MDPI - Publisher of Open Access Journals

12 pages, 342 KiB

Open AccessArticle

by Richard S. Hess

Religions 2025, 16(4), 397; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16040397 - 21 Mar 2025

Viewed by 1483

This paper examines the appearance of published West Semitic spellings of the name of the deity commonly referred to as Asherah. In light of new evidence from the Bronze Age Amorite sources, as well as the complete publication of the inscriptions at Kuntillet [...] Read more.

This paper examines the appearance of published West Semitic spellings of the name of the deity commonly referred to as Asherah. In light of new evidence from the Bronze Age Amorite sources, as well as the complete publication of the inscriptions at Kuntillet ʿAjrud, a review of the analysis and discussion concerning the identification of the deity is undertaken. The purpose will be to ascertain the significance of the witness of epigraphic Hebrew texts at Kuntillet ʿAjrud and Khirbet el-Qom in light of earlier Bronze Age evidence, the biblical attestations, the conceptualization of deity, and the understanding of Iron Age epigraphic Hebrew spellings of the feminine singular suffix, as well as pronominal suffixes. The more complete availability of textual witnesses provides a foundation on which to argue the degree of continuity across more than a thousand years of the appearance of the deity in the West Semitic world. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Bible and Ancient Mesopotamia)

16 pages, 414 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of the Assyrian Conquests on Judahite Society: The Social, Psychological, and Physical Contexts for Religious Development

by Avraham Faust

Religions 2025, 16(2), 120; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16020120 - 23 Jan 2025

Viewed by 1681

Abstract

Various scholars have noted Mesopotamian impact on various aspects of Israelite religious beliefs and practices and extrapolated from these on the broader nature of the relations between the regions. Indeed, no society is an island, and influences are inevitable, especially when a small, [...] Read more.

Various scholars have noted Mesopotamian impact on various aspects of Israelite religious beliefs and practices and extrapolated from these on the broader nature of the relations between the regions. Indeed, no society is an island, and influences are inevitable, especially when a small, peripheral society is in contact with a powerful center. Still, insufficient attention has been paid to the social and cultural contexts of the interaction, and studies have often extrapolated from examples that are exceptional. A systematic examination of the cultural and social reactions in Judah to the intensifying interaction with Assyria reveals that avoidance, subversion, and resistance were far more prevalent than emulation. The large-scale death and deportations that accompanied the destruction of sites and regions by the Assyrian armies in the last third of the 8th century (mostly outside Judah) resulted in an understanding that nothing was secure anymore, that complete kinship groups could be annihilated overnight, and that long-held traditions could simply vanish. This gave rise to a mentality of “life in the shadow of the bomb”, which explains many subsequent developments in Judah, providing the context for various religious changes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Bible and Ancient Mesopotamia)

14 pages, 540 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ancient Travellers, Intercultural Contact, and the Fear of Gods

by Elisa Uusimäki

Religions 2024, 15(4), 452; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15040452 - 3 Apr 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1724

Abstract

Although the fear of Yhwh has been presented as an intrinsic feature of the ancient Israelite religion, the fear of God(s) is not limited to the people of Israel in the Hebrew Bible, and similar ideas of fearing deities occur in various texts [...] Read more.

Although the fear of Yhwh has been presented as an intrinsic feature of the ancient Israelite religion, the fear of God(s) is not limited to the people of Israel in the Hebrew Bible, and similar ideas of fearing deities occur in various texts produced by neighbouring cultures in the ancient eastern Mediterranean. This article investigates the prosocial role of this virtue in situations of human mobility and intercultural contact in the light of the Hebrew Bible and the Odyssey. First, I analyse those Hebrew Bible texts in which the fear of God(s) characterizes or is presented as being intelligible to non-Israelite people in situations involving movement and cultural encounter (Gen 20:11; 42:18; Exod 1:17, 21; Deut 25:18; Jon 1:9). Second, I explore the fear motif in other texts from the ancient eastern Mediterranean region and argue that biblical scholars have overlooked illuminating intertexts found in ancient Greek literature. I especially highlight the interpretative importance of the Odyssey, which frequently stresses the prosocial role of the virtue of fearing deities in the context of travel and contact with outsiders. In so doing, the Odyssey helps us see how the Hebrew Bible texts portraying the fear of God(s) as a universalistic virtue are rooted in and belong to a broader ancient Mediterranean milieu. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Travel and Religion in the Ancient Mediterranean)

