3 Matching Annotations
- Mar 2022
-
www.haaretz.com www.haaretz.com
-
“This is what the Lord says— Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God” (Isaiah 44:6).
Jewish monotheism doesn't emerge until the end of the Babylonian Exile (~586 - 500 BCE) period and the beginning of the Second Temple period (500 BCE - 70 CE) when the religion moves from acknowledging the existence of other gods to saying there is only one god. (Isaiah 44:6).
-
The historic books of the Bible were written by a “Yahweh only party” and are thus keenly critical of the worship of other gods in Judah. Still, it is clear from their description that polytheism was the norm in the First Temple period. It was only during King Josiah’s reform that the "Yahweh only party" really took control and began pushing other gods out of Judean minds.
Polytheism was the cultural norm during the First Temple period. It wasn't until the reforms of King Josiah described in 2 Kings in the second half of the 7th century BCE that other Semitic gods were actively removed from the Temple and parts of culture in favor of Yahweh.
-
-
www.haaretz.com www.haaretz.com
-
Yet prevail, Baal did not; towns in biblical Israel named after him are gone, while towns named after other gods, including Shamash, the moon god Yarekh, and El, are everywhere.
The towns in biblical Israel named for Baal were renamed or gone, but there are many towns named after other gods including Shamash, Yarekh, and El.
-