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 ). Doumet-Serhal explains the significance of the handles iconography: The dragon epitomizes the most fundamental ancient mythical perception of the Mesopotamian storm god. Charles Whitaker We need to be reminded of it because it can have a detrimental effect on us. . Isa. However, it was not the religion God gave through Moses, but idolatry that flourished! COPYRIGHT 2023 BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY SOCIETY 5614 Connecticut Ave NW #343, Washington DC 20015-2604. ed., 1965); H.B. Baal's worshipers appeased him by offering sacrifices, usually animals such as sheep or bulls (1 Kings 18:23). 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). A general understanding about the bamah and . 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. In this regard, Elijah was a type of John the Baptist, and Elisha, a type of Christ. Asherah, another popular deity in Canaan, was the goddess of motherhood and fertility . II Kings 17:5-6 relates the ultimate consequence. 22:816). Baal worship also included, at times, child sacrifice, which we see some Israelite kings engaging with later on. For seven days a fire burned inside the building, and when it subsided, the house was plated with gold, silver, and lapis lazuli. They too had blended the worship of the true God with outright paganism, utterly corrupting the relationship He had established with them. . Sidons Storm God. Thus, according to Sakkunyaton, Baal's natural father was Ouranos and Dagn became his foster-father, while El-Kronos effected the transfer. Not only do the Jews have to deal with the abomination of Zeus and Antiochus Epiphanes IV (Daniel 8), but the Greek pantheon later gets repeated in the Roman pantheon, and practices from both the Greeks and Romans still exist today. 4:12; Hos. The Sidonians were the inhabitants of ancient Sidon, a seaport on the Mediterranean Sea in modern Lebanon. Take the word isabel; it can be split as isa bel or as isai bel. Adad (the Canaanite Hadad, the Semitic Hadda, the Hurrian Teshub, the Egyptian Resheph, the Phoenician Baal/Bel, the Sumerian Ishkur) is the Mesopotamian storm god, who has special maritime, celestial and meteorological attributes important to the well-being of sailors. Either you are going to be committed to Him or not. The Laodicean evaluates himself, saying, "I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing" (Revelation 3:17). The principal pillars of Baalism were child sacrifice, sexual immorality (both heterosexual and homosexual) and pantheism . In the books of Kings and Chronicles, we can read the record of a given king who turned away from God and served the Baals, and the foolishness sounds quick and casual because we are reading a summary. The contest on Mount Carmel was reported as demonstrating that Baal was an impotent non-entity and that the rain came only from YHWH. He describes Israel as a luxuriant grape vine sending runners in every direction, indicating a bountiful crop. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Baal-ancient-deity, McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia - Baal, Baal - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). Burning incense, worship of the sun, moon, astrology, and ancestor worship are all earmarks of the Baal religion. Baal is said to be one of the first of Solomon's 72 spirits. What made the very name Baal anathema to the Israelites was the program of Jezebel, in the 9th century bce, to introduce into Israel her Phoenician cult of Baal in opposition to the official worship of Yahweh (I Kings 18). But when a falling away happens around us, perhaps even beginning before we were born, it is easy for our minds to adjust to the point that we almost forget the continuing rebellion against God and His way. A solution has been supplied by a tradition ascribed to the ancient Phoenician priest Sakkunyaton (Greek Sanchuniathn) that when El-Kronos defeated Ouranos, he captured in the battle Ouranos' pregnant concubine and gave her to Dagn. Superstitious fear and sexual rites on the one hand fought against faith and loyalty on the other. 19Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. See what over 150,000 subscribers are already receiving each day. The practice of Baal worship was wide spread in Bible times and was very evil. He is the king of the east and governs an army of 66 legions of demons." Did you catch that? Observing Christmas and Easter in the name of Christ is no different. A vivid description of theophany in a thunderstorm is found in Psalms 18:715 (= II Sam. It is not known to what extent the Canaanites considered those various Baalim identical, but the Baal of Ugarit does not seem to have confined his activities to one city, and doubtless other communities agreed in giving him cosmic scope. I would also challenge the suggestion in the text of the article that the location of Lots cave is known. The eschatological traits were taken over with the Canaanite myths. Dated to c. 1750 B.C.E. Even those who have vaguely heard of the name Baal in the Bible know it doesnt have a good connotation. Christ warned the Pharisees: "For laying aside the commandments of God, you hold the traditions of men." If anyone could get an award for Having the Worst Neighbors, it would most likely go to the ancient Israelites. Lastly, he replaced God with golden calves in Bethel and Dan. Whoever is missing shall not live.". "But there was no voice. Baal worship was rooted in sensuality and involved ritualistic prostitution in the temples. Baal's sister-consort Anath demanded that Mot release her brother. That there were minor Baalim also at Ugarit is indicated by a god list in Akkadian (see Ugaritica, 5, p. 44 ll. Dig into the illuminating world of the Bible with a BAS All-Access membership. Updates? Koshar twice recommended that a window be installed and Baal twice vetoed the suggestion, although Koshar insisted that Baal would have to reconsider. John W. Ritenbaugh 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). * Jesus is a transliteration of the Latin; it is NOT a translation! Baal & Asherah. linked to Molech (also called Milcom in the Bible). Depending on the tradition, she was either Baal's mother, lover, or both. Who Was Baal? Scott Broberg Fig Tree Ministries. Baal was a cruel, sensuous, and revolting false god whose worship involved sexual degradation and lewdness. 25:111; Ps. Jer 32:29. The sum of what Elijah said is actually spiritually dangerous, due to the fact that God is judging. Photo: Courtesy of Claude Doumet-Serhal. 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. O. Eissfeldt, Beitraege zur Religionsgeschichte des Altertums I (1932); H.L. As such, Baal designated the universal god of fertility, and in that capacity his title was Prince, Lord of the Earth. This viewpoint was developed as the basic and final argument against Baalism. 14:2, 9; Num. Because of their self-procured wealth and affluence, they think they are being blessed with material things. If it is of men, it will not work very long. The Semitic original of this name has been recognized in one of Baal's names in Ugaritic: (The name is to be connected with the root dmr, "be strong, brave," and is probably the same as that of Abraham's son Zimrn (damarn), the -n afformative being preserved in the genitive case of the Greek form Demarountos). The longest of the texts deals with the construction of Baal's house on top of Mount apn. Most of the information they gave turned out to be wrong, to be lies. The god Baal was the heathen sun-god spoken of in the Old Testament. But God has a different perspective; He says they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (Revelation 3:17). ADD. The second major background factor that we need to grasp somewhat to read Hosea well is the worship of the Canaanite god Baal (s). Pagan Religious Practices. Adad roughly equates with the later Phoenician storm god Baal, the worship of whom is championed by the nefarious queen Jezebel in the Bible. God sends a prophet to people who are cold in their relationship with Godspiritually freezing to deaththough they want to stay that way. God's first command to destroy any forms of idol worship came early in the Bible in Exodus 34:13. . 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). Blending the lies of this world with the truth of God produces a foul mixture called syncretism (James 3:10-13). They clash violently until both are prostrate and the Sungoddess warns Mot not to fight with Baal lest El hear and overthrow him. The king of Assyria took Samaria and carried Israel away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah and by the Habor, the River of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. The summer drought did not mean that YHWH had died (like Baal), nor did the return of the rains signal the resurrection. Baal was considered the supreme. Sidon was well connected by trade by the traders of the Pandya kingdom of Tamil Nadu. He was also called the Lord of Rain and Dew, the two forms of moisture that were indispensable for fertile soil in Canaan. 131; Sanh. His opinion of his holiness as compared with God's judgment is so far off base, it causes Jesus Christ to regurgitate him from His body. When religion is ungodly, its power is destructive, and every institution in the nation suffers. They believed in a Creator God, but they worshipped Him at the shrines they erected to the Baals. "They built for themselves high places in all their cities . But what was its real effect on the participants and the nation? Valimai means strengh, or force or weight. The Lord said to Moses, "Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the Lord, so that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel." 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! 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. They joined themselves also unto Baalpeor, And ate the sacrifices of the dead. 1:711). The Tetragrammaton should be rendered as Yahoah, with the vav being pronounced as the o in Torah, menorah, Eloah (singular form of Elohim), and Yehoshua (=Joshua, Christs REAL name). In short, Scripture has nothing positive to say about Baal. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. He replaced the Levitical priesthood with men of his own choosing. In Tamil Nadu, the following words payachi paarai, Peyazhwar, payans, pai (meaning devil) are currently in use. The judge Gideon was also named Jerubbaal (Judges 6:32), and King Saul had a son named Ishbaal (I Chronicles 8:33). Before we explore what Scripture says about Baal, lets establish a brief depiction of the Canaanite deity. 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. Archeological excavations have dated information about Baal back as far as the second millennium BC, and the spread of Baal worship caught fire in Egypt in 1400 BC. Ritual prostitution only served to erode the family, eventually leading to the destruction of the nation. 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. It indeed produces great material prosperity, but it is consumed through self-indulgent gorging. At the foundation of every community is a way of life that its people live and teach their children. Searching for Israel (Part Six): Israel Is Fallen, Is Fallen. For instance, Hezekiahs son rebuilds the shrines of Baal and the Canaanite goddess Asherah that Hezekiah had torn down: He rebuilt the high places his father Hezekiah had destroyed; he also erected altars to Baal and made an Asherah pole, as Ahab king of Israel had done. Paul, in: Biblica, 49 (1968), 3436; U. Oldenburg, The Conflict Between El and Bal in Canaanite Religion (1969). There was tremendous evil to overcome. In Hebrew, it is rendered Yehoshua, and in Aramaic, Yeshua. Near Baals temple was that of Dagon, given in the tablets as Baals father. 