What the Bible says about (The suggestion that Jer. The motifs of these myths were adopted and adapted in Jewish and Christian eschatology. In artistic depictions and archeological finds, Baal took the shape of a bull or ram and had associations with fertility. A DSS fragment has it spelled Iaw in Greek (iota-alpha-omega), which is consistent with Yahoah; see ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rs/rak/lxxjewpap/4QLevB.jpg. When the rain failed, it was inevitable that some would question YHWH's power and resort to Baal. Let no one be missing, for I have a great sacrifice for Baal. 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 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. Baal worship was rooted in sensuality and involved ritualistic prostitution in the temples. And Asherah and Baal led the way together (Judges 3:7, 1 Kings 18:19, 2 Kings 23:4). Commentaries are at odds over what the Hebrew word translated divided means. 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. The word bel can be transformed into vel or val. Asherah, another popular deity in Canaan, was the goddess of motherhood and fertility . His ministry took place about 150 years before Israel was to fall, becoming the Lost Ten Tribes, so God was beginning to make a powerful witness to them. Huffmon, Amorite Personal Names in the Mari Texts (1965), 174; W.F. The Aztec people used two calendars. What will happen will affect the entire world, even though the world will not grasp the spiritual significance. you didnt even mention her horrible daughter Athaliah, the only killer queen Most modern translations use "false," "deceitful," or "faithless," and none of these are wrong, including "divided." But when heat is applied, and the blood begins rushing into the affected areas, pain immediately occurs. Extra-biblical evidence for the flourishing Baal cult at Samaria in the ninth and eighth centuries B.C.E. 410; reconstructed text) which after the great "Weather-god, Lord of Mount azi" presents six other "weather-gods," numbered two through seven. Historical Background of HoseaBaal and Idolatry. Baal was the title of the "god" worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. Baal & Asherah. This is the crux of our salvation through Jesus Christ. The worship of Baal was popular in Egypt from the later New Kingdom in about 1400 bce to its end (1075 bce). As such, Baal designated the universal god of fertility, and in that capacity his title was Prince, Lord of the Earth. And that happened with the Canaanites and Baal. 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'. By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. The Jews of Christ's day clearly recognized this putrid blend and despised the Samaritans for it. Baal worship also included, at times, child sacrifice, which we see some Israelite kings engaging with later on. This establishes the fact that the Cannanites (Phoenicians) has connections with the Tamil speaking ancient Kerala mariners. (the Iron Age). Your email address will not be published. This is not brand new, but it is picking up speed. In other words, God is saying that He was driven to defeat and scatter Israel because they were guilty of exactly the same sin as the Samaritans! It may be, however, that these extra Baalim are Baal's attendants, mentioned as the seven or eight lads whom Baal is ordered to take with him in his descent into the netherworld. 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. This full-body immersion was required for converts (giyur) to the sect called The Way (HaDerech) in Acts whether a Pharisaic/Saddusaic Jew or a Gentile proselyte (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversion_to_Judaism). Sidon was well connected by trade by the traders of the Pandya kingdom of Tamil Nadu. One of the rooms in this temple had a bench, where offerings would have been placed, and an altar made of . Baal worship was the bane of the Ancient Israelites. This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. (NASB). Baal persuaded Asherah to intercede with her husband El, the head of the pantheon, to authorize the construction of a palace. . * Jesus is a transliteration of the Latin; it is NOT a translation! For a while, both sidesthe Confederate and the Unionaccepted those turncoats and took their information. For those who think the baptism of John (Yochanan) was something new under the sun recall that he was a Levite as was his father Zechariah (Tsekharya). (Iron Age) temple. They were straddling the fence in a precarious state of imbalance, attempting to combine the worship of God with the more popular worship of Baal and Asherah. . "Christian" religions of this world have mixed the traditions of paganism with some of the truth of God's Word. So-called from Mount Peor, where this worship was celebrated, the Baal of Peor. *Romans 1:25 "Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and WORSHIPPED AND SERVED THE CREATURE MORE THAN THE CREATOR". Does that way of life conform to the God of the Bible, or does it spring from the mind of men? Thus, IF one is to pronounce the Tetragrammaton according to the masoretic vowel-markings, then it should probably be pronounced something like yuh-WAH or yuh-HWAH. 19:5ff.). The conflict of Yahwism and Baalism reached a crisis with Elijah's challenge to Baal's prophets to settle the question whether it was Baal or YHWH who really supplied the rain (I Kings 18). 