Popular? Thus in any year anxiety about the rainfall would be a continuing concern of the inhabitants which would suffice to give rise to rites to ensure the coming of the rains. Murder and sexual immorality was a part of Baal worship. God's pattern is being established. They simply evolve. They were Phoenicians. Baal's sister-consort Anath demanded that Mot release her brother. But God has a different perspective; He says they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (Revelation 3:17). A frequent epithet is "Cloud Rider" (rkb rpt) which has an almost identical parallel in Psalms 68:5. 3:8; Ps. For instance, Amos 2:7 describes a deliberate act of ritual prostitution in a pagan temple: "A man and his father go in to the same girl, to defile My holy name." Baal Peor, or the Baal of Peor, was a local deity worshiped by the Moabites. Study the god Baal, Baal worship, and the presentation of Baal in the Bible. Perhaps the clearest example of this is Jeremiah, who moaned and complained to God, "This is more difficult than You ever told me it would be. If it is of men, it will not work very long. In Canaan, however, when the solar theology had absorbed the older beliefs, Baal, passing into a sun-god and the goddess who stood at his side becoming a representative of the moon--the pale reflection, as it were, of the sun- -Ashtoreth came to be regarded as the consort of Baal and took the place of the solar goddesses of Babylonia. The prophet comes along and troubles people by awakening them to their sins, making them feel guilty about their relationships with God and each other. Some scholars believe that the Canaanites also sacrificed pigs and that God prohibited his people from eating pork in part to prevent this horrible cult from being established among them. (verse 8). The written form Moloch (in the Septuagint Greek translation of the Old Testament), or Molech (Hebrew), is the word Melech or king, transformed by interposing the vowels of bosheth or 'shameful thing'. Asherah (Hebrew ), also spelled Ashera, was a major northwest Semitic mother goddess, appearing also in Akkadian sources as Ashratu, in Hittite as Asherdu and in Ugaritic as Athirat.She was the consort of the chief deity El and the mother of 70 other gods.. Did the Carthaginians Really Practice Infant Sacrifice? Its prosperity played a part in corrupting the Israelites' hearts, which is why Hosea mentions the divided or disloyal heart in context with its bountiful fruit. No doubt, we cant cover the breadth of verses on Baal here, but we should note that Baal becomes a big player in the book of Judges and during the time of the kings when Israel appears to succumb most to the foreign pantheons. The events leading up to the Day of the Lord will be unmistakable to those with eyes to see. The laws given to Moses by God expressly forbade the Jews to do what was done in Egypt or in Canaan. The Kingdom of Israel fell below the historian's radar. In spite of the fact that the word is used as the theophorous element in personal names, such as Eshbaal, Merib-Baal, Jerub Baal, it was long believed that the term remained an appellation and did not become a proper name, except in the case of the Mesopotamian Bel and in late theological speculation. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered!only to go on doing all these abominations? With the help of the sun-goddess Shapsh, Anath locates the dead Baal, carries him to the height of apn, and weeping buries him with funerary sacrifices. Not a BAS Library member yet? The judge Gideon was also named Jerubbaal (Judges 6:32), and King Saul had a son named Ishbaal (I Chronicles 8:33). Can we stop with the Yahweh pronunciation once and for all? But when heat is applied, and the blood begins rushing into the affected areas, pain immediately occurs. He did not like the position God put him in. 3:10; cf. The worship of Moloch, which was practiced at a special site (outside the walls of Jerusalem in the valley of Ben-Hinnom) called Topheth, became firmly established in the time of King Manasseh, his son Amon, and at the beginning of Josiah's reign. Another idea is that it pictures a person shifting his weight from one foot to the other, indicating a degree of lameness. The ancient Tamils had connections with the Syrians and Sidon. II Kings 17:7-17 catalogs the sins of Israel: Widespread idolatry. Baal persuaded Asherah to intercede with her husband El, the head of the pantheon, to authorize the construction of a palace. FREE ebook: Israel: An Archaeological Journey. After we accept His calling, He commands us to become moral as He is. In contrast, the church has had periods of strength and weakness all throughout its historyit goes through cycles of rallying around truth and then gradually letting it slip. Before we explore what Scripture says about Baal, lets establish a brief depiction of the Canaanite deity. Such evil cunning. In the mythology of Canaan, Baal, the god of life and fertility, locked in mortal combat with Mot, the god of death and sterility. When religion