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| The Word Ministries, http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0011_0_09825.html, http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200273085, http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200270520, http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/asherah-and-the-asherim-god…, http://www.transoxiana.org/0108/roberts-enheduanna.html, http://www.transoxiana.org/0108/roberts-enheduana.html. The Bible also connects sacred poles with the high places (open-air cult sites?) However, his son Amon resumed the degrading worship of Baal and Asherah, with its accompanying ceremonial prostitution. WebThe branch He mentions is probably an Asherah, a tree or a wooden pole that stood for the fertility goddess. Ugaritic and other Canaanite materials further associate Asherah with lions (indicating power), serpents (representing immortality or healing), and sacred trees (signifying fertility). When Abraham first entered the cave, he saw a light, then dust scattered, revealing two graves. By the time of the New Testament, idolatry seems to have taken a different flavor. He cut down her obscene pole and burned it in the Kidron Valley (1 Kings 15:1213, NLT; see also 2 Chronicles 15:16). In the Kabbalah it is the attribute referred to as Binah, means understanding; God founded the earth with wisdom and established the heavens with understanding (Binah) (Proverbs 3:19); In a possible reference to the goddess; Say to Wisdom, You are my sister, and proclaim Understanding (Binah) a kinswoman (Proverbs 7:4). Hence the woman being proclaimed as the Hurrian goddess Hepa, Heba, Heva, or Eve, the mother of all living (hai) (Genesis 3:20), that is also Eywa, the mother creation goddess in the film Avatar. Many scholars believe that Asherahs tree functioned in the Garden of Eden parable. WebMeaning of asherah pole. The good kings took them out of Israelite worship, and the wicked kings either erected them or continued the worship of these idols unabated. The Canaanites often worshipped her via trees (Asherah poles) because of her association with the tree of life. According to The Bible, an image of Asherah stood in the Temple in Jerusalem for about two-thirds of its existence. However, we need to understand that they were committing their idolatry in private. Before Israel entered and took possession of the promised land, God warned them not to worship Canaans gods (Deuteronomy 6:14-15). By and large, the biblical writers were unhappy that Asherah shared the same platform with their male deity, Yahweh, and repeatedly tried to dissuade their pairing. From torch to toe the Statue of Liberty resembles a pole. In ancient times these altars were typically built under green trees. Asherah was known as the Mother or Creator of all the gods. From the Israel Museum via Wikimedia Commons. The Asherah pole was often mentioned in the Old Testament as one of the ways the Israelites sinned against the Lord and worshiped other gods. While Ashtoreth appears to have figured as the wife of Baal, Asherah may also have been so viewed. 599-610). In Canaanite religion her primary role was that of mother goddess. The tale of our creation we know from the Bible is only half the storyone which has been heavily edited. Or perhaps the more fundamental question iswhat in the world is an Asherah pole? Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily? geographic south pole. Dig into the illuminating world of the Bible with a BAS All-Access membership. Under A famous Asherah pole stood in Samaria in the days of King Jehoahaz (2 Kings 13:6). By what? Unfortunately, our sources do not provide enough information to identify definitively which Israelites were particularly attracted to the worship of Asherah or the reasons for this attraction. What does it mean that God is a jealous God? See what over 150,000 subscribers are already receiving each day. It's kind of like Seatlle, but windier and with more trees. Like a pole or tree, they can be said to be planted, stood up, or erected. What we need is a living encounter with God. (Keller, Counterfeit Gods, 155). Required fields are marked *. According to the biblical record, these sacred poles or stylized trees associated with Asherah were erected by the Israelites throughout most of their history, especially during the premonarchic (tribal) period (Judg 6:2526, 28, 30)) and during the period of the divided monarchy, both in the northern kingdom of Israel (1Kgs 14:15; 16:33; 2 Kgs 13:6; 17:10, 16; 23:15; and parallel references in 2 Chronicles) and in Judah, in the south (1 Kgs 14:23, 15:13; 2 Kgs 18:4; 21:3, 7; 23:6, 14; and parallel references in 2 Chronicles). Does it make any difference? Literature has been divided into two camps as a result of the relation between literary allusions to an asherah and archaeological discoveries of Judaean pillar-figurines. One possibility is that in royal circles, especially in the southern capital city of Jerusalem, the cult of Asherah was particularly attractive to the kings mother. Plaque depicting Asherah. Our rescue isnt found in sticks. pole rim) is thought to refer to (1) a sacred pole representing Asherah, a Canaanite goddess of fertility (Jg 6:25,26), and (2) the goddess Asherah herself. What is an Asherah pole Totem Poles, Christmas Trees and Obelisks Part In a break with previous rulers, Sargon didnt appropriate the highest religious office but instead appointed his daughter as high priestess of the moon god. Based on the study of artwork and drawings from the ancient Near East, biblical scholars suggest that some images of plain and carved poles, staffs, a cross, a double ax, a tree, a tree stump, a headdress for a priest, and several wooden images could be illustrations representing the goddess Asherah. The Hebrews were not to intermarry with pagan nations and were to avoid anything that might be seen as pagan worship (Leviticus 20:23; 2 Kings 17:15; Ezekiel 11:12). The ancient city of Eleusis in Greece was the site of one of the most mysterious and revered religious rites of ancient Greece, the Eleusinian Mysteries. In the Scriptures, the Hebrew word for Asherah is used both for the goddess herself and for the poles erected in her honor. Meanwhile Adam arose in his image, saw Abraham, and smiled, so Abraham knew he was destined to be buried there (The Zohar by Daniel Matt, vol.2, p.221). The Asherah pole is a sacred tree or pole found near Canaanite religious sites in honor of Asherah, a Canaanite mother goddess who is Els consort. Therefore, Asherah worship often took place in forested areas, under a tree, or in an area marked by a carved "Asherah pole," such as the one made by the evil King Manasseh ( 2 Kings 21:7 ). Answer. The Berean: Daily Verse and Comment Sign up for the Berean: Daily Verse and Comment, and have Biblical truth delivered to your inbox. Asherah figures prominently as the wife of Elthe supreme godin a treasure trove of cuneiform texts found in the second millennium port city of Ugarit (in todays Northern Syria). This is because southern royal ideology typically described the kings metaphorical father as YHWH. Wiggins, Steve A. The bible itself denounced the Israelites several times for their polytheistic tendencies they worshipped the idols left by both Gideon and Moses (Moses brazen serpent), An article on the slow change among the Israelites going from saying, "Our god is the best god" to "Our god is the only god" would probably go well with this one, There is a footnote on the explanation of this thesis. Are the Misty Peaks of the Azores Remnants of the Legendary Atlantis? Correction: According to Ephraim Stern in Pagan Yahwehism; The Folk Religion of Ancient Israel in the May/June 2001 issue of BAR (p.28), it was the Jews in Judea (former Judahites) and the Samaritans (former mixed population settled in Samaria by the Assyrians) who discontinued the use of the clay goddess figurines, while it was the Idumaens (former Edomites) who also dwelt in the province of Judah and Galileans (populated by mostly Phoenicians) that continued the worship of the goddess during the period of the post-Exilic Persian Empire. The Canaanite association of Asherah with sacred trees is also found in Israelite tradition. Asherah worship was deeply sensual, involving illicit sex and ritual prostitution. Probably orange. If you mean pieces of wood set up beside pagan altars on high hills, then that seems to have been pretty rooted out. The mention of these deities in the plural may indicate that each locality had its Baal and Asherah. This does not necessarily denote a church steeple wherein its purpose was to set the building apart from others as a place of worship and not an item to be worshiped. God chose Israel to be his own special treasure and ordered the destruction of pagan altars and the cutting down of Asherah poles: Deuteronomy 7:56This is what you must do. They are not the last word, only the Bible . The "asherahs" were usually upright wooden objects, often standing beside altars, and in at least eight instances they are described as carved. An Asherah pole is a sacred tree or pole that stood near Canaanite religious locations to honor the Ugaritic mother goddess Asherah, consort of El. Grove ], the goddess Asherah) or his asherah (meaning YHWHs sacred pole that represents the goddess Asherah and that sits in his temple or beside his altar). The sacred poles apparently stood upright and were made of wood, or at least contained wood, the Israelites being commanded to cut them down and to burn them. Wife As much as the ruling elite tried to inhibit Asherah and Yahwehs marriage, their union appears solidified in an ancient blessing seen with some regularity at a number of excavation sites in the region. and the Cult of Yahweh in Israel. Unfortunately, we do not know what place these held within the worship of Asherah, nor do we have any lasting depiction of these idols. No where in the Bible does it say God had a wife.. Do not take what great people have written in books and say it is right. But have you ever wondered how god created male and female in his image? From the site of Kuntillet Ajrud, in the eastern Sinai, come three ninth- or eighth-century B.C.E. They set up an Asherah pole and worshiped Baal and all the forces of heaven. Because the breasts are exaggerated with the hands supporting them, they are thought to symbolize the nurturing aspect of the mother goddess. It could be that all of the middleeastern goddesses of love, were very similiar in nature, together with Ishtar and Inanna. That usage reflects a chain of associations. The goddess Asherah and Asherah poles are in the Bible from Exodus to Micah, which shows that this form of idolatry was a constant thorn in Israels side. inscription from Khirbet el-Qom, about twenty-five miles southwest of Jerusalem, contains similar language in 1 Kgs 15:13 and 2 Kgs 18:4, 21:7, and 23:6 (with parallels in 2 Chronicles) indicate that at least during certain points in the ninth, eighth, and seventh centuries B.C.E., Asherahs sacred pole was perceived as an appropriate icon to erect in Jerusalem, even in YHWHs temple. These appendages of idolatry, likely phallic symbols, were associated with grossly immoral sex orgies, as is indicated by the reference to male prostitutes being in the land as early as Rehoboams reign. They must be uprooted. WebSummary: An Asherah pole is a sacred tree or pole that stood near Canaanite religious locations to honor the Ugaritic mother goddess Asherah, consort of El. One of the primary reasons Israel fell to the Assyrians was because of Gods anger over their worship of Asherah and Baal (2 Kings 17:523). By the age of 10, most children in the United States have been taught all 50 states that make up the country. Its possible that the divine name Yahweh Elohim that appears in connection with the Garden of Eden in Genesis 2-3 may refer to Yahweh and His Asherah.. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/asherah-in-the-bible-6824125. Idols are alluring at times because we want something tangible. Asherah was also worshiped as the goddess of love and war and was sometimes linked with Anath, another Canaanite In Deuteronomy 16:21 they are forbidden to plant any tree as an Asherah beside the altar of the LORD your God. This would have been syncretizing Israelite worship with the worship of this pagan goddess. We seek to retell the story of our beginnings. You have proven without doubt the disobedience of the chosen people of , to run after the gods of other nations. According to Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible manifestations of Asherah worship have been identified in Egyptian, Hittite, Philistine, and Arabic texts. So, the Asherah cult was prominent. By bringing together top experts and authors, this archaeology website explores lost civilizations, examines sacred writings, tours ancient places, investigates ancient discoveries and questions mysterious happenings. WebAsherah the Name of a Syrian Goddess. It makes a great difference to God! Two Millennia b.c.e. Was this something present within their own communities that they would have to abandon once they reached the land, or would this be a new temptation for them upon coming into contact with these nations? He (Abraham) saw a light radiating from the cave, so there he prayed, and there the blessed Holy One spoke with him. That's essentially all I'm aware of The Holy Spirit the wife of God. of Biblical Literature 105 (1986): 385408. We will consider what/who is Asherah and the significant role it plays within the biblical narrative. The Moora Mystery: What Happened When a Girl Stepped into the Moor 2,500 Years Ago? Scant referrals in the Bible alert to the presence of a vilified female deity destined to be banished into oblivion. Right on Elizabeth F In a world beset by hardship and drought, likely a concern for fecundity was what attracted the rural Israelites and Judeans to the goddess Asherah, whom they associated with abundance. It has been suggested that the poles represented the female principle, whereas the pillars represented the male principle. Asherah, along with Astarte and Anath, was one of the three great goddesses of the Canaanite pantheon. I am reading aerato lamo assuming: (a) an original r got corrupted to d (see Cross-Freedman ibid. A modest proposal is that they were originally living trees but eventually became wooden poles. What was an Asherah pole I can go to the Temple and look like I'm really somebody in the community. And why is she often found paired with Yahweh, the Hebrew god? Why is God jealous. Meyers, Carol, General Editor. Trees, often connected to fertility, had been considered a sacred symbol for the nurturing figure of Asherah. You have it