1:21), would be catastrophic. He could, and did, withhold the rain from one city and lavish it on another (Amos 4:7). One of the rooms in this temple had a bench, where offerings would have been placed, and an altar made of piled and unhewn stones, which recalls the Biblical command to make altars of uncut stones (see Exodus 20:25). Mot refused and boasted how he had mangled Baal. Updated: 12/07/2022 Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. The ancient Tamils had connections with the Syrians and Sidon. The open-air altar shrine, called a bamah (plural bamot), is known through several books of the Biblical canonbut none more so than the Book of Kings, where they play a prominent role in assessing the performance of a king.Often referred to as "high places" in translations of the Bible, bamot were worship sites that usually contained an altar. Hope Bolingeris an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, and the author 21+ books. In the Judeo-Christian tradition Asherah is considered a false Canaanite deity and a major source of temptation to the Israelites. Val is related to valimai in Tamil. 8. Our god is what we give our lives over to. The Name] instead of prouncing the YHWH word even though the Masoretes added the sheva below the Y and the Qamats below the W. They also worshiped him as a fertility god who provided children. Their spiritual lethargy for the true God made them uncommitted. Thus, according to Sakkunyaton, Baal's natural father was Ouranos and Dagn became his foster-father, while El-Kronos effected the transfer. Who were the Sidonians of the Iron Age (c. 1200586 B.C.E.)? This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. Even as the Canaanite religion waned, Baal took on a new role as Zeus in the Ancient Greek pantheon. ed., 1965); H.B. Canaanite worship often took place in open-air sites at the tops of hills, referred to in the Bible as "high places." . In their ignorance, the people do not realize the terrible calamity that is coming soon upon modern Israel. The first mention of Molech is in Leviticus 18:21 in which the . 3:8; Ps. Christ warned the Pharisees: "For laying aside the commandments of God, you hold the traditions of men." Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Because of their self-procured wealth and affluence, they think they are being blessed with material things. Fertility was envisaged in terms of seven-year cycles. 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). Now the king of Assyria went throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years. l, b . The building materials, gold, silver, and lapis lazuli, were procured and the architect-builder Koshar was invited to dinner and consultation. It will be far more terrible than anything ever seen on this earth! Download our mobile app for on-the-go access to the Jewish Virtual Library, Encyclopaedia Judaica, 1998 - 2023 American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. Possibly even more treacherous than this was a parallel development: mixing the worship of Yahweh and Baal. 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. Revelation 2:14 "THE DOCTRINES OF . Since you mentioned John baptizing Jesus. Baal worship spread rapidly when the king of Israel, Ahab, married Jezebel, the princess of Tyre (1 Kings 16:31-32). Avot 5:11 on the connection between tithing and rain). 22:816). Kings Ahaz and Manasseh, Smith, The Ugaritic Baal Cycle (1994). Today Baal churches preach and teach Baal doctrines; prosperity, harvest, sex and fertility. 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. How Is Harry Potter a Literary Christ Figure? But God has a different perspective; He says they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (Revelation 3:17). Murder and sexual immorality was a part of Baal worship. 55:613; Jer. Since Baal was, like almost all ancient deities, a fertility god, the human act of intercourse demonstrated that they wanted Baal to prosper them. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Prophets and Prophecy (Part 1). If Baal triumphed, a seven-year cycle of fertility would ensue; but, if he were vanquished by Mot, seven years of drought and famine would ensue. The Macedonian Cleopatra planned to send her son to India through the Red Sea. O. Eissfeldt, Beitraege zur Religionsgeschichte des Altertums I (1932); H.L. Yet such fluidity in the use of the term baal did not prevent it from being attached to a god of distinct character. Well dive more into this in the historicity of Baal in a few sections. Albright, Yahweh and the Gods of Canaan (1968); Albright, Arch Rel; S.M. A common designation of Baal in the Ugaritic myths is bn-dgn "son of Dagn"; but Baal is also considered the son of El who is called "Bull El his [i.e., Baal's] father; El King who begot him [Baal]" (tr il abh; il mlk dyknnh). 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. God's pattern is being established. They see themselves as following the way of God, but their religion has deceived them by failing to teach them His truth. A complaint is made to Bull El, father of the gods, that Baal has no house like other gods. He replaced the Levitical priesthood with men of his own choosing. 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. Even now some ancient Jews (white and black) live in Cochin, Kerala, India. The worship of Baal penetrated Jewish religious life during the period of the Judges ( Judges 3:7 ), became common in Israel during the rule of Ahab ( 1 Kings 16:31-33 ), and also influenced Judah ( 2 Chronicles 28:1-2 ). We need to be reminded of it because it can have a detrimental effect on us. He was the god that provided - food - for the people. Isa. 10:1113; 14:22). The Sovereign Creator is not a God who allows His favor to be bought with crumbs. Anath then dismembered Mot, scattered and burned the pieces, and gave them to the birds. They also worshiped him as a fertility god who provided children. 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. Corrections? In the El-Amarna letters the logogram for the weather-god is conventionally read Addu, but that it is sometimes to be read Baluis indicated by the addition of the phonetic complement-lu, as well as by the names like Mut dIm written syllabically as mu-ut-ba-a-lum. The continued worship of Baal was given as one of the causes for the destruction of Judah (Jer. While much about Molech's nature and origin are uncertain, the Bible mentions Molech on eight occasions, providing some context regarding the problems associated with this ancient god. Canaanite Religions and Baal Worship by Dr. Ralph F. Wilson Audio (12:51) Free E-mail Bible Study Grace: Favor for the Undeserving. A series of bad years, which were apparently believed to come in seven-year cycles (cf. (From Forerunner Commentary). Archaeologists at Sidon have uncovered a 12th11th-century B.C.E. . Reuben Alcalay, a famous Hebrew lexicographer, stated that Yehoshua is closely related to Let there be So, lets be intellectually honest and start using the proper English translation: Joshua. Prepare to Meet Your God! The name is more likely derived from the god Baal. He bowed down to all the starry hosts and worshiped them (2 Kings 21:3). He began to prophesy in a time of immediate crisis, one that would become far worse before it ever improved. The rains were fully controlled by YHWH who called them from the sea and poured them out on the surface of the earth (Amos 5:8b; 9:6b). 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). Recall God's prophecy in Deuteronomy 32:15, predicting that when Israel prospered, then it would rebel. (the Middle Bronze Age). Near Baals temple was that of Dagon, given in the tablets as Baals father. Of special interest is the designation Aliy (ly) which is twice applied to Baal in the Krt Epic: Before the discovery and recognition of this name in Ugaritic, H.S. First was sexual orgies "under every green tree," where promiscuity and perverted sex acts were the norm. 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. Ashtaroth is mentioned 12 times in the Old Testament. (verse 8). So the word Poeni can be rewritten as Peyeni or as Payani or as Payan. After a sortie against the sea-god, Baal returned to his house and ordered Koshar to install a window; Koshar laughed, reminded Baal of the debate, and complied. The Masoretic text has the 4 letters YHWH with a sheva under the Y, pronounced yuh, and a Qamats below the W, i.e. Baal was a god of prosperity, god of harvest, sex and fertility. 106:28). The combined letters o and e is joined to pronounce the sound ye. He was also called the Lord of Rain and Dew, the two forms of moisture that were indispensable for fertile soil in Canaan. The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment Sign up for the Berean: Daily Verse and Comment, and have Biblical truth delivered to your inbox. Gray, The Legacy of Canaan (rev. The contest on Mount Carmel was reported as demonstrating that Baal was an impotent non-entity and that the rain came only from YHWH. Isaiah 29:13 clarifies what God means: "Therefore the LORD said: 'Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but have removed their hearts far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men.'" And the covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear other gods. In the formative stages of Israels history, the presence of Baal names did not necessarily mean apostasy or even syncretism. All 450 prophets of Baal do not escape the slaughter that takes place after that. In addition to Baal still influencing religions and pagan practices today, we must take note of what happened to the Israelites and vigilantly watch our churches. 