Post by Cindy on Apr 24, 2017 9:54:12 GMT -5
I discovered a fascinating piece of history that I wanted to share with you. Psalm 68:15 mentions the mountains of Bashan. I remembered that name because of another verse that mentions it that seems to relate to our time very well. “Hear this word, you cows of Bashan on Mount Samaria, you women who oppress the poor and crush the needy and say to your husbands, “Bring us some drinks!”” (Amos 4:1) In this verse, the upper-class women were called cows of Bashan. Amos accused them of being pampered, and demanding that their husbands continually supplied them with alcohol. They were ordering their husbands around, so we can see that the men were obviously not the head of their homes the way the Lord ordained it. That's why this verse stuck in my head reminding me of how things are today. The history behind Bashan that I discovered, makes this even more interesting too, and you'll find that it also relates to many other incidents in both the Old and New Testament.
Bashan and the Gates of Hell
The region known in the OT as Bashan was located east of the Jordan River (the “Transjordan”). Specifically, it refers to the upper Transjordan east and northeast of the Sea of Galilee, extending north to and including Mount Hermon. Through the collective efforts of the tribes of Gad, Asher, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, the Israelites conquered this region in the days of Moses and Joshua. The territory then became the tribal inheritance of the half-tribe of Manasseh. (The other half of Manasseh settled west of the Jordan, in Canaan.) See Num 32; Josh 19.
Before Israel conquered it, Bashan was an Amorite stronghold ruled by two kings, Sihon and Og, both of whom descended from the giant clans known as the Rephaim and Anakim (see Deuteronomy 2:10–11, Deuteronomy 2:20–21; Deuteronomy 3:11–13; Josh 12:4; Josh 13:12; compare Num 13:26–33; Amos 2:9–10). Its two capital cities were Ashtaroth and Edrei (see Num 21:33; Deut 1:4; Deut 3:10; Josh 9:10; Josh 12:4; Josh 13:12, 31). The name “Ashtaroth” is the plural form of “Ashtoreth,” a Canaanite goddess more commonly known as Astarte. Israelite idol worship frequently involved “the Baals and Ashtaroth,” which were sexual fertility cults.
Bashan and its two capital cities also had an ominous reputation in the wider Canaanite world. Mythological and ritual texts from Ugarit describe Ashtaroth and Edrei as the abode of the god mlk (Milku, or Molech), a long dead (and deified) king. Molech’s name appears in a series of snake charms associated with Ashtaroth; he was also connected to child sacrifice in the OT (1 Kgs 11:7; Lev 20:1–5; Lev 18:21). Furthermore, the plural form of the name mlk (mlkm) means “kings.” As result, the cities of Ashtaroth and Edrei (and, more broadly, all of Bashan) came to be associated with the broader Underworld population of deified ancestors and ancient warrior-kings, such as the Rephaim. Canaanite (Ugaritic) peoples, then, literally believed Bashan to be the gateway to the Underworld—the dwelling place of the dead. More broadly, Akkadian god lists from the Old Babylonian period onward associate a deity named Malik, and its plural, maliku (“beings”; the Igigi and Anunnaki gods), with the Underworld cult of dead ancestors.
The Israelites understandably viewed Ashtaroth and Edrei, and thus all of Bashan, as domains of other gods (see Deut 32:8–9). Like the people of Ugarit, however, Israelites in the Old Testament considered the Rephaim to be great warriors but identified them as giants. This connection first appears in Gen 6:4, in which the warrior-kings (gibborim) are called “Nephilim,” giants who were spawned by the sons of God (Gen 6:1–4). Elsewhere, the OT connects the Rephaim to the Anakim (Deut 2:11)—descendants of the Nephilim (Num 13:33; compare Deut 2:10–11, Deut 20–21; Deut 3:11–13). According to Jewish theology of the Second Temple period, the sons of God (“Watchers”) of Gen 6:1–4 descended to Mount Hermon in Bashan before carrying out the deeds described in Gen 6:1–4. Bashan and Hermon thus had sinister reputations.