is ungodly, its power is destructive, and every institution in the nation suffers. As such, Baal designated the universal god of fertility, and in that capacity his title was Prince, Lord of the Earth. What is so interesting is that, by verse 36, God is no longer reporting on the Samaritans but is addressing Israel. God's first command to destroy any forms of idol worship came early in the Bible in Exodus 34:13. . Baal, god worshipped in many ancient Middle Eastern communities, especially among the Canaanites, who apparently considered him a fertility deity and one of the most important gods in the pantheon. This is God's way of showing that Israel abused its prosperity: It used its prosperity for the purposes of idolatry. What Tamils are you speaking of? But their carnality and their fear of men persuaded them to worship Baal, because they wanted to be friends with their fellow Israelites. Assyria, a kingdom known as much for its innovative weapons as for their brutal implementation, conquered the Kingdom of Israel in 718 BC. (The Book of Amos) (Part Two). The contest on Mount Carmel was reported as demonstrating that Baal was an impotent non-entity and that the rain came only from YHWH. The heyday of Baal worship in Israel came in the days of Elijah, when the Phoenician princess Jezebel launched a massive campaign to promote Baal. At Ras-Shamar, Baal was referred to as the son of Dagon, the Philistines chief god. Sidons Phoenician Temple. The Devil is behind a. Why Did Pharaoh Tell Joseph to Enjoy the 'Fat of the Land'? Portions of ancient Baal liturgy were adapted to the praise of Israel's God, as the Ugaritic poems have shown. Human-Ram Deity from Sidon. . . He sends someone long before the real crisis reaches its peak, while it is building. God set up the Levites within Israel to function as the teachers of His way of life, and He sent the prophets as watchdogs on the Levites and civil leaders. Who were the Sidonians, and what do we know about their religion? Omissions? The handle displays an impression of a ship with the leonine dragon Uumgal, the storm god Adads attendant, next to it. We may not sacrifice our children on altars for everyone to see; instead, we sacrifice them behind closed doors at a doctor's . The triumph of Baal recounted in the myths and perhaps reenacted in ritual drama gave assurance of help in the present and the future as in the past. Gen. 41; II Sam. In Psalms 89:13 afon and yamin, in parellelism with Tabor and Hermon, hardly designate the directions north and south; yamin is almost certainly a corruption of Amana, the southern portion of the Taurus mountains, the alteration of amanah to yamin being occasioned by the misunderstanding of afon as the direction rather than the name of the holy mountain. . God wants to transform us from people who are bent on pleasing ourselves to people who show concern for others. Elijah prepared the way for Elisha, who had a double portion of Elijah's spirit and did many more miracles. The Lord calls for the worship of him and his idols to be uprooted and destroyed, and for the people to turn away from his false . Issuing a challenge to his enemy Mot (death), who presumed to rule gods and men, Baal dispatched his messengers to Mot's infernal, filthy abode, warning them not to get close to Mot's rapacious jaws. A vivid description of theophany in a thunderstorm is found in Psalms 18:715 (= II Sam. A god Baal apn was known from Egyptian and Akkadian sources before the discovery of the Ugaritic documents. Baal worship was the bane of the Ancient Israelites. The Sovereign Creator is not a God who allows His favor to be bought with crumbs. Some become discouraged with the church because we are always being toldto some measure anywaydisturbing things about ourselves. People like to feel comfortable. These Israelites were lethargic in terms of true, spiritual matters. The Sidonians were the inhabitants of ancient Sidon, a seaport on the Mediterranean Sea in modern Lebanon. BIBLIOGRAPHY: W. Hermann, in: DDD, 13238; M.S. In the formative stages of Israels history, the presence of Baal names did not necessarily mean apostasy or even syncretism. Blending the lies of this world with the truth of God produces a foul mixture called syncretism (James 3:10-13). But what was its real effect on the participants and the nation? The Canaanites worshiped Baal as the sun god and as the storm godhe is usually depicted holding a lightning boltwho defeated enemies and produced crops. It may seem easy to point the finger at the ancient Israelites and say, How could you let a bull statue into Israel? Recall God's wrath when Aaron made a golden calf at the urging of the Israelites in the wilderness and proclaimed a feast to the Lord (Exodus 32:1-5). Required fields are marked *. Verse 15 points out that the people "rejected [God's] statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He had testified against them." . Who were the Sidonians of the Bronze Age (c. 30001200 B.C.E.)