When efforts are senseless,

When the searches are meaningless.

Oh what kind of life a man can have,

If in having you can be slave?

the storm may ruin my life’s favor,

but i will trust the unfailing love of my Savior.

the pain may take away my life’s sweetness,

yes, i will cling on my Master’s faithfulness.

the trial may crush my dreams and may turn my life bitter,

still i will rise with my Redeemer.

Yes, when all seems a strife, God is just working in my life.

The Canaanite, Egyptian, and Mesopotamian Deities

By: SALAXAMANA

The Ancient Religion

Religion, sacred engagement with that which is believed to be a spiritual reality. Religion is a worldwide phenomenon that has played a part in all human culture and so is a much broader, more complex category than the set of beliefs or practices found in any single religious tradition. An adequate understanding of religion must take into account its distinctive qualities and patterns as a form of human experience, as well as the similarities and differences in religions across human cultures.

Usually, in the ancient religion has feminine-masculine concept. This concept means that a god has a goddess partner. thus their union would result an offspring that would be a god/goddess as well that is why they called it fertility concept.

Canaanites, in the Old Testament, original inhabitants of the land of Canaan. According to the Book of Judges, the Israelites, during the 2nd millennium bc or earlier, gradually subjugated the Canaanite cities. By the end of the reign of Solomon, king of Israel, the Canaanites had virtually been assimilated into the Hebrew people, among whom they appear to have exerted a reactionary religious influence. The Canaanite religion itself was based on the worship of the divinities Baal and Ashtoreth. Biblical scholars now believe that the Hebrew language was derived from Canaanite sources, and that the Phoenician language was an early form of Hebrew. Recent discoveries indicate that, before the Hebrew conquest of the south of Canaan, the Canaanites and the Phoenicians constituted a single nation, and that the people now known as the Phoenicians subsequently developed as a separate nation.

Canaanite

The chief Canaanite god is �El, which means simply “God,” familiar as one of the names of the single god of the Bible. The linguistic root may mean “That” or “the One.” He is called “Creator of all Created Things,” as well as “Father of Humanity.” �El is therefore the prime creator god of the pantheon, although we do not currently have a Canaanite creation story. �El is also the king and head of the divine assembly, the council of the gods, although He is not necessarily ‘biological’ father of all the deities.

Despite His position as creator, �El thereafter was comparatively inactive. He is described as an old bearded man and, in most stories we have, He is seated in His hall up on His mountain – between the two rivers which are the source of the world oceans. Although He is rather remote, and not usually directly approached, �El is strong,

Asherah (from Hebrew אשרה), generally taken as identical with the Ugaritic goddess Athirat (more accurately transcribed as ʼAṯirat), was a major northwest Semitic mother goddess, appearing occasionally also in Akkadian sources as Ashratum/Ashratu and in Hittite as Asherdu(s) or Ashertu(s) or Aserdu(s) or Asertu(s).

By the time Egypt was unified, the early religious practices had developed into a formal religion involving the worship of many gods and goddesses. The environment played a significant role in shaping the nature of the deities the Egyptians worshiped. Their gods and goddesses took the form of humans, animals, or combinations of humans and animals. These forms represented the forces of nature and the elements of the Egyptians’ physical world. By picturing the natural powers as recognizable entities and creating mythological stories about them, the Egyptians tried to reach an understanding of the complicated interactions within their universe.

Mesopotamian religion includes the beliefs and practices of the peoples of Babylonia and Assyria from the earliest times to the late fourth century bc. The earliest Mesopotamian religious practices must be reconstructed from remains such as temples, burials, and artistic imagery, examples of which date from as far back as the 7th millennium bc. Written sources appeared in Sumerian beginning at the end of the 4th millennium bc that indicate religious practices, and there are sources in Akkadian and other Semitic languages beginning about 2500 bc.

1. What mountain probably is Mt. Sinai?

Mount Sinai is the name of the mountain where, according to the Bible, God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses. Since the time of Saint Helena it has been identified with Jabal Musa (or Gebel Musa), a mountain 2,285 meters high in the southern Sinai Peninsula. The Arabic name means Mount Moses.

Examining the Mt. Sinai Locations

The main sites to be examined are the traditional Jebel Musa site, the Midian site Jabal al Lawz; other sites such as those marked in the map above will be examined only briefly.