Even after Israel subdued Bashan and its Amorite giant clans, the people in the region continued to associate it with the worship of fallen gods. Following the death of Solomon and the split of the kingdom (1 Kgs 12:25–31; 2 Kgs 10:29), the wicked Jeroboam set up a cult center for the northern kingdom at the city of Dan, which was very close to the foot of Mount Hermon. However, the Assyrians destroyed the city of Dan in 734 BC and took the northern kingdom of Israel into captivity in 722 BC. During the Hellenistic period, new inhabitants of the region reestablished a new city and cult center a few miles east of the ancient Dan cult center. The location, which had formerly been known as Baal-Gad and Baal-Hermon, was named Paneas (also called Banyas and Banias). The cult center was devoted to the god Pan, the half-man half-goat god of fright (“panic”). The site features a cave grotto and carved niches for the statues of deities. Beginning in the 3rd century BC, worshipers cast sacrifices into the cave as offerings to Pan.
By Jesus’ day, the name of Banias had been changed to Caesarea-Philippi—the location of Peter’s confession (Matt 16:13–20) and, shortly thereafter, the transfiguration. The latter likely occurred somewhere on Mount Hermon. (The Bible does not indicate that the transfiguration took place at Mount Tabor; that tradition did not appear until the fifth century AD.) So when Jesus tells Peter that it is “upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hell will not withstand it,” He and the disciples are literally standing at the place known in ancient times as the gates of Hades/the Underworld. Jesus is saying, in other words, that He will conquer the forces of darkness associated with the Underworld—and that the power of the Church will overcome them. In Paul’s words, Christ “disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them” (Col 2:15) and “ascended on high, leading a host of captives, and gave gifts to men” (Eph 4:8). In this latter passage, Paul quotes Psalm 68:18, which makes it especially powerful because the mountain God ascends and conquers is none other than Mount Bashan (Psalm 68:15).
Faithlife Study Bible
Interesting, isn't it? Makes me think of all kinds of questions that I want to ask the Lord as I study His Word with Him. It's interesting too that the Lord placed this in Psalm 68, which to me sounds an awful lot like a description of what will happen at the end of the tribulation when the Lord comes again in power, with us and all His angels, and when He begins His Millennial Kingdom.
Bashan and the Gates of Hell
The region known in the OT as Bashan was located east of the Jordan River (the “Transjordan”). Specifically, it refers to the upper Transjordan east and northeast of the Sea of Galilee, extending north to and including Mount Hermon. Through the collective efforts of the tribes of Gad, Asher, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, the Israelites conquered this region in the days of Moses and Joshua. The territory then became the tribal inheritance of the half-tribe of Manasseh. (The other half of Manasseh settled west of the Jordan, in Canaan.) See Num 32; Josh 19.
Before Israel conquered it, Bashan was an Amorite stronghold ruled by two kings, Sihon and Og, both of whom descended from the giant clans known as the Rephaim and Anakim (see Deuteronomy 2:10–11, Deuteronomy 2:20–21; Deuteronomy 3:11–13; Josh 12:4; Josh 13:12; compare Num 13:26–33; Amos 2:9–10). Its two capital cities were Ashtaroth and Edrei (see Num 21:33; Deut 1:4; Deut 3:10; Josh 9:10; Josh 12:4; Josh 13:12, 31). The name “Ashtaroth” is the plural form of “Ashtoreth,” a Canaanite goddess more commonly known as Astarte. Israelite idol worship frequently involved “the Baals and Ashtaroth,” which were sexual fertility cults.
