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The Covenant Under the Threat of Baal Worship

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The Covenant under Threat of the Baal Fertility Cult: A Historical- Theological Study. By Gift Mweemba submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF THEOLOGY in the subject of OLD TESTAMENT at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA Promoter: Prof W J Wessels December 2010 Acknowledgements This work is dedicated to the Lord God Almighty who picked from being a rural village herd boy and transformed me into a minister of the gospel. To God be the glory great things He has done. Special thanks goes to my dear wife Mavis Zodwa Dube Mweemba „the bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh‟ who has been my unfailing support. My son Malelo Mweemba and daughter Bumi Mweemba deserve special thanks for enduring the long absences while I was working on this project. Professor W Wessels, thank you for being a seasoned theologian and for the objective guidance you gave. 2 SUMMARY………………………………………………………………………………8 CHAPTER 1 Introduction…………….………………………………………………………………9 1. The Covenant as the Reason for Deliverance…………………………..11 1.1 Monotheism as Context for the Covenant…..…………………..…..….12 1.2 The Slide into Pluralistic Idolatry…………………………..……………..12 1.2.1 Solomon………………………………………………………….…….….……13 1.2.2 Jeroboam…………………………………………………………..….….……13 1.2.3 The Resident Evil……………………………………………….….………….13 1.3 Idolatrous Attachment…………………………..…………………….…….14 1.4 Problem Statement……………………………………………..…….……...15 1.5 Aim of Study…………………………………………………………….…….19 1.6 Hypothesis…………………………………………………………………….18 1.7 Delimitation…………….……………………………………………………..24 1.8 Methodology………………………………………………………………….25 1.8.1 The Historical-Critical Method…………………………………………….….25 1.8.2 The Origins of the Historical-Critical Method………………………..……..24 1.8.2.1 Definition………………………………………………………………..26 1.8.2.2 Challenges to the Faith Community…………….…………….…….27 1.8.2.3 A Balanced Approach……………………………….………………..28 1.8.3 The Historical-Grammatical Method……………………….…..……...……29 1.8.3.1 Definition………………………………………………………………..29 1.8.4 Research Design…………..…………………………………….……………30 1.9 Overview of Selected Authors Comments on the Subject…..….…...31 1.9.1 Origins of Idol Worship……………………………………………...………..32 1.9.2 The Deities: Ancient Near Eastern Mythology…………………………….32 1.9.3 Baal Worship……………………………………………………….……….…34 1.9.4 The Covenant Formula………………………………………………….……35 1.9.5 Kings versus Idol Worship…………………………………………….……..36 1.9.6 Preliminary Conclusion………………………………………………..……...37 3 CHAPTER 2 THE CANAANITES 2. Introduction…………………………………………………………………...38 2.1 Challenges of Canaanite Identity…………………………………….……38 2.1.1 Absence of Canaanite Historical Records………………….…….……….41 2.1.2 Lack of Canaanite Records by the Canaanites……………..……….……..41 2.1.2.1 Egyptian Sources of Canaanite Identity……………………...….….42 2.2 The Identity of the Canaanites…………………………….………….…...44 2.3 Canaanite Ethnicity…………………………………………………….…….46 2.4 Canaanite Ethnicity in the Hebrew Bible……………………….………..47 2.5 The Philistines………………………………………………………………..51 2.5.1 The Philistine Identity………………………………………………………….51 2.5.2 The Philistine Problem……………………………………………….....….…53 CHAPTER 3 THE CANAANITE PROBLEM 3. Ban on the Canaanites……………………….…………………………….56 3.1 The Promised Land………………………………………………………….56 3.2 Why the Ban on the Canaanites……………………………………….….61 3.2.1 The Prohibition against Foreign Gods……………………………………...63 3.2.2 Prohibition in the Decalogue…………………………………………...…....65 3.2.3 Protection of Monotheism………………………………………………….....67 3.3 Protection by Extermination…………………………………………..…...71 CHAPTER 4 ONLY ONE GOD? 4. Monotheism…………………………………………………………………...76 4.1 Definition of Monotheism…………………………………………..…….…77 4.2 The Origin of Monotheism………………………………………..…….…..80 4.2.1 Egyptian Source of Monotheism…………………………………………..…80 4.2.2 Canaanite Origin of Monotheism…………………………..………………...82 4 4.2.3 Deity Conflict as Source of Monotheism……………………………………86 4.3 Origin of Hebrew Monotheism……………………………………..……...88 4.3.1 Desert Wandering and the Development of Monotheism…………………89 4.3.2 Acts of Yahweh and Monotheism…………………………………….……...90 CHAPTER 5 THE COVENANT 5. The Covenant Motif………………………………………………………….95 5.1 The Importance of the Covenant………………………………….………97 5.2 Etymology of Berit…………………………………………………………...97 5.2.1 Berit as Fetter………………………………………………………………... 98 5.2.2 Berit as Food…………………………………………………………………. 99 5.2.3 Berit: Covenant Oath and Covenant Meal…………………………………99 5.3 The Sinai Covenant………………………………………………….……..100 5.3.1 The Sinai Covenant and the Hittite Treaties………………………..…….102 5.4 The Ethical Demands of the Sinai Covenant…………….…………….106 CHAPTER 6 BAAL THE CONTENDER 6. Baal……………………………………………………………………………109 6.1 Etymology of Baal…………………………………………………………..110 6.2 Titles of Baal………………………………………………………………...112 6.3 Conflict Motif in the Baal Tradition………………………………………117 6.4 Similarities between Yahweh and Baal………………………….