24 pages, 6978 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Jewish–Christian Interaction in Ethiopia as Reflected in Sacred Geography: Expressing Affinity with Jerusalem and the Holy Land and Comemorating the Betä Ǝsraʾel–Solomonic Wars

by Bar Kribus

Religions 2022, 13(12), 1154; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel13121154 - 28 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3263

Abstract

Affinity with the Holy Land, and especially with Jerusalem, is a common theme in the sacred geography of Abrahamic religions, expressed in prayer houses and holy sites. This theme was especially prominent in Solomonic Ethiopia, both among Ethiopian Orthodox Christians and among the [...] Read more.

Affinity with the Holy Land, and especially with Jerusalem, is a common theme in the sacred geography of Abrahamic religions, expressed in prayer houses and holy sites. This theme was especially prominent in Solomonic Ethiopia, both among Ethiopian Orthodox Christians and among the Betä Ǝsraʾel (Ethiopian Jews). This article will examine expressions of affinity with Jerusalem and the Holy Land in Betä Ǝsraʾel holy sites and religious architecture, and shed light on the interreligious discourse related to such expressions, as well as other forms of interreligious discourse expressed by these two communities in sacred geography. This will demonstrate that in Solomonic Ethiopia, affinity with the Holy Land was a core element in expressing an Israelite identity. Both the Betä Ǝsraʾel and the Ethiopian Orthodox Christians saw themselves as the biological and spiritual heirs of the biblical Israelites, and this concept played a key role in shaping their sacred geography to allude to biblical sites and events. This will also demonstrate that, building upon a vocabulary with common features, the sacred geography and religious architecture of each community was a means to express its unique identity. As such, it provides insight regarding differences in religious concepts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research of Jewish Communities in Africa and in Their Diaspora)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 3409 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Tyrian King in MT and LXX Ezekiel 28:12b–15

by Lydia Lee

Religions 2021, 12(2), 91; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12020091 - 29 Jan 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4613

Abstract

The biblical prophecy in Ezekiel 28:11–19 records a dirge against the king from Tyre. While the Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT) identifies the monarch as a cherub, the Greek Septuagint (LXX) distinguishes the royal from the cherub. Scholarly debates arise as to which edition [...] Read more.

The biblical prophecy in Ezekiel 28:11–19 records a dirge against the king from Tyre. While the Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT) identifies the monarch as a cherub, the Greek Septuagint (LXX) distinguishes the royal from the cherub. Scholarly debates arise as to which edition represents the more original version of the prophecy. This article aims to contribute to the debates by adopting a text-critical approach to the two variant literary editions of the dirge, comparing and analyzing their differences, while incorporating insights gleaned from the extra-biblical literature originating from the ancient Near East, Second Temple Period, and Late Antiquity. The study reaches the conclusion that the current MT, with its presentation of a fluid boundary between the mortal and divine, likely builds on a more ancient interpretation of the Tyrian king. On the other hand, while the Hebrew Vorlage of LXX Ezekiel 28:12b–15 resembles the Hebrew text of the MT, the Greek translator modifies the text via literary allusions and syntactical rearrangement, so that the final result represents a later reception that suppresses any hints at the divinity of the Tyrian ruler. The result will contribute to our understanding of the historical development of the ancient Israelite religion. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hebrew Prophets and Prophetic Literature: Reception History and Contemporary Significance)