The Traditional Site: Jebel Musa

Emperor Constantine is credited with identifying this site through his visions. He sent his mother Helena to the holy sites he had identified in his visions such as Jebel Musa and the holy places in Jerusalem. The mountain is 7497 ft (2285 m)    m) high. To the southwest of it is Jebel Katherina, 7852 (2393 m) ft high in remembrance of St Catherine, a martyr in Alexandria whose remains are believed to be interred in the vicinity. At the foot of Jebel Musa is the St. Catherine’s monastery built in AD 527 by the emperor Justinian (this has been rebuilt a few times). In one of the rooms in the monastery was discovered the famous and invaluable Codex Sinaiticus, the Greek manuscript of the Bible.

Why is this location not right?

1. Mt. Sinai is said to be just three days distance from the Egyptian border according to Exod 3:12 (see also Exod. 3:18, 5:3 and 8:27) The distance scale on the basis of days was used in ancient times; a day’s distance was typically 20-25 miles by caravan. The Israelites could not have moved more than six miles per day, but  this should not be used as a distance scale. In reality they wandered up and down and it took 45 days for them to reach Mt. Sinai after the crossing. The Jebel Musa location is some 150 miles away from the border, or six to seven days distance from the border.
2. The Jebel Musa area is uninhabitable for people and animals. The Israelites were a large crowd of adult men plus their families and live stock. They  stayed at Mt. Sinai for 11 months, and this location would not have sustained them for that long. There is some level ground and some ground water, though.  The mountain itself is precipitous, and Moses had to climb this mountain to the presence of God.
3. Although Sinai was not true Egyptian territory, there were Egyptian copper mines in south central Sinai, hence there would be military presence there.
4. The Amaleks who fought with the Israelites near Mt. Sinai were actually in northern Sinai (more like the Negev)
5. The places before and after Jebel Musa marked on the route map have no real significance; they are arbitrarily chosen locations.
6. It is in the wrong direction. We know the Israelites later on reached Kadesh in  the north. It was from Kadesh the spies were sent out. This Kadesh was in Paran.

This site was promoted  by Ron Wyatt and the Cornuke-Williams teams. A number of Bible scholars seem to have embraced this choice due to many attractive features and its location near ancient Midian. Jabal al Lawz is even higher than Jebel Musa, 8465 ft(2580 m) high.

In favor of this site the following arguments are given:

1. It is in the ancient land of Midian where Moses lived for 40 years; it was  when he was feeding the sheep of Jethro, his father-in-law that he had the Burning Bush experience at Mt. Sinai (Exod. 3:1-2).
2. The mountain top has a burnt appearance, reminiscent of God having descended on it in fire as the Bible says (Exod. 19:18). There is perhaps no other mountain with this unique feature in the whole area.
3. The explorers found boundary stones, altars and petroglyphs of Egyptian calf in the vicinity.
4. Jabal al Lawz is completely out of the Egyptian territory. Israelites had to cross Sinai to be completely out of Egypt.
5. St. Paul says Mt. Sinai is in Arabia (Galatians 4:25). Sinai cannot be Arabia.
6. Not too far from the mountain is a large split rock reminiscent of Moses striking the rock at Rephidim.

Trace the route of Exodus and give a brief description significant to that place.

1. Ramases – the Hebrews knew the building well because they labor for this building.

2. Succoth – Israelites took this path to avoid the Philistines.

3. Approaching the Sea: Etham, Pi-hahiroth, Mogdol, And Baal-zephon – Hebrews followed a route used by slaves that led them away from authorities.

4. Deliverance at the Sea: Encamped at Pi-Hahiroth – God parted the Sea.

5. To Sinai- God did mighty miracles

6. Entering the wilderness – Kades-Barnea: a) Moses sent out the twelve spies; b) people alarmed by the sent of spies and wanted to go back to Egypt; c) Israelites attempted to storm to the land of Canaan because they were unwilling to accept God’s verdict; d) Furtherrebellion led by Korah, Dathan, and Abiram; e) Miriam died; f) Moses provide water for the complaining Israelites; g) on the way to Edom, shortly after leaving Kadesh Barnea, Aaron died.

7. Plains of Moab -geographical problems because of the refusal of King of Edom and Moab to let the Israelites passed.

8.Conquest of the Transjordan – israelites battle missions; attacks of Siho and Og; settlement of tribes of Reuben, gad, And East Manasseh; and the fear of Moab-Balak.