Who was Baal And Why Was The Worship Of Baal A Constant Struggle For The Israelites?

bail was the name of the god who was worshiped throughout canaan and phoenicia in ancient times during the judges period the practice of baal worship entered jewish religious life judges chapter 3 verse 7 niv the israelites did evil in the eyes of the lord they forgot the lord their god and served the baels and the ashraes the practice of baal worship became widespread in israel during the reign of ahab first kings chapter 16 verses 31 through 33 nlt and as though it were not enough to follow the sinful example of jeroboam he married jezebel the

daughter of king efbayal of the cedonians and he began to bow down in worship of baal first ahab built a temple and an altar for bail in samaria then he set up an ashrae poll he did more to provoke the anger of the lord the god of israel than any of the other kings of israel before him and the practice of baal worship also affected judah second chronicles chapter 28 verses 1 through 4 niv ahaz was 20 years old when he became king and he reigned in jerusalem 16 years unlike david his father he did

not do what was right in the eyes of the lord he followed the ways of the kings of israel and also made idols for worshiping the baals he burned sacrifices in the valley of ben hinnom and sacrificed his children in the fire engaging in the detestable practices of the nations the lord had driven out before the israelites he offered sacrifices and burned incense at the high places on the hilltops and under every spreading tree the plural of the word bael is balaam which means lord bael was a fertility god who was thought to help the

earth produce crops and people produce offspring in general various parts worshiped bail in different methods and baal proved to be a highly universal god various locales highlighted one or another of his attributes and designed special sects of baalism baal of peyor as we see in numbers chapter 25 verse 3 and baal barath as we see in judges chapter 8 verse 33 are two examples of such localized deities numbers chapter 25 verse 3. in this way israel joined in the worship of baal of peor causing the lord's anger to blaze against his people judges chapter 8

verse 33 no sooner had gideon died then the israelites again prostituted themselves to the baels they set up bail barath as their god the word bael appears infrequently in the old testament as a personal name the words etymology shows that bael was considered as the owner of a certain location thereby limiting its use to individuals who were no longer nomads but had settled down these local bails were thought to be in charge of agriculture creatures and humanity's fertility it was crucial to win their favor especially in a place like pal where there are few natural

streams or springs and rainfall is unpredictable this led to the adoption of extreme forms in the cultists including the practice of ritual prostitution and child sacrifice judges chapter 2 verse 17 new king james version yet they would not listen to their judges but they played the harlot with other gods and bowed down to them they turned quickly from the way in which their fathers walked and obeyed the commandments of the lord they did not do so amos chapter 10 verse 7 new king james version they pant after the dust of the earth which is on

the head of the poor and pervert the way of the humble a man and his father go into the same girl to defile my holy name jeremiah chapter 7 verse 9 new king james version will you steal murder commit adultery swear falsely burn incense to baal and walk after other gods whom you do not know the most meaningful use of the title in the old testament is its reference to the great active god of a canaanite pantheon an equation with haddad the amorite god whose nature and functions were almost identical seems clear baal eventually ascended

to the position of preeminent deity in the region part of this process according to some researchers can be traced back to the ogratic scriptures baal is identified as the son of dagon another amorite deity possibly a vegetation or grain god rather than el who was undoubtedly the original head of the canaanite gods at rosh shamrock the ancient ugric site temples to baal and dagon have been uncovered but none devoted to el himself baal is depicted in the scriptures wearing a helmet embellished with a bull's horns a symbol of strength and fertility he holds a club

or mace in one hand probably representing thunder and a spear adorned with leaves in the other possibly representing both lightning and vegetation in aramaian sculptures baal is depicted writing a bull which may be related to aaron and jeroboam the first calf images which were most likely used as pedestals for the invisible yahweh enough referred to euphemistically as the virgin enough was baal's spouse and sister and shared many of his escapades the day of the lord may have originated as a celebration of yahweh's victory over the forces of chaos presumably at the new year festival in

