Page 43 - Biblical Backgrounds

the march of David to Jerusalem when he was proclaimed King (2 Samuel 5:6-8). David eventually took
over their land.

Worshipping Your Neighbors’ gods

In the laws of Deuteronomy, the Israelites were forbidden to worship the gods of the neighboring
peoples (Deut. 6:14,15). That is given as one reason to destroy the inhabitants of the land so that this
would not happen. Yet, as they settled in the new land, they disobeyed and intermingled with the
people of the land. Soon, the Israelites took up the worship of the local deities such as the Baals and
Ashtoreths (Judges 10:6). The singular names “Baal” and “Ashtoreth” referred to widely revered deities.
However, the plural “Baals” would seem to generally point to the various local male deities. Similarly,
the plural “Ashtoreths” would signify all the local goddesses.

The popular belief of the ancient Near East was that particular deities owned particular sections of the
land. When people moved from one area to another, they were expected to worship the gods of their
new area. They had to respect the local deity to be blessed by that deity.

By worshiping the Baals and Ashtoreths of Canaan, the Israelites were following the normal religious
traditions of their day. Since the Israelites worshipped the Lord, they did not have to deny Him. They
just added these other gods to the list of deities they worshipped. Such is the case with Solomon, who
“added” other deities to his worship of Jehovah. He even built temples for these false gods in which to
worship. The Israelites learned from the indigenous population that these gods were the owners of the
land and needed to be worshiped to prosper there. Thus, the culture of the time made it difficult for
many Israelites to ignore the gods of their new locality.

The Baals and Ashtoreths are only two examples of Israel turning away from the Lord God to the local
deities. They are reported to have followed after gods of many areas, including Syria, Sidon, Moab,
Ammon, and Philistia (Judges 10:6). When eventually they cried, “we have forsaken our God (10:10),
possibly they realized that they were His people no matter where they existed, and their obedience was
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to be toward Him alone. They must “put away the foreign gods” (10:16).

Many Christians today, while claiming that Jesus Christ is their sole God, have many other lesser gods in
their lives. As ancient Israelites added these deities to their worship of the Lord, so have many believers
added other gods to their lives. Wealth and what it can buy have secured a large portion of the hearts
of many believers. Pride, position, and status occupy others. The quest for entertainment has captured
many believers in its grasp. As we look back and judge the Israelites for their wandering away from the
Lord, we need to look carefully at what other gods have captured our hearts. Is the Lord God your only
God?

Towers of Safety (Judges 8:9, 17)
Towers were a standard feature of ancient cities. Often, a city wall would be punctuated with regularly
placed towers. Such towers were widened spaces in the wall where a larger number of defenders could
withstand attackers attempting to gain entry. Towers allowed city residents to watch the outer parts of

87 Ibid, p. 319.

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