Israel and Humanity - Vanity of pagan gods from the biblical concept

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Vanity of pagan gods from the biblical concepts.

We could overcome the objections that are made merely by proving Mosaic monotheism, which we would have been easy, that generally the pagan gods are the eyes of the sacred writers, pure nothingness. But many others texts seem to prove the contrary we believe that follow a more scientific method and obtain a more complete demonstration by studying carefully the passages adduced in favor of so-called polytheistic Israelites. The review we have made these files allow us at least, we believe it to conclude that in view of the religion of Israel the pagan gods were designed quite differently than the Gentiles themselves . That's what we tried so far to highlight student and now a brief texts that show the futility of the pagan gods, we will complete this connection to give the true face of ancient Judaism, the same time we definitely repulse the charge of polytheism.

Perhaps we already sees, what we hope will clearly demonstrate later that these seemingly contradictory passages are reconciled in a higher doctrine perfectly, according to which the Bible affirms the reality of the gods and their role in the universal order, as expressed freely in Jewish viewpoint without any controversy with the pagans, while she vehemently denies their existence when it comes to fighting the polytheists' claims to equal their deities in one God, that they were only attributes or aspects seconded.

Recall first the innumerable texts where the deity is claimed only for Avaya. Even the names are in Hebrew as the gods of the Gentiles to the Jews show that the gods, imagine them as the heathen are nothing. The word Elil , idol, that we find in the Pentateuch, the Prophets and the Psalms, in our view is composed of al , negation and el , god, al-el , not god. The euphony with El ohieme must have contributed to the choice of this name, because we know the Bible's predilection for this sort of assonance when it comes to expressing opposing ideas probably the antithesis to put more into relief by the contrast of the similarity of sound. A text confirms our interpretation of Deuteronomy etymological: "They moved me to jealousy with that which is not God, they have provoked me with their idols and I will stir them to jealousy, which is not a people, I will provoke them with a foolish nation. " Also in Hosea, the daughter of Gomer named symbolic Lo-Ruschama (not taken piety) and his son that of Lo-Ammi (not my people). A verse from Jeremiah translated as clearly as possible the name of Elil , non-god: "There's a nation-til changing its gods, though they are not gods and my people have changed their glory against what is not helpful. The false gods have another name that we must mention, though it appears only rarely in the Bible is that of mèthim dead. In Psalm CVI e we read: "They applied themselves to Baal-Peor and ate the sacrifices of the dead ( mèthim )" , and in Isaiah: "A people seek does not God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living? " name dead seems given here as opposed to false gods on behalf of the living God, El-Hai is often the true God in the Bible can must also be there to see an allusion to pagan fables that speak of birth and death of the gods. Whichever hypothesis we adopt, for they not only deny the divinity, but the very existence, is evident.

Two other names less negative per se, but more conclusive in favor of our thesis are those of schèdim and seïrim . We first find the first in the Pentateuch and the Psalms: "They sacrificed to idols ( Schèdim ) which are not God (El- oha , in the singular), to El ohieme they knew not " "They sacrificed their son and daughters to idols ( schèdim ), they shed innocent blood, the blood of their son and daughters that they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan" < ref> Ps. CVI, 37. </Ref> The etymology of this word schèdim reveals the idea of force and in its application to the gods of paganism, evil power , as it was in that character that were contemplated in the ordinary gods conquered peoples, enemies or just strangers.

The second adjective is found in Leviticus: "They no more offer their sacrifices seïrim , with which they prostitute" . The rest of the passage quoted above from Deuteronomy contains an obvious allusion to the cult of seïrim : "They sacrificed to schèdim that are not God, to El ohieme- they knew, to new entrants recently and your fathers had never dreaded, and to translate literally - because the word used here is that which derives the name of seïrim - "that your fathers had not Seir " . From the root word is, as for schèdim , the force that this is disordered .

The Bible does not merely declare the futility of the pagan gods with the words she uses to describe them, she still denies their divinity in the most formal. Leaving aside the numerous passages that cast the idols opprobrium and ridicule, because it might be objected that the sacred writers have only seen the statues or images, not the gods themselves, they were the representation . Here are some examples that appear more convincing. "Samuel told the people: Fear not! You've done everything wrong, but do not turn away from the LORD, and serve the Lord with all your heart. Do not turn away, otherwise you would go after the things of nothing which do profit nor deliver, because they are vanity, ". And Hezekiah, in his prayer: "It is true, O Lord! the kings of Assyria have destroyed nations and devastated their country, and have cast their gods into the fire but they were no gods, they were works of human hands, wood and stone, and they have destroyed ". In this passage, although it is question of images, there is no doubt that the gods themselves are considered non-existent. Let us hear again the words of David: The Lord is great and very worthy of praise, it is to be feared above all gods because the gods of the Gentiles are idols ( élilim ), but Jehovah created the heavens ". In the eyes of the sacred writer, who created the heavens is not only God, God is the only possible since it called into existence the entire beings and thus there is no one who does not owe him life. Finally, when Elijah accuses the people of both sides of the tower, he exclaims: "If Avaya is God, follow him! if Baal, follow him! . And the test is complete, the entire crowd with one voice confess; "It Avaya is God! Avaya it is God! ". For Jews, like Elijah, who speaks to them, there can be no question of many gods, even unequal in power, there is one God, and that is adored by Israel.