18For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Right now, though, we are witnessing a steady defection from the basic principles of the Bible, away from what we call the Judeo-Christian ethic. What was the rationale behind this perverse, immoral act? Since the root tr in Arabic is connected with artificial irrigation, it is apparent that Ashtar's failure to measure up to Baal represents the inadequacy of irrigation as a substitute for natural rainfall. Did the Carthaginians Really Practice Infant Sacrifice? There are several ideas as to exactly what Elijah meant by "How long will you falter between two opinions?" In the Aztec religion, life existed before humans, and civilization was built after the destruction of the fourth sun. Baal was the god of agriculture and fertility in Canaan, becoming a fallen angel and a demon. So-called from Mount Peor, where this worship was celebrated, the Baal of Peor. The Kingdom of Israel fell below the historian's radar. In Hosea 10:2, God charges Israel with having a divided heart. Ugaritic texts tell of other fertility aspects of Baal, such as his relations with Anath, his consort and sister, and also his siring a divine bull calf from a heifer. 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. Hope Bolingeris an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, and the author 21+ books. In the Bible, Baal is spoken of in a negative light, as an idol and a false god, and is associated with idolatry and paganism. The actual worship of Ba'al was carried out in terms of imitative magic whereby sexual acts by both male and female temple prostitutes were understood to arouse Ba'al who then brought rain to make Mother Earth fertile (in some forms of the myth, represented by a female consort, Asherah or Astarte). Murder and sexual immorality was a part of Baal worship. According to the Bible, centers of worship for Canaanite gods such as Molech and the Baal's were set up in Judah and Israel by apostate kings. The lesson for us becomes clear, because Jesus says the same thing (Matthew 6:24; 12:25). The Masoretic text has the 4 letters YHWH with a sheva under the Y, pronounced yuh, and a Qamats below the W, i.e. 2008 The Gale Group. This connects with the curse of Laodiceanism because God shows in the Laodiceans what can happen spiritually as people increase materially. In the Bible, the followers of the one true God encounter other gods, or previously worshipped idols themselves. How many pagan ideas have we let seep in? Ashtaroth is mentioned 12 times in the Old Testament. The basis of all immorality is selfishness, the exact opposite of what God is. Learn about the Canaanite-Phoenician deities who were called Baal, which means Lord. For a while, both sidesthe Confederate and the Unionaccepted those turncoats and took their information. They were Canaanites and shared numerous similarities, including many of the same gods, with their close neighbors in the southern Levantwho were also predominantly Canaanite. In the formative stages of Israels history, the presence of Baal names did not necessarily mean apostasy or even syncretism. Sun worship came from the ancient pagan religion of Baal. Thus it is clear that Baal, representing the life-giving rains, fluctuates in his ability to withstand the power of Mot, who represents drought, sterility, and death. This chapter reports on the behavior of the people placed in Israel after Israel's conquest and deportation by Assyria between 722-720 BC. Discovered in a farmer's field in northeastern Egypt, this inscribed monument bears the name of one of the few pharaohs actually named in the Old . By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Asherah was a fertility goddess. 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. Baal was also worshipped by various communities as a local god. And the covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear other gods. Despite Gods efforts to dissuade them, the Israelites engaged with the Canaanite culture a little too much and adopted their practices, including Baal worship. In Phoenician he was called Baal Shamen, Lord of the Heavens. Baal was the god of rain, wind, and fertility. 114) or with eschatological victory (Isa. The variant form Hadad (hdd) is attested to only once in Ugaritic. This time, Baal puts up a fight and holds Mot off in battle. He is a loving Master who only is to be obeyed and servedand only on His terms. The Hebrew scriptures speak frequently of the Baal of a given place or refers to Baalim in the plural, suggesting the evidence of local deities, or lords, of various locales. Apostasy is a defection from trutha forsaking of one spiritual approach in favor of another. Some of Judah's kings spent years tearing down shrines and high places to foreign gods (II Chronicles 34:1-7). All this was part of his fertility role, which, when fulfilled, meant an abundance of crops and fertility for animals and mankind. The bulk of the Ugaritic mythological texts is concerned with the activities of Baal. Baal persuaded Asherah to intercede with her husband El, the head of the pantheon, to authorize the construction of a palace. l /), or Baal (Hebrew: baal), was a title and honorific meaning 'owner', 'lord' in the Northwest Semitic languages spoken in the Levant during antiquity.From its use among people, it came to be applied to gods. One idea is that he means, "How long are you going to hop from branch to branch? In the Judeo-Christian tradition Asherah is considered a false Canaanite deity and a major source of temptation to the Israelites. Can we stop with the Yahweh pronunciation once and for all? (Iron Age) temple. He bowed down to all the starry hosts and worshiped them (2 Kings 21:3). (the Middle Bronze Age). . 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. a little T-shaped mark that stands for the long-A vowel (like a in father). Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Those familiar with the Biblical text will recall that Sidon was an influential, wealthy Phoenician city when the kings of Israel and Judah ruled during the Iron Age. They used the name of God frequently, saying they trusted Him, but they filled the nation with stealing, lying, and murder. And one of the most famous instances of Israel going head to head with the prophets of Baal comes from 1 Kings 18. The biblical allusions to YHWH's victory over the sea preserve echoes of the older exploit of Baal (cf. That made God so angry that a plague spread through their ranks; Phinehas stood up and pled their case and the . 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 . When we see that our thoughts and ways are not His, we should reform and repent. Corrections? As an example, notice Amos 2:6-7, where Amos chides the Israelites: ".