? What Is the Significance of Not the Letter but of the Spirit? Jews nowadays say Ha-Shem [i.e. Learn about the Canaanite-Phoenician deities who were called Baal, which means Lord. Dated to c. 1750 B.C.E., the handle pictures the storm god as a leonine dragon. From Easton's Bible Dictionary:Baal-peor: lord of the opening, a god of the Moabites (Numbers 25:3; 31:16; Joshua 22:17), worshipped by obscene rites. He views them as personally rejecting Him and His Word. Baal Worship "Whatever is not of faith is sin" (Romans 14:23). Elijah says disturbing things. I appreciate your consideration, and Im sure the Most High does as well! 106 a ). Biblical narrative incorporates tales of Baal worship into the traditions of the wilderness wandering, thus tracing Baal worship to the earliest period of Israel's existence. Historical Background of HoseaBaal and Idolatry. Indeed, throughout its history, the most important god at Sidon was the storm godknown during the Phoenician period as Baal or Bel. A falling away is taking place right now. I know the firstborn of Creation through and for Him everything was made would appreciate it! This describes to a T what Israel did then and their descendants are continuing to do today. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Sign up to receive our email newsletter and never miss an update. Prophets and Prophecy (Part 1). Huffmon, Amorite Personal Names in the Mari Texts (1965), 174; W.F. I would also challenge the suggestion in the text of the article that the location of Lots cave is known. Baal was the title of the "god" worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. Most often, it condemns Baal worship. See what over 150,000 subscribers are already receiving each day. Most of them were just saving themselves and making themselves comfortable in their situation. A religion with such a beginning was doomed to fail, bringing the nation down with it. 22:816). The spectacular victory for Yahwism did not have a lasting effect. 74:1314, 89:910, 93:1ff. One idea is that he means, "How long are you going to hop from branch to branch? Baal transformed into Zeus, who transformed into Jupiter, etc. In this regard, Elijah was a type of John the Baptist, and Elisha, a type of Christ. Child sacrifice was a fundamental aspect of Baal worship. An example of Israel going after Baal leads to their loss of direction and, ultimately, scattering at the hands of the Assyrians and the Babylonians. The Canaanites often worshipped her via trees (Asherah poles) because of her association with the tree of life. In Hosea 10:2, God charges Israel with having a divided heart. . Your email address will not be published. Scholars previously associated the theonym with solar cults and with a variety of unrelated patron deities, but inscriptions have . Possibly even more treacherous than this was a parallel development: mixing the worship of Yahweh and Baal. Essentially, the Phoenicians were the Canaanites who survived from the Bronze Age into the Iron Age and who were not supplanted by new people groups (Philistines, Israelites, etc.). Sun worship came from the ancient pagan religion of Baal. Baal is said to be one of the first of Solomon's 72 demons. 1:21), would be catastrophic. made for themselves a molded image and two calves, made a wooden image and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal" (verses 15-16). He replaced the Levitical priesthood with men of his own choosing. . Baal was also worshipped by various communities as a local god. The religion of Israel began with a man, Jeroboam I, who changed the true worship of God. What was the rationale behind this perverse, immoral act? Extra-biblical evidence for the flourishing Baal cult at Samaria in the ninth and eighth centuries B.C.E. Baal's 450 prophets worked themselves into a frenzy, cutting themselves, dancing, and chanting to their god. One interpretation is that it is a localized occurrence, in the sense of it happening just within the little flockthe church. As a result of their sin, the men of Israel were judged by God. It proved extremely hard for a monotheistic faith to compete against the Canaanite fertility cult. (The Book of Amos) (Part Two), Searching for Israel (Part Six): Israel Is Fallen, Is Fallen, He established a feast in the eighth month to replace the true. Depending on the tradition, she was either Baal's mother, lover, or both. However, it was not the religion God gave through Moses, but idolatry that flourished! The basis for this view was the fact that in biblical usage the plural of the term, with the article, "the Baalim," appears to designate minor local gods (Judg. They too had blended the worship of the true God with outright paganism, utterly corrupting the relationship He had established with them. Paul, in: Biblica, 49 (1968), 3436; U. Oldenburg, The Conflict Between El and Bal in Canaanite Religion (1969). . Some suppose Baal to correspond to the sun and Ashtoreth to the moon; others that Baal was Jupiter and Ashtoreth Venus. These soldiers would surrender themselves to the other side to be given a bit of favor and put into prison. All rights reserved. Now the word isai, simply means music in Tamil. Sidons Storm God. The myth may refer in part to the construction of Baals own temple in the city of Ugarit. The prophet turns the heat on, and they become angry with him when he is actually working to make them better. Christ's purpose is to cure, not merely to comfort, so pain will be often involved when dealing with a prophet. When Ashtoreth is mentioned in scripture, she is linked to Molech, (also called Milcom in the Bible). He takes something loathsome and vile, something that is a direct affront to almighty God, a pagan idol, and turns it into a cute little children's fairy tale, so that you can buy the book, see the movies, get the cuddly toy, and bingo! The Assyrians deported the population en masse from its homeland in Canaan, transplanting it virtually in toto to the southern shores of the Caspian Sea. The violence and injustice in Israelite society ultimately stemmed from the false teaching proclaimed from the pulpits. The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment Sign up for the Berean: Daily Verse and Comment, and have Biblical truth delivered to your inbox. At the foundation of every community is a way of life that its people live and teach their children. As such, Baal designated the universal god of fertility, and in that capacity his title was Prince, Lord of the Earth. They believed in a Creator God, but they worshipped Him at the shrines they erected to the Baals. But it could have existed long before that, when God established the law, including laws against eating pork, since pig slaughter and sacrifice were a hallmark of Baal worship. In another room was a round base that likely supported a wooden pillar. Smith, The Ugaritic Baal Cycle (1994). If the rains failed and drought and death came upon the land and people, it was not because Mot had mangled Baal and made the glowing sun-goddess destructive; it was rather YHWH's way of meting out merited punishment to a faithless and sinful people (Deut. Baal worship is something I associated only with Old Testament Bible days. He wanted people to like him, which is understandable. This corrupt blending of a holy God with a pagan goddess became part of everyday religious practice, which is why evil king Manasseh put an Asherah pole . The Septuagint (LXX) rendered Joshua, the son of Nun, in Greek as Iesous; the same was used for Christs name in the NT. Baal was a god of prosperity, god of harvest, sex and fertility. Tamil is connected with the Phoenician. And the covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear other gods. The Spread of Baalism. Recall God's prophecy in Deuteronomy 32:15, predicting that when Israel prospered, then it would rebel. Kings Ahaz and Manasseh, Baal worship was rooted in sensuality and involved ritualistic prostitution in the temples. He was overseeing a tevilah (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ritual_washing_in_Judaism#Full-body_immersion_.28Tvilah.29) in a mikveh (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikveh). This Bible History Daily Article was first published in 2017, British Museum Excavations at Sidon Expose Millennia of History, The Phoenician Alphabet in Archaeology by Josephine Quinn. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. Jer 32:29. What happens if a person, trying to establish a religion, mixes falsehood with the truth of God? Paul is not writing about apostasy in a small group of people that will give rise to an international personality, but an event on the world scene that creates the right environment to catapult this figure, backed by the power of Satan, to the heights of power. The proposition for the concept is as follows: The Latins called the Phoenicians as Poeni. Sometimes the leadership of the nation of Israel tolerated and embraced the deities of other nations. Val is related to valimai in Tamil. The Jordan River (Nahar ha-Yarden) qualified as a mikveh as its flowing living waters originated from a natural spring (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan_River). With human features as well as the eyebrows, nose and horns of a ram, this painted limestone figurine represents a deity and dates to c. 1650 B.C.E. It was a corruption of that religion, for the Israelites syncretized that holy way with Baalism and other idolatries. He was considered superior to his father, El, the chief of the deities. In an Akkadian catalogue of Ugaritic deities Baal apn is listed as dIM be-el hurn a-zi, "Storm-God, Lord of Mount azi" (see above; az [z] i being the Hurrian name of Mount apn which survives in the Greek and Latin Kasios/Casius as the name of the storied mountain of the gods). Israel "feared other gods" (verse 7). Isa. Baal is a Canaanite and Phoeniciandeity and the son of the chief god El. Drought and the Fall of the Hittite Empire. The Laodicean evaluates himself, saying, "I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing" (Revelation 3:17). 