…..…119 6.4.1 Dwellers of Mount Zaphon……………………………………………….....119 6.4.2 Similar Temple Design…..……………………………………………….….120 6.4.3 Riders of the Clouds…………………………………………………….…...122 CHAPTER 7 THE FERTILITY CULT 7. The Fertility Cult Motif………………………………………..…………...126 5 7.1 Baal and the Fertility Cult…………………………………………………131 7.2 The Cultic Practice…………………………………………………………132 7.2.1 Offerings……………………..…………………………………………….….134 7.2.2 Sacrifices……………….………………………………………………….….135 7.3 Divinization and Sacralisation of Sex in the Baal Fertility Cult……137 7.4 Cultic Sex Personnel……………………………………………….….…..142 7.4.1 The Zonah, Qedesha, Qodesh…………………………………….…….…144 7.5 The Feminist Reaction to bias Against Women…………….….……..148 7.6 The Fertility Cult and Sympathetic Magic……………………….……..150 CHAPTER 8 THE IMPACT OF THE FERTILITY CULT ON THE COVENANT 8. Background to the Book of Numbers…………………………………...152 8.1 The Generation of the Book of Numbers……………………………….153 8.2 The Encounter at Shittim…………………………………..…….………..154 8.3 What Led to the Encounter at Shittim?...............................................158 8.4 Some of the Notable Areas of Syncretism……………..……………...160 CHAPTER 9 EXILED FOR BREAKING THE COVENANT 9. Exile as a Climatic Consequence of Baal Worship……………….….164 9.1 Preamble: Developing into a People…………….……….………….….165 9.2 The Cause of the Exile According to Jeremiah………………..……...167 9.3 Overview of the Challenges of the Book of Jeremiah……….……….167 9.3.1 The Name of Jeremiah……………..………………………………………..168 9.3.2 The Historical Jeremiah………….…………………..…………….………..168 9.3.3 The Authorship of Jeremiah……………………………………..………….169 9.4 The Covenant in Jeremiah…………………….…………………….…….170 9.5 Baal Worship and Covenant Violation in the Book of Jeremiah…..172 9.6 Jeremiah’s Repent and Return Theology………………………………173 10 Conclusion……………………………………………………..….………. 176 6 10.1 Purpose of the Work...............................................................................176 10.2 Methodology............................................................................................176 10.3 Major Areas of Focus and Findings.......................................................176 10.3.1 The Canaanites.......................................................................................177 10.3.2 Incompatibility with Monotheism.............................................................178 10.3.3 The Covenant as Israel‟s Life Axis..........................................................180 10.3.4 The Baal Fertility Cult and its Impact on Israel.......................................181 10.4 Concluding Summary..............................................................................182 10.5 Recommendation……………………………………………………………..184 Bibliography..............…………………………..………………………....………..185 7 SUMMARY The Old Testament is the story of Yahweh and His Covenant relationship with His people Israel. Many other Ancient Near Eastern (ANE) peoples are mentioned in the context of their relationship to Israel. This Covenant relationship which began with Abraham had a core component, the gift of land (Gen 12:7), the Promised Land. The Covenant was ratified at Mount Sinai where the terms, the Ten Commandments were given to Israel. Core to the terms was the obligation that Israel would serve no other god but Yahweh and without any representative image. Israel must be a monotheistic people. Only then would they retain the Promised Land. The Promised Land was occupied by the Canaanites. The Canaanites though difficult to identify with precision, were a people whose religious cult was the direct opposite of Yahwism. They worshipped Baal the fertility god. The fertility cult was a belief that there is no absolute being but a universal realm with a womb of fertility. This womb is the source of fertility and the gods are the agents. In the land of Canaan, Baal was the agent of fertility. The wealth and fertility of the land, crops, livestock, and humans was attributed to Baal. Baal was worshiped through the fertility cult which had cult personnel like prophets, and temple prostitutes. The fertility cult had festivals in which sympathetic magic was performed to induce the gods into action. This magic involved cultic sex and wine consumption in honor of Baal. The Canaanites were driven out of the land lest they influence Israel to copy their ways. This would violate the Covenant and Israel would be ejected out of the land because the occupation was based on keeping the Covenant. There were no strict conditions of obedience in Baal worship like in the Covenant. Baal offered them release from „Covenant Obedience‟ to indulge in sensuality while enjoying the blessings. In the end, the Baal fertility cult had such a negative impact on the Covenant that Israel was
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