Bashan and its two capital cities also had an ominous reputation in the wider Canaanite world. Mythological and ritual texts from Ugarit describe Ashtaroth and Edrei as the abode of the god mlk (Milku, or Molech), a long dead (and deified) king. Molech’s name appears in a series of snake charms associated with Ashtaroth; he was also connected to child sacrifice in the OT (1 Kgs 11:7; Lev 20:1–5; Lev 18:21). Furthermore, the plural form of the name mlk (mlkm) means “kings.” As result, the cities of Ashtaroth and Edrei (and, more broadly, all of Bashan) came to be associated with the broader Underworld population of deified ancestors and ancient warrior-kings, such as the Rephaim. Canaanite (Ugaritic) peoples, then, literally believed Bashan to be the gateway to the Underworld—the dwelling place of the dead. More broadly, Akkadian god lists from the Old Babylonian period onward associate a deity named Malik, and its plural, maliku (“beings”; the Igigi and Anunnaki gods), with the Underworld cult of dead ancestors.
The Israelites understandably viewed Ashtaroth and Edrei, and thus all of Bashan, as domains of other gods (see Deut 32:8–9). Like the people of Ugarit, however, Israelites in the Old Testament considered the Rephaim to be great warriors but identified them as giants. This connection first appears in Gen 6:4, in which the warrior-kings (gibborim) are called “Nephilim,” giants who were spawned by the sons of God (Gen 6:1–4). Elsewhere, the OT connects the Rephaim to the Anakim (Deut 2:11)—descendants of the Nephilim (Num 13:33; compare Deut 2:10–11, Deut 20–21; Deut 3:11–13). According to Jewish theology of the Second Temple period, the sons of God (“Watchers”) of Gen 6:1–4 descended to Mount Hermon in Bashan before carrying out the deeds described in Gen 6:1–4. Bashan and Hermon thus had sinister reputations.
Even after Israel subdued Bashan and its Amorite giant clans, the people in the region continued to associate it with the worship of fallen gods. Following the death of Solomon and the split of the kingdom (1 Kgs 12:25–31; 2 Kgs 10:29), the wicked Jeroboam set up a cult center for the northern kingdom at the city of Dan, which was very close to the foot of Mount Hermon. However, the Assyrians destroyed the city of Dan in 734 BC and took the northern kingdom of Israel into captivity in 722 BC. During the Hellenistic period, new inhabitants of the region reestablished a new city and cult center a few miles east of the ancient Dan cult center. The location, which had formerly been known as Baal-Gad and Baal-Hermon, was named Paneas (also called Banyas and Banias). The cult center was devoted to the god Pan, the half-man half-goat god of fright (“panic”). The site features a cave grotto and carved niches for the statues of deities. Beginning in the 3rd century BC, worshipers cast sacrifices into the cave as offerings to Pan.
By Jesus’ day, the name of Banias had been changed to Caesarea-Philippi—the location of Peter’s confession (Matt 16:13–20) and, shortly thereafter, the transfiguration. The latter likely occurred somewhere on Mount Hermon. (The Bible does not indicate that the transfiguration took place at Mount Tabor; that tradition did not appear until the fifth century AD.) So when Jesus tells Peter that it is “upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hell will not withstand it,” He and the disciples are literally standing at the place known in ancient times as the gates of Hades/the Underworld. Jesus is saying, in other words, that He will conquer the forces of darkness associated with the Underworld—and that the power of the Church will overcome them. In Paul’s words, Christ “disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them” (Col 2:15) and “ascended on high, leading a host of captives, and gave gifts to men” (Eph 4:8). In this latter passage, Paul quotes Psalm 68:18, which makes it especially powerful because the mountain God ascends and conquers is none other than Mount Bashan (Psalm 68:15).
Faithlife Study Bible
Interesting, isn't it? Makes me think of all kinds of questions that I want to ask the Lord as I study His Word with Him. It's interesting too that the Lord placed this in Psalm 68, which to me sounds an awful lot like a description of what will happen at the end of the tribulation when the Lord comes again in power, with us and all His angels, and when He begins His Millennial Kingdom.
!!