6 pages, 174 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Archaeology of Ancient Israelite Religion(s): An Introduction

by Avraham Faust

Religions 2020, 11(6), 291; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11060291 - 15 Jun 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4651

Abstract

Israelite religion has always fascinated scholars [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeology and Ancient Israelite Religion)

21 pages, 327 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem and Ben Ammi’s Theology of Marginalisation and Reorientation

by Michael T Miller

Religions 2020, 11(2), 87; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel11020087 - 13 Feb 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 38962

Abstract

This paper will look at the way the African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem have utilised the theological narrative of marginalisation in their quest for identity and self-determination. The African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem are an expatriate black American group who have lived in [...] Read more.

This paper will look at the way the African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem have utilised the theological narrative of marginalisation in their quest for identity and self-determination. The African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem are an expatriate black American group who have lived in Israel since 1969, when their spiritual leader, Detroit-born Ben Ammi, received a vision commanding him to take his people back to the Promised Land. Drawing on a long tradition in the African American community that self-identified as the biblical Israelites, the African Hebrew Israelites are marginalised in their status as Americans, as Jews, and as Israelis. We will examine the writings of Ben Ammi in order to demonstrate that this biblically based motif of marginalisation was a key part of his theology, and one which enabled his movement to grow and sustain itself; yet, in comparison with other contemporaneous theological movements, Ben Ammi utilised a specific variant of this motif. Rejecting the more common emphasis on liberation, Ammi argued for an eschatological reorientation around the marginalised. This article will conclude that Ben Ammi’s theology is key to understanding how the community has oriented itself and how it has proved successful in lasting 50 years against both internal disputes and external attacks. Full article

11 pages, 250 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Archaeology and Folk or Family Religion in Ancient Israel

by William G. Dever

Religions 2019, 10(12), 667; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10120667 - 12 Dec 2019

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 6622

Abstract

This article will summarize and interpret archaeological data that may be used to illuminate the religion of ancient Israel, ca. 1200–600 BCE, while using a phenomenal approach. The resultant portrait will be compared with one drawn from the texts of the Hebrew Bible, [...] Read more.

This article will summarize and interpret archaeological data that may be used to illuminate the religion of ancient Israel, ca. 1200–600 BCE, while using a phenomenal approach. The resultant portrait will be compared with one drawn from the texts of the Hebrew Bible, which suggests both convergences and significant differences. The conclusion will emphasize that archaeology does best in providing a real-life context for both artifact and texts. However, it is mostly limited to religious practice, rather than belief. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeology and Ancient Israelite Religion)

19 pages, 374 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Zooarchaeology of Israelite Religion: Methods and Practice

by Jonathan S. Greer

Religions 2019, 10(4), 254; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10040254 - 7 Apr 2019

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4517

Abstract

This essay aims to provide a methodological framework for the application of zooarchaeology to the study of Israelite religion for the purpose of providing an overview of this growing subfield for the non-specialist and for inviting further conversation among practitioners. Definitions of “zooarchaeology” [...] Read more.

This essay aims to provide a methodological framework for the application of zooarchaeology to the study of Israelite religion for the purpose of providing an overview of this growing subfield for the non-specialist and for inviting further conversation among practitioners. Definitions of “zooarchaeology” and “Israelite religion” are explored and the aim of reconstructing practices of Yahweh-centric religion is described. A methodology is suggested through a series of questions that may be applied to explorations of faunal remains, including those related to context, excavation technique and analysis, and engagement with the Hebrew Bible. The essay concludes with an illustration from Tel Dan and affirmation of integrated methodologies that critically engage archaeological and textual data to form new syntheses. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeology and Ancient Israelite Religion)

18 pages, 1288 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Religion at Kuntillet ʿAjrud

by Jeremy Smoak and William Schniedewind

Religions 2019, 10(3), 211; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10030211 - 19 Mar 2019

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 8139

Abstract

The discovery of early Hebrew inscriptions at the site of Kuntillet ʿAjrud has generated considerable discussion among scholars over the past few decades. The fact that the inscriptions contain explicitly religious themes led some to conclude that the site had a cultic function. [...] Read more.