the jerusalem temple in a rite derived from a canaanite predecessor there is evidence that baal and other canaanite deities were worshiped in egypt but without becoming a serious threat to the native egyptian religion the situation was different in israel where through the processes of syncretism the worship of yahweh was profoundly influenced and threatened by alien elements from the baal cults this was due to two main factors first the israelites did not drive out the canaanites but intermarried with them thus raising the problem of the interrelationship of yahweh and bael second yahweh had given israel a

considerable victory over the canaanites and his supremacy was unquestioned baal was considered the most powerful of all gods eclipsing ill who was seen as rather weak and ineffective in various battles baal defeated yam the god of the sea and mat the god of death and the underworld bael's sisters or consorts were ashrath a fertility goddess associated with the stars and anath a goddess of love and war the canaanites worshiped baal as the sun god and as the storm god he is usually depicted holding a lightning bolt who defeated enemies and produced crops they also worshiped

him as a fertility god who provided children baal worship was rooted in sensuality and involved ritualistic prostitution in the temples at times appeasing bail required human sacrifice usually the firstborn of the one making the sacrifice jeremiah chapter 19 verse 5 kjv they have built also the high places of baal to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto baal which i commanded not nor spake it neither came it into my mind bael's priests worshiped their deity with riotous rites that featured ecstatic shouts and self-inflicted harm first kings chapter 18 verse 28 so the prophets

prayed louder and cut themselves with knives and daggers according to their ritual until blood flowed before the hebrews entered the promised land the lord god forewarned against glorifying canaan's gods but israel bent to idolism anyway deuteronomy chapter 6 verses 14 through 15 king james version ye shall not go after other gods of the gods of the people which are round about you for the lord thy god is a jealous god among you lest the anger of the lord thy god be kindled against thee and destroy thee from off the face of the earth prophet elijah

during the reign of ahab and jezebel at the height of baal worship in israel god directly confronted the paganism through his prophet elijah first god showed that he not bael controlled the rain by sending a drought lasting three and one half years first kings chapter 17 verse 1 nkjv and elijah the tishbite of the inhabitants of gilead said to ahab as the lord god of israel lives before whom i stand there shall not be dew nor rain these years except at my word first kings chapter 16 verse 30 new king james version now ahab the

son of omri did evil in the sight of the lord more than all who were before him allow me to introduce you to the three main characters in this incredible bible story the first is ahab the king of israel who did more evil than all the previous kings combined the second character is jezebel ahab's wife she decided to replace the lord god's worship with worship of baal elijah one of god's great prophets is the third character his name translates as jehovah is my god while jezebel was destroying the people and places associated with the true

god the lord sent a man whose name testified that the lord jehovah was his god first kings chapter 17 verse 3 new king james version get away from here and turn eastward and hide by the brook cherith which flows into the jordan 1st kings chapter 18 verse 1 new king james version and it came to pass after many days that the word of the lord came to elijah in the third year saying go present yourself to ahab and i will send rain on the earth how did elijah know god was alive and trustworthy hide and

present yourself the lord said to elijah those two phrases show us like elijah how we can know god is alive one privately hide elijah is used as an example of the power of prayer in james chapter 5 verses 17 and 18 a man with a nature like ours james said that means he was a regular guy elijah was a man of greatness but he was also a man of weakness but one fact redeems everything about elijah he was a man of prayer james chapter 5 verses 17 through 18 new king james version elijah was a

man with a nature like ours and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months then he prayed again and the heaven gave rain and the earth produced its fruit not only did elijah pray but he prayed earnestly the key to determine whether god is alive or not is hiding as you learn to connect with god through earnest prayer a series of events in elijah's personal life demonstrated that god was alive first kings chapter 17 verse 3 new king james version get away

from here and turn eastward and hide by the brook cherith which flows into the jordan 1st kings chapter 18 verses 2 through 16 new king james version so elijah went to present himself to ahab and there was a severe famine in samaria and ahab had called obadiah who was in charge of his house now obadiah feared the lord greatly for so it was while jezebel massacred the prophets of the lord that obadiah had taken 100 prophets and hidden them fifty to a cave and had fed them with bread and water and ahab had said to

obadiah go into the land to all the springs of water and to all the brooks perhaps we may find grass to keep the horses and mules alive so that we will not have to kill any livestock so they divided the land between them to explore it ahab went one way by himself and obadiah went another way by himself now as obadiah was on his way suddenly elijah met him and he recognized him and fell on his face and said is that you my lord elijah and he answered him it is i go tell your master

elijah is here so he said how have i sinned that you are delivering your servant into the hand of ahab to kill me as the lord your god lives there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to hunt for you and when they said he is not here he took an oath from the kingdom or nation that they could not find you and now you say go tell your master elijah is here and it shall come to pass as soon as i am gone from you that the spirit of the

lord will carry you to a place i do not know so when i go and tell ahab and he cannot find you he will kill me but i your servant have feared the lord from my youth was it not reported to my lord what i did when jezebel killed the prophets of the lord how i hid one hundred men of the lord's prophets fifty to a cave and fed them with bread and water and now you say go tell your master elijah is here he will kill me then elijah said as the lord of hosts

lives before whom i stand i will surely present myself to him today so obadiah went to meet ahab and told him and ahab went to meet elijah elijah then went public he set up a meeting with king ahab three years had passed since elijah declared that there would be no rain first kings chapter 18 verse 17 new king james version then it happened when ahab saw elijah but ahab said to him is that you o troubler of israel the king was still enraged and referred to elijah as the troubler of israel 1st kings chapter 18

verse 18 new king james version and he answered i have not troubled israel but you and your father's house have and that you have forsaken the commandments of the lord and have followed the baals but elijah was unfazed telling the king i'm not the troublemaker you are first kings chapter 18 verses 19 through 40 new king james version now therefore send and gather all israel to me on mount carmel the 450 prophets of baal and the 400 prophets of ashura who eat at jezebel's table so ahab sent for all the children of israel and gathered

the prophets together on mount carmel and elijah came to all the people and said how long will you falter between two opinions if the lord is god follow him but if baal follow him but the people answered him not a word then elijah said to the people i alone am left a prophet of the lord but baal's prophets are 450 men therefore let them give us two bulls and let them choose one bill for themselves cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood but put no fire under it and i will prepare the

other bowl and lay it on the wood but put no fire under it then you call on the name of your gods and i will call on the name of the lord and the god who answers by fire he is god so all the people answered and said it is well spoken now elijah said to the prophets of baal choose one bull for yourselves and prepare it first for you are many and call on the name of your god but put no fire under it so they took the bull which was given them and they

prepared it and called on the name of baal from morning even till noon saying oh bael hear us but there was no voice no one answered then they leaped about the altar which they had made and so it was at noon that elijah mocked them and said cry aloud for he is a god either he is meditating or he is busy or he is on a journey or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened so they cried aloud and cut themselves as was their custom with knives and lances until the blood gushed out on

them and when midday was passed they prophesized until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice but there was no voice no one answered no one paid attention then elijah said to all the people come near to me so all the people came near to him and he repaired the altar of the lord that was broken down and elijah took 12 stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of jacob to whom the word of the lord had come saying israel shall be your name then with the stones he built an

altar in the name of the lord and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two saiyas of seeds and he put the wood in order cut the bowl in pieces and laid it on the wood and said fill four water pots with water and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood then he said do it a second time and they did it a second time and he said do it a third time and they did it a third time so the water ran all around the altar and he

also filled the trench with water and it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice that elijah the prophet came near and said lord god of abraham isaac and israel let it be known this day that you are god in israel and i am your servant and that i have done all these things at your word hear me o lord hear me that this people may know that you are the lord god and that you have turned their hearts back to you again then the fire of the lord fell and

consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the stones and the dust and it licked up the water that was in the trench now when all the people saw it they fell on their faces and they said the lord he is god the lord he is god and elijah said to them seize the prophets of baal do not let one of them escape so they seized them and elijah brought them down to the brook kishan and executed them there the stage was set for a showdown on mount carmel between 850 bail prophets and one god