right! Atlanta: Those raised in the Judeo-Christian tradition may be surprised to learn that the god we were told was singularly sacred once had a wife. WebIf you look at the Statue of Liberty you will notice that near her feet the robe resembles a tree trunk. Let us be your passport to Laos and much more. ( Public Domain ), Whereas Asherahs influence was restrained in the official religion, her presence loomed large in the rural communities, most often in the form of figurines which are prolific in the region. Another word for terebinth (alla) and two words for oak (elon and allon) are also closely related. The relation of the literary references to an asherah and archaeological finds of Judaean pillar-figurines has engendered a literature of debate. Its our plight that moved the heavensit is the LORD Himself who would come and rescue us. In Hebrew, she is known as Asherah. Such religious symbols ("groves") are frequently alluded to in Scripture ( Exodus 34:13 ; Judges 6:25 ; 2 Kings 23:6 ; 1 Kings 16:33 , etc. The Queen Mother and the Cult in Ancient Israel. Journal In fact, the very notion of polytheism is inherent in the quest for Asherah. Copyright 2011-2023 Got Questions Ministries - All Rights Reserved. I would guess that Eve was acquiring the attributes of the Queen of Heaven in a microcosmic way when she said, I have gotten a man with the help of Yahweh (Genesis 4:1) and there is no longer mention of Elohim since the woman is a partner with Yahweh. Mary Fairchild is a full-time Christian minister, writer, and editor of two Christian anthologies, including "Stories of Calvary.". What they sowed earned captivity. And the prophets began to exalt the fullness of the Lord and they would do so at the idols expense. The Talmudic explanation of Binah is understanding one thing from something dissimilar. It is related to the word Bein meaning between. Thus, Binah implies distance and separation. You so want to say God (Yaweh) had a wife. Do we still have Asherah poles today? The city of Tyre on the Mediterranean coast was home to the best cedars of Lebanon and seemed to have been an important center for the worship of Asherah. The ruling elite propagandized against goddess worship by integrating the story of the fall of mankind to the tree which was clearlyassociated with Asherah. He rebuilt the high places and set up altars for Baal and an Asherah pole. It was closely associated with the worship of Baal: The Israelites did evil in the LORDs sight. While sorting through some 280,000 artifacts excavated from land reserved for a highway construction project running from Cambridge to the village of Huntingdon in eastern England, archaeologists affiliated with the Museum of London Archaeology discovered a miniature comb that was incredibly ancient and also made from a most unusual material. In their minds, they thought it did not make any difference; it was not hurting anyone. Canaanite goddess Asherah, 13th century BCE. Was her worship confined to folk religion only, or was her influence felt in the book religion of the Hebrew Bible as well? Webwhat does an asherah pole look like. WebPut simply, an Asherah pole is a wooden idol (likely in the shape of a tree) used to worship the goddess Asherah. For you are a holy people, who belong to the LORD your God. Cut them down. Therefore he asked for it, since his desire focused constantly on that site (p.221). what does an asherah pole look like WebFor instance the carved Asherah, also a pagan monument, represented female properties because it was carved to resemble the pagan goddess Ashtaroth (Astarte). Predominantly, the pillar figurines were found in private homes, suggesting their domesticity. This fact suggests that Jehu perceived the sacred pole as appropriate in the worship of YHWH. WebAsherah was often associated with carved trees. WebIts symbol was the stem of a tree deprived of its boughs, and rudely shaped into an image, and planted in the ground. Help us elevate the voices of Jewish women. Asherah A Blazing Weapon: Unraveling the Mystery of Greek Fire, Theyre Alive! He thus divided the administration of government between this Czars militaristic empire-building sphere and the cultic-religious sphere with his daughter in her capacity as patroness of the arts. We want to believe that what we do can move the heavens. Asherah poles do not make an appearance. And nowhow much close can be Yahweh to Baal ? But is removal and uprooting all that is required? (2Ki 21:7) Manasseh was disciplined by being taken captive to Babylon and, upon his returning to Jerusalem, showed he had profited from that discipline and cleansed Jehovahs house of idolatrous appendages. Rusty and rough looking. When you read in the Scriptures about worship under every green tree there is likely at least some connection to the worship of Asherah. Perhaps Im opening a Pandoras Box, but this goddess never really was eradicated from Judaism because the