The discovery of early Hebrew inscriptions at the site of Kuntillet ʿAjrud has generated considerable discussion among scholars over the past few decades. The fact that the inscriptions contain explicitly religious themes led some to conclude that the site had a cultic function. In the present article, we challenge this assumption and argue that the inscriptions with religious themes are embedded in daily life as religion converges with scribal curriculum in ancient Israel. The inscriptions provide insights into conceptions of the Israelite pantheon, divine theophany, and theomachy in early Israelian religious ideology. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeology and Ancient Israelite Religion)

11 pages, 3717 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Women in Israelite Religion: The State of Research Is All New Research

by Beth Alpert Nakhai

Religions 2019, 10(2), 122; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10020122 - 19 Feb 2019

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 13269

Abstract

Historically, those studying Israelite religion have ignored the existence of women in Iron Age Israel (1200–587 BCE). They have, therefore, accounted neither for the religious beliefs of half of ancient Israel’s population nor for the responsibilities that women assumed for maintaining religious rituals [...] Read more.

Historically, those studying Israelite religion have ignored the existence of women in Iron Age Israel (1200–587 BCE). They have, therefore, accounted neither for the religious beliefs of half of ancient Israel’s population nor for the responsibilities that women assumed for maintaining religious rituals and traditions. Such reconstructions of Israelite religion are seriously flawed. Only in the last four decades have scholars, primarily women, begun to explore women’s essential roles in Israel’s religious culture. This article utilizes evidence from the Hebrew Bible and from archaeological sites throughout Israel. It demonstrates that some women had roles within the Jerusalem Temple. Most women, however, resided in towns and villages throughout the Land. There, they undertook responsibility for clan-based and community-based religious rituals and rites, including pilgrimage, seasonal festivals, rites of military victory, and rites of mourning. They fulfilled, as well, essential roles within the sphere of domestic or household religion. At home, they provided medico-magical healing for all family members, as well as care for women and babies throughout pregnancy, childbirth, and beyond. They, and the men in their communities, worshipped Yahweh, Israel’s primary deity, and the goddess Asherah, as well; for most people, these two divinities were inextricably linked. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeology and Ancient Israelite Religion)

26 pages, 32995 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Israelite Temples: Where Was Israelite Cult Not Practiced, and Why

by Avraham Faust

Religions 2019, 10(2), 106; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10020106 - 12 Feb 2019

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 9808

Abstract

Most scholars in the late 20th and early 21st century believed that cultic activity in the kingdoms of Israel and Judah was practiced in various temples that were scattered throughout the kingdoms. Still, a detailed study of the archaeological evidence on Israelite cult [...] Read more.

Most scholars in the late 20th and early 21st century believed that cultic activity in the kingdoms of Israel and Judah was practiced in various temples that were scattered throughout the kingdoms. Still, a detailed study of the archaeological evidence on Israelite cult reveals that Israelite cultic buildings were extremely rare, both in absolute terms and when compared to other ancient Near Eastern societies, suggesting that cultic activity in temples was the exception rather than the norm and that typical Israelite cult was practiced in the household and in other, non-temple settings. Hence, the evidence suggests that rather than viewing temples, like the one in Arad, as exemplifying typical cultic activity, they should be viewed as exceptions that require a special explanation. The first part of the article develops and updates the suggestion, first raised about ten years ago, that Israelite temples were indeed extremely rare. Given the ancient Near Eastern context, however, such practices seems to be exceptional, and the second part of the article will therefore explain why was such a unique pattern not identified in the past, and will suggest a possible explanation as to how was such an outstanding practice developed and adopted. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeology and Ancient Israelite Religion)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Search Results (12)

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI

Saved Queries

Search Filter Reset All

Years

Feature Papers

Subjects

Journals

Article Types

Countries / Regions

Search Results (12)

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI