In this study I have explored a number of resources to glean information on the god Baal in order to understand why this god has been such a rival of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. How can it be that this god, who is no god at all, could be such a rival to Jehovah that God's people could not be kept from worshiping him, rather than the God who brought them out of Egypt, and did all kinds of amazing miracles on their behalf? The battles to stop the people from this false idolatry seem endless as we read the Old Testament. They may succeed for awhile, but soon the people are back following the worship of this enemy to Jehovah. What is the secret to the power of this god made up by the minds of pagans? How could the worship of this deity become so popular that the only way God could eliminate it was to send his people in great judgment out of the Promised Land that he had led them into? The goal of this study is to make sense of this mystery.
In this study I have explored a number of resources to glean information on the god Baal in order to understand why this god has been such a rival of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. How can it be that this god, who is no god at all, could be such a rival to Jehovah that God's people could not be kept from worshiping him, rather than the God who brought them out of Egypt, and did all kinds of amazing miracles on their behalf? The battles to stop the people from this false idolatry seem endless as we read the Old Testament. They may succeed for awhile, but soon the people are back following the worship of this enemy to Jehovah. What is the secret to the power of this god made up by the minds of pagans? How could the worship of this deity become so popular that the only way God could eliminate it was to send his people in great judgment out of the Promised Land that he had led them into? The goal of this study is to make sense of this mystery.