sacred tree of Asherah was so universal in ancient times so that (almost) everyone would understand that the position of the Tree of Life in the middle of the garden (Genesis 2:9) referred to the all-pervading cultural influence where this iconic image appeared everywhere like the pithos from Kuntilet Ajrud depicting two ibexes flanking a stylized tree and on the cult stand from Tanaach on the third tier from the bottom that features two goats flanking a tree, with both examples having depictions of lions that are identified with Asherah. In Judges 6, Gideon was called to tear down the altar to Baal and to cut down the Asherah that is beside it. Again, we see Asherah almost as a sidekick to the prominent male deity. [10] I've have been recently studying Cast Out Bible Books like for example Enoch an in Enoch 1 The Book of Watchers (200 Evil-Angel), Enoch was given a grand tour of Heaven accompanied by some good Angels He made it all the way to the throne room of God and made known The Holy Trinity I AM Yahweh, The Holy One and The Elect One Who is Christ the Reedemer in fact Enoch bears witness in Heaven watching The Ancient of Days going by an The Son of Man Christ follows close behind with 10000 Angels accompanying them both. What Is an Asherah Pole Asherah and Idol Worship At this point it is important to make a distinction between the book religion of the ruling classes in the metropolis and folk or popular religion as it was practiced in rural communities for which most Israelites were a part. A little leaven would work through the whole lump and before long they were fully engaged in syncretic worship; having idols, like Asherah, in the very temple of YHWH. It was closely associated with the worship of Baal: The Israelites did evil in the LORDs sight. Burial inscription from Khirbet el-Quom, 8th cent. They must be replaced. Your email address will not be published. Their father was El, and it is from this deity that the name Elohim is derived, meaning God or gods (70 gods or offspring of El). Only seven instances of Asherah are references to the goddess herself. Day, John. In the Authorized COPYRIGHT 2023 BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY SOCIETY 5614 Connecticut Ave NW #343, Washington DC 20015-2604. The Ugarit excavation of 1928 put Asherah, the goddess, on the map again, after having lost her place for thousands of years. What does asherah pole mean? Every Green Tree: Popular Religion in Sixth-Century Judah. By God himself, of course. Evidence suggests that Asherah was observed in ancient Israel and Judah as early as the 12th century BC, to a few decades before the fall of the southern kingdom of Judah (587-588 BC), a time known as the pre-exilic period. For those ancient Israelites who saw Asherah as YHWHs consort, this should suggest a correspondence between the queen mother, the wife of the kings biological father on earth, and Asherah, the wife of YHWH, who was the kings metaphorical father in the heavens. The relation of the literary references to an asherah and archaeological finds of Judaean pillar-figurines has engendered a literature of debate. A small votive statue of the Mother Goddess of Asherah. She has an M.A. From Israels inception, God commanded His people not to worship idols or any other false gods (Exodus 20:3; Deuteronomy 5:7). Baal, the chief of the Canaanite pantheon, was the god of storm and bringer of rain. He was recognized as the sustainer of the fertility of crops, animals, and people. AtAncient Origins, we believe that one of the most important fields of knowledge we can pursue as human beings is our beginnings. Archaeological discoveries from the late 1970s and early 1980s have further indicated that, at least in the opinion of some ancient Israelites, YHWH and Asherah were appropriately worshipped as a pair. Then, two things happened: either Chaos or Gaia created the universe as we know it, or Ouranos and Tethys gave birth to the first beings. Ackerman, Susan. [8] This role gave her a similarly high rank in the Ugaritic pantheon. So it seems they were not merely wooden poles, but probably quite large carved images. Most believe she was the wife of the supreme god El and the mother of Baal. The poles were either carved to look like trees or to resemble the goddess (this could also be reflected in the numerous pillar figurines found throughout Israel ). what does an asherah pole look like And Ahab made an Asherah. When I read that verse my first instinct is to say, I sure hope he had a tissue. Is an Asherah a good thing, or a bad thing? (NLT). Another of Asherahs sacred poles stood in that kingdoms capital city, Samaria. Did the Ancient Israelites Think Children Were People. Both of these phrases are stereotypically used by the biblical writers to describe sites of idolatrous worship, implying, as does Judges 6, that the worship of Asherah was an apostate behavior in Israel and improper for followers of YHWH.