We are seeing the same thing today, but at times, it is harder to recognize because we are accustomed to it, and it is not happening overnight. That Baal appears to be a relative newcomer in the Ugaritic pantheon has been generally recognized, and it may be that Sakkhunyaton's story about Baal's paternity reflects a mythologizing of the process by which Baal was integrated into the family of El. First was sexual orgies "under every green tree," where promiscuity and perverted sex acts were the norm. It will be far more terrible than anything ever seen on this earth! . The lesson for us becomes clear, because Jesus says the same thing (Matthew 6:24; 12:25). As an example, notice Amos 2:6-7, where Amos chides the Israelites: ". In the first encounter, Baal is invited to a banquet at which he is to be both guest and main course. Matthew 5:17Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. 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 . Download our mobile app for on-the-go access to the Jewish Virtual Library, Encyclopaedia Judaica, 1998 - 2023 American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. 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. a little T-shaped mark that stands for the long-A vowel (like a in father). 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 ). He replaced the Levitical priesthood with men of his own choosing. Ahab accommodated his wife's idolatry to the point of building a . 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. They also worshiped him as a fertility god who provided children. Baal's 450 prophets worked themselves into a frenzy, cutting themselves, dancing, and chanting to their god. In exchange, they would offer information about their unit. Historical Background of HoseaBaal and Idolatry. Baal's resurrection followed Mot's demise, the good news being transmitted through a dream of El: The fields were still parched from the drought and again Anath and Shapsh set out to find Baal. Today, some evangelicals attempt to prepare the people for what is to come, but their teaching is a mixture of right and wrong. The Spread of Baalism. That there were minor Baalim also at Ugarit is indicated by a god list in Akkadian (see Ugaritica, 5, p. 44 ll. The basis of all immorality is selfishness, the exact opposite of what God is. The most prominent idol that they worshiped was Baal. The songs of His Temple would ordinarily be happy and joyous songs of praise to God, but He will turn the songs of their templesung to Baal in the name of the Lordto wailing, for the numbers of the dead will be unimaginable. If you will not be committed to Him, you are going to die.". l, b . 13:2) such as Baal himself performed in the Ugaritic myth are depicted in the prophetic tirades. Jesus says, "They are blind leaders of the blind. Baal's abode was Mount apn, identified as Jebel el-Aqra ("Mount Baldy") some 30 mi. In Ugaritic and Hebrew, Baal's epithet as the storm god was He Who Rides on the Clouds. Hope Bolingeris an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, and the author 21+ books. Yet, he was in trouble his whole life, from his teenage years on. Baal was the title of the "god" worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. 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. Baal and Asherah were two giant stumbling blocks for the people of Israel. It was a corruption of that religion, for the Israelites syncretized that holy way with Baalism and other idolatries. The prophet turns the heat on, and they become angry with him when he is actually working to make them better. In Canaanite religion her primary role was that of mother goddess. Elijah was sent by God, and he was fulfilling the responsibility of a prophet, to prod the people to whom he was sent to their responsibilities. 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. 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? 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. Yet if you asked most people who believe and follow this new morality, I suspect few would have ever heard of Baal. Jer 32:29. Smith, The Ugaritic Baal Cycle (1994). The myths also tell of Baals struggle to obtain a palace comparable in grandeur to those of other gods. The variant form Hadad (hdd) is attested to only once in Ugaritic. He then merely floats, going through the motions, even feeling good about himself as he neglects so great salvation (Hebrews 2:3). Photo: Courtesy of Claude Doumet-Serhal. He was also king of the gods, and, to achieve that position, he was portrayed as seizing the divine kingship from Yamm, the sea god. 27:1, 30:7, 51:910; Ezek. Baal worship spread rapidly when the king of Israel, Ahab, married Jezebel, the princess of Tyre (1 Kings 16:31-32). One such deity who gripped Israel for a period of time was Baal. Anath then dismembered Mot, scattered and burned the pieces, and gave them to the birds. 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. Baal was considered the supreme. 33:7) has been made the basis of intriguing speculation by Eissfeldt. Most often, it condemns Baal worship. . In the El-Amarna letters Canaanite clients addressed the Egyptian king as "My Baal, my Addu." 3:10; cf. 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. So the word Poeni can be rewritten as Peyeni or as Payani or as Payan. They too had blended the worship of the true God with outright paganism, utterly corrupting the relationship He had established with them. Asherah, another popular deity in Canaan, was the goddess of motherhood and fertility . Some suppose Baal to correspond to the sun and Ashtoreth to the moon; others that Baal was Jupiter and Ashtoreth Venus. 26:1920). 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. Pagan Religious Practices. The name Baal in the Bible is most commonly associated with the Canaanite and Phoenician god of fertility, the rain, the sun, and the storm. In this article, well discuss what Scripture has to say about Baal, what we know from history about Baal, and why this ultimately matters to us today. 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 . Israel "walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel." 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. 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. One of the rooms in this temple had a bench, where offerings would have been placed, and an altar made of . Since Baal was, like almost all ancient deities, a fertility god, the human act of intercourse demonstrated that they wanted Baal to prosper them. Even as the Canaanite religion waned, Baal took on a new role as Zeus in the Ancient Greek pantheon. Baal was the title of the "god" worshiped in ancient Canaan and Phoenicia. But Baal was not exclusively a fertility god. Moffatt renders this, "They worshipped the Eternal, and they also served their own gods.". I would also challenge the suggestion in the text of the article that the location of Lots cave is known. Baal was different from his adherents merely in that he was above them. It disturbed them. Tamil is connected with the Phoenician. 14:13). Consequently, during this tumultuous time, most Jews kept their faith and identity outwardly but bowed to Baal when necessary to appease Jezebel as well as mainstream culture. 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. And of all the foreign gods the Israelites came into contact with, they appeared to struggle the most with worshipping this one. Near Baals temple was that of Dagon, given in the tablets as Baals father. 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. God sends a prophet to people who are cold in their relationship with Godspiritually freezing to deaththough they want to stay that way. The longest of the texts deals with the construction of Baal's house on top of Mount apn. Updates? 2008 The Gale Group. Baal was a false god the feckless Jewish King Ahab and his wicked wife, Jezebel, attempted to force upon the nation of Israel during the time of Elijah the prophet (see 1 Kings 18). Because Canaan depended on rain to grow crops and survive, he was numero uno. Today,. THIS IS A PROFILE OF PRACTICES, DOCTRINES, AND SYMBOLS OF BAAL WORSHIP .
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