prophet how long will you waver between two opinions elijah challenged the audience if the lord is god follow him if baal is god follow him here was elijah's dare let's have a competition let the god who is god respond with fire from heaven that was a reasonable test meow the storm gods should be able to send down some lightning elijah gave them every advantage before mocking their feudal efforts baal's prophets spent hours pleading shouting and cutting themselves but he didn't respond then elijah prepared the sacrifice before asking god to show the people his glory fire

fell and consumed the sacrifice the water and the altar as soon as he said his prayer people fell to their knees yelling the lord he is god the lord he is god they couldn't help but notice that god was alive and well first kings chapter 18 verses 42 through 46. new king james version so ahab went up to eat and drink and elijah went to the top of carmel then he bowed down on the ground and put his face between his knees and said to his servant go up now look toward the sea so he

went up and looked and said there is nothing and seven times he said go again then it came to pass the seventh time that he said there was a cloud as small as a man's hand rising out of the sea so he said go up say to ahab prepare your chariot and go down before the rain stops you now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind and there was a heavy rain so ahab rode away and went to jezreel then the hand of the lord came upon elijah and

he girded up his loins and ran ahead of ahab to the entrance of jezreel but the lord wasn't done yet he reactivated the rain spigot elijah prayed seven times in a row before the rain began to fall elijah drenched dashed down the mountain he demonstrated that god is alive and well god is alive and well you can demonstrate it both privately and publicly in your life confrontations with the pharisees over the source of jesus's miraculous power finally in matthew chapter 12 verse 27 jesus refers to satan as beelzebub a reference to the philistine god bael

zebub matthew chapter 12 verse 27 and if i drive out demons by bill's able by whom do your people drive them out so then they will be your judges matthew chapter 12 verses 22 through 27 then some people brought a man to jesus this man was blind and could not talk because he had a demon jesus healed the man and the man could talk and see all the people were amazed they said perhaps this man is the son of david the pharisees heard the people saying this the pharisees said jesus uses the power of beelzebub

to force demons out of people beelzebub is the ruler of demons jesus knew what the pharisees were thinking so he said to them every kingdom that is fighting against itself will be destroyed and every city that is divided will fall and every family that is divided cannot succeed so if satan forces out his own demons then satan is divided and his kingdom will not continue you say that i use the power of satan when i force out demons if that is true then what power do your people use when they force out demons so your

own people prove that you are wrong jesus defends his ministry with two short parables before launching into two vehement attacks of the pharisees matthew chapter 12 verses 30-37 he who is not with me is against me and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad therefore i say to you every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men but the blasphemy against the spirit will not be forgiven men anyone who speaks a word against the son of man it will be forgiven him but whoever speaks against the holy spirit it will not be forgiven him

either in his age or in the age to come either make the tree good and its fruit good or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad for a tree is known by its fruit brood of vipers how can you being evil speak good things for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks a good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things but i say to you that for every idol word men may speak

they will give account of it in the day of judgment 37 for by your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned first the power behind an exorcism could come from either god or satan since the pharisees have already concluded that jesus is not god's agent they cite the source of his power as satan they believe that because a demon has sprung from the man it must be proof that the demon is obeying satan as the demon's king however jesus demonstrates how absurd their thinking is if satan wants to keep

his grip on the world he won't work against himself by exercising a demon in control of someone that would be in direct opposition to his own attempt to preserve international dominance are concrete evidence that the kingdom of god has arrived since satan's reign is being defeated by jesus's the spirit of god not buildable is the power behind jesus's deliverance jesus continues his response to the pharisees charge that he cast out demons by beelzebull with a second short parable or again how can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first

ties up the strong man then he can rob his house entering a well-guarded house the residents of satan and his demonic henchmen and stealing the owner's property is how jesus describes his role in inaugurating the kingdom before jesus can free individuals who have been imprisoned through exorcism he must first bind satan because of the coming of the kingdom of god jesus proclaims that satan's strength is now restricted the balaam of the old testament were nothing more than demons masquerading as gods and all idolatry is ultimately devil worship first corinthians chapter 10 verse 20. no i

implied that what pagan sacrifice they offer to demons and not to god i do not want you to be participants with demons