26:1920). The Bible speaks of the destruction of Baal's temples and the idols associated with him. In a normal good year, when the rains come in due season, there is no hiatus in productivity, for the land yields its increase, the trees produce their fruit, the threshing overlaps, the vintage overlaps the sowing, and there is food aplenty, prosperity, and peace (Lev. This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. The Baal-worship so often alluded to and described in Holy Writ might, perhaps, be better styled, id-worship, moon-worship, Melek (Moloch)-worship, or Hadad-worship, according to places and circumstances. The Baal-worship so often alluded to and described in Holy Writ might, perhaps, be better styled Cid-worship, moon-worship, Melek ()-worship, or Hadad-worship, according to places and circumstances.Many of the practices mentioned were most probably common to the worship . (the Iron Age). 1:4; Hab. And that happened with the Canaanites and Baal. They clash violently until both are prostrate and the Sungoddess warns Mot not to fight with Baal lest El hear and overthrow him. The sequel to this action is furnished by the group of texts which recount Baal's confrontations with Mot. II Kings 17:5-6 relates the ultimate consequence. Baal was the title of the "god" worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. ; Job 3:8, 7:12, 9:13, 26:1213, 38:811, 40:25). The worship of Baal in Syria-Palestine was inextricably bound to the economy of the land which depends on the regularity and adequacy of the rains. The second major background factor that we need to grasp somewhat to read Hosea well is the worship of the Canaanite god Baal (s). 57 Bull Baal. For a while, both sidesthe Confederate and the Unionaccepted those turncoats and took their information. The word "Baal" derives from the Semitic stem "bel", meaning "lord". Baal was considered the supreme. The combined letters o and e is joined to pronounce the sound ye. Besides the names Baal and Haddu, the Ugaritic texts furnish a variety of other titles, such as "Mighty Baal" (aliyn bl) and "Prince, Lord of Earth" (zbl bl ars). For example, Christmas and Easter are traditions of men, but they are lies. Virtually all reference to Baal's consort, the violent "Virgin Anath" with whom Baal copulates by the thousand in one of the Ugaritic mythological fragments has been excluded from the Bible, but the goddesses Ashtart (Judg. This article is about Baal worship in the Bible. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch" (Matthew 15:14). Baal rejoiced and celebrated with a banquet. The Aztec people used two calendars. In the Ugaritic mythological texts Balu (bl) is the name of the god which is used more than twice as often as his next most frequent name, Haddu (hd). Does that way of life conform to the God of the Bible, or does it spring from the mind of men? The Macedonian Cleopatra planned to send her son to India through the Red Sea. In exchange, they would offer information about their unit. A prophet's life is not a happy situation. Ashtaroth is mentioned 12 times in the Old Testament. However, even though their origins were Canaanite, the Phoenicians established their own distinct culture. Today, music performers entice young and old in the practice of the worship of Baal-Peor Worship of Baal was also carried out right on the housetops of the people, from where sacrificial smoke to their god was frequently seen to rise. Rejection of God's Law. (From Forerunner Commentary). In the Judeo-Christian tradition Asherah is considered a false Canaanite deity and a major source of temptation to the Israelites. Notice the dramatic change of attitude in the people. Baal remains silent during the exchange, whereas God showers a sopping-wet altar with fire. The prophet Amos particularizes the epidemic of social injustice in the Kingdom of Israel. Isai is music in Tamil and Vallavi means an expert. . Before descending to the realm of death, Baal copulates with a heifer and begets a male offspring. Yet, he was in trouble his whole life, from his teenage years on. Ashtoreth was the fertility goddess consort of Molech. Then stood up Phinehas, and exe Then they linked up with Baal Peor, attending funeral banquets and eating idol food. Ritual prostitution only served to erode the family, eventually leading to the destruction of the nation. 2:11; 3:7; 8:33), while the singular of the word in combination with other terms apparently designated minor or local gods, such as Baal-Berith, Baal-Gad, Baal-Hamon, Baal-Hazor, Baal-Hermon, or, in the feminine form, a goddess, Baalat-Beer, Baalat-Gebal. The word bel can be transformed into vel or val. "like a bird in a tree. The Israelites displayed a pandemic failure to love their fellow man. Revelation 2:14 "THE DOCTRINES OF . All through the Old Testament, the people of Israel fell into Baal and Asherah worship, and it is no different for us today. He replaced the Levitical priesthood with men of his own choosing. El and Anath mourn violently, mutilating their faces and bodies.
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