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. Alan, how said anything about John baptizing Jesus? Ahab accommodated his wife's idolatry to the point of building a . The Macedonian Cleopatra planned to send her son to India through the Red Sea. You have a cuddly little Baal idol in your child's bedroom without even suspecting it. In this chapter, the prophet Elijah and the prophets of Baal have a show-down to prove the power of their God and gods. In exchange, they would offer information about their unit. The Israelites rejected the law of God and relied on the traditions of Gentile nations. 1:4; Hab. Take the word isabel; it can be split as isa bel or as isai bel. All through the Old Testament, the people of Israel fell into Baal and Asherah worship, and it is no different for us today. That made God so angry that a plague spread through their ranks; Phinehas stood up and pled their case and the . Baal is said to be one of the first of Solomon's 72 spirits. Murder and sexual immorality was a part of Baal worship. They were afraid of God, but they did not really change their way of life. He established a feast in the eighth month to replace the true Feast of Tabernacles in the seventh. BAAL WORSHIP AND SEMITIC RACISM This term was used as a title and name of various local deities worshipped as guardians, heroes, and kings. Baal was a fertility and earth god of the ancient cultures and was later exported to Egypt where he was worshipped as the storm god. The latter title has a biblical echo in the corrupted form Baal-Zebub (II Kings 1:2ff. This is typical Israeliltish syncretism, but it will not work. Baal was the title of the "god" worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. Despite Gods efforts to dissuade them, the Israelites engaged with the Canaanite culture a little too much and adopted their practices, including Baal worship. Required fields are marked *. More than 1400 of her works have been featured in various publications. For this reason, God shows that the preacher, not the civil authority, is the most vital part of the community. A series of bad years, which were apparently believed to come in seven-year cycles (cf. The ancient Tamils had connections with the Syrians and Sidon. Notice the dramatic change of attitude in the people. 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). He replaced the Levitical priesthood with men of his own choosing. Since you mentioned John baptizing Jesus. This is no different from what Israel was doing when Amos wrote back in 760 BC. In Hebrew, it is rendered Yehoshua, and in Aramaic, Yeshua. He was also called the Lord of Rain and Dew, the two forms of moisture that were indispensable for fertile soil in Canaan. Actually, there were two gods which were essentially worshiped the same way, Baal and Ashtoreth. . Elijah prepared the way for Elisha, who had a double portion of Elijah's spirit and did many more miracles. The god Baal was the heathen sun-god spoken of in the Old Testament. 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). Jesus says, "They are blind leaders of the blind. At Ras-Shamar, Baal was referred to as the son of Dagon, the Philistines chief god. It disturbed them. 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! 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). The sum of what Elijah said is actually spiritually dangerous, due to the fact that God is judging. He then merely floats, going through the motions, even feeling good about himself as he neglects so great salvation (Hebrews 2:3). They believed by their actions they could control and manipulate the Gods. 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. Kings Ahaz and Manasseh, When the rain failed, it was inevitable that some would question YHWH's power and resort to Baal. 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. Searching for Israel (Part Six): Israel Is Fallen, Is Fallen. The only trouble is that people like to feel comfortable in moral mediocrity. 13:2) such as Baal himself performed in the Ugaritic myth are depicted in the prophetic tirades. But what was its real effect on the participants and the nation? 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. Christianity.com is a member of the Salem Web Network of sites including: Copyright 2023, Christianity.com. 11:17; I Kings 8:3536; Jer. Revelation 2:14 "THE DOCTRINES OF . The Sidonians were the inhabitants of ancient Sidon, a seaport on the Mediterranean Sea in modern Lebanon. Apparently in anticipation of developments the artisan god Koshar had cast furnishings of gold and silver. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. This is exactly what God warns us to flee, and the only way to come out of it is by developing and maturing in our relationship with God. Sift through the storied history of ancient Israel. 7:1416). It is related that on one occasion a strange ruler came to the place where Peor was worshiped, to sacrifice to him; but when he heard of this silly practise, he caused his soldiers to attack and kill the worshipers of the god (Sifre, Num. 4:12; Hos. Today,. Corrections? A religion with such a beginning was doomed to fail, bringing the nation down with it. In Ugaritic and Hebrew, Baals epithet as the storm god was He Who Rides on the Clouds. God wants to transform us from people who are bent on pleasing ourselves to people who show concern for others. 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. Hosea exposes the problem between God and Israel. Jehu's massacre of the Baal worshipers (II Kings 10:1828) did not eradicate bull worship (II Kings 10:31). The word "Baal" derives from the Semitic stem "bel", meaning "lord". Albright, Yahweh and the Gods of Canaan (1968); Albright, Arch Rel; S.M. He just goes to sleep as he is freezing to death. None of the foolish practices of the heathen could bring the rains; only YHWH could and did (Jer. 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. When Elijah preached his message, it put the people in a bind because they knew their conscience was telling them that they had to commit themselves to God or to Baal. 8. Various forms of Baal worship are still going on in the Catholic church; even though these pagan idols were incorporated into Catholicism centuries ago, the worship of the sun still exists to this day. 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. They were primarily devoted to the worship of Baal and Asherah (or Asherim, Asheroth). 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! This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. A prophet's life is not a happy situation. In Hosea 10:2, God charges Israel with having a divided heart. Whoever is missing shall not live.". He was considered superior to his father, El, the chief of the deities. The motifs of these myths were adopted and adapted in Jewish and Christian eschatology. The biblical allusions to YHWH's victory over the sea preserve echoes of the older exploit of Baal (cf. 29:35, 32:26; Nah. Prophets and Prophecy (Part 1). 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? Before descending to the realm of death, Baal copulates with a heifer and begets a male offspring. Extra-biblical evidence for the flourishing Baal cult at Samaria in the ninth and eighth centuries B.C.E. What the Bible says about Baal Worship ( From Forerunner Commentary ) 1 Kings 12:26-33 The religion of Israel began with a man, Jeroboam I, who changed the true worship of God. 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." It may seem easy to point the finger at the ancient Israelites and say, How could you let a bull statue into Israel? What is so interesting is that, by verse 36, God is no longer reporting on the Samaritans but is addressing Israel. Israel "walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel." The Israelites displayed a pandemic failure to love their fellow man. Asherah, along with Astarte and Anath, was one of the three great goddesses of the Canaanite pantheon. 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 Iron Age). In the Bible, the followers of the one true God encounter other gods, or previously worshipped idols themselves. The prophet Haggai attributed the drought and scarcity in his day to the failure to rebuild the Temple (Hag. Archaeologists at Sidon have uncovered a 12th-11th-century 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. He began to prophesy in a time of immediate crisis, one that would become far worse before it ever improved. Baal was the title of the "god" worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. Some become discouraged with the church because we are always being toldto some measure anywaydisturbing things about ourselves. Sidons Storm God. BIBLIOGRAPHY: W. Hermann, in: DDD, 13238; M.S. After a textual gap, there is a report that Baal's corpse has been found. you didnt even mention her horrible daughter Athaliah, the only killer queen So the word Jezebel finally means one who is a good musician. 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. Some extraordinary discoveries from recent excavations have allowed us to partially reconstruct Sidonian religion during the Bronze and Iron Agesshowing that Baal worship at the site had deep roots. 57 Bull Baal. The Sovereign Creator is not a God who allows His favor to be bought with crumbs. The cosmic character of afon leads to its use as a synonym for "sky" in Job 26:7: "who stretched out afon on emptiness who suspended earth on naught." Elijah says disturbing things. 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. How could you worship Baal? But if we dont exercise extreme discernment, we may find ourselves doing the same with modern-day baals. This chapter reports on the behavior of the people placed in Israel after Israel's conquest and deportation by Assyria between 722-720 BC. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Dig into the illuminating world of the Bible with a BAS All-Access membership. 1:21), would be catastrophic. 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. Prepare to Meet Your God! Why Did Pharaoh Tell Joseph to Enjoy the 'Fat of the Land'? 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). Mot refused and boasted how he had mangled Baal. 27:1). Possibly even more treacherous than this was a parallel development: mixing the worship of Yahweh and Baal. Yet such fluidity in the use of the term baal did not prevent it from being attached to a god of distinct character. He could, and did, withhold the rain from one city and lavish it on another (Amos 4:7). Ashtaroth is mentioned 12 times in the Old Testament. Historical Background of HoseaBaal and Idolatry. During the summer months the rains cease, but the temporary drought is no threat unless it is abnormally prolonged. Koshar twice recommended that a window be installed and Baal twice vetoed the suggestion, although Koshar insisted that Baal would have to reconsider. THIS IS A PROFILE OF PRACTICES, DOCTRINES, AND SYMBOLS OF BAAL WORSHIP . 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. 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 . In the formative stages of Israels history, the presence of Baal names did not necessarily mean apostasy or even syncretism. Today Baal churches preach and teach Baal doctrines; prosperity, harvest, sex and fertility. Recall the mention in Hosea 10:1 of increasing and embellishing altars just before Israel fell to Assyria. He is the king of the east and governs an army of 66 legions of demons." Did you catch that? Commentaries are at odds over what the Hebrew word translated divided means. First was sexual orgies "under every green tree," where promiscuity and perverted sex acts were the norm. We may not sacrifice our children on altars for everyone to see; instead, we sacrifice them behind closed doors at a doctor's . Val is related to valimai in Tamil. Even those who have vaguely heard of the name Baal in the Bible know it doesnt have a good connotation. The worship of Baal was popular in Egypt from the later New Kingdom in about 1400 bce to its end (1075 bce).
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