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 Is So Painful to Care: How Do I Conquer Apathy? that the southern kingdom of Judah ever had .just like her momma. Hosea exposes the problem between God and Israel. Thus the basis of the Baal cult was the utter dependence of life on the rains which were regarded as Baal's bounty. Baal is a Canaanite and Phoeniciandeity and the son of the chief god El. However, God shows there is a possible harmful, secondary effect: As people become financially secure, their attention is diverted from His purpose to vain and unimportant things. All rights reserved. . guilty of adopting the ghastly Canaanite practice of child sacrifice. Usually the storm god is illustrated as a striding human figure, but sometimes he is represented by one of his symbols, such as the bull or leonine dragon. The latter title has a biblical echo in the corrupted form Baal-Zebub (II Kings 1:2ff. 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. Israel "walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel." This is God's way of showing that Israel abused its prosperity: It used its prosperity for the purposes of idolatry. 4. As a result of their sin, the men of Israel were judged by God. 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. There is no doubt that prosperity is good, but unless one is properly focused and disciplined, it can also be a demanding master because of its power to distract one into idolatry. A god Baal apn was known from Egyptian and Akkadian sources before the discovery of the Ugaritic documents. Not a BAS Library member yet? So it was in the northern kingdom of Israel after its division from the kingdom of Judah. 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. The practice of Baal worship was wide spread in Bible times and was very evil. When a person is freezing to death, he feels a pleasant numbness that he does not want to end. This describes to a T what Israel did then and their descendants are continuing to do today. He was also called the Lord of Rain and Dew, the two forms of moisture that were indispensable for fertile soil in Canaan. And she has taken over many so-called churches. The judge Gideon was also named Jerubbaal (Judges 6:32), and King Saul had a son named Ishbaal (I Chronicles 8:33). The right remedy, according to Israel's prophets, was to repudiate Baal completely and to seek and return to Israel's true God (Isa. In Psalms 48:23, Mount Zion is equated with "the recesses of afon" (the phrase quoted above from Isa. The latest archaeological discoveries shed light on Biblical Sidon and provide a window into the Sidonians polytheistic religion and worship practices during the Bronze and Iron Ages. The word is used as the name of a town in ancient Israel in Deuteronomy 1:4, Joshua . Photo: Courtesy of Claude Doumet-Serhal. The beliefs and practices of the Canaanites were not only detestable, but they also . The events leading up to the Day of the Lord will be unmistakable to those with eyes to see. "They built for themselves high places in all their cities . Many of the practices mentioned were most probable common to the worship of all the Baals; a few others are certainly specific. Notably, an impressed handle found near a Canaanite grave at the site depicts Sidons storm god and a ship. Ashtar the Awful (ttrr) was then nominated to replace Baal, but when he ascended the throne, his feet did not reach the footstool nor his head the top and so he declined to reign on the heights of apn and descended from Baal's throne, but ruled over all El's earth. Sacred sex was a key component. What is so interesting is that, by verse 35, it is clear God is no longer addressing Himself to the Samaritans, but to Israel: [T]he LORD had made a covenant and charged [Israel], saying: "You shall not fear other gods, nor bow down to them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them; but the LORD, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm, Him you shall fear, Him you shall worship, and to Him you shall offer sacrifice. Sign up to receive our email newsletter and never miss an update. Baal's abode was Mount apn, identified as Jebel el-Aqra ("Mount Baldy") some 30 mi. The Israelites "caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger" (verse 17). The Israelites fell into the worship of this idol(Numbers 25:3,5,18; Deuteronomy 4:3; Psalm 106:28; Hosea 9:10). Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. People like to feel comfortable.