v. God, Statue, Idol, Image
Exo 34:13 altars .. and ye shall cut down their images of A
Deu 7:5 statues, and you shall destroy their images of A
Deu 16:21 you shall not plant any tree for A
1Ki 14:15 made his A pictures, pissing
1Ki 16:33 Ahab also made an image of A
2Ki 17:16 they made images .. and images of A
Asherah (Heb. ‘Ashêrâh ; ugar. ‘A7rt; Amarna Letters, *Ashirtu and *Ashratu). 1. Phoenician goddess of vegetation called “’A7rt of the Tyrians” in an Ugaritic text. Ugaritic literature refers to her as the “lady of the gods”, the “mistress of the gods”, and as the mother of 70 deities, but her most distinctive title is Ashirat of the sea, the “lady of the sea”. from sea”. An 18th- or 17th-century BC Canaanite temple excavated at Nahariya, about 8 km north of Aco and near the seashore, is believed to have been dedicated to her. Many images of doves, a silver image of a goddess, small vases or offering vessels, and censer fragments were found there, revealing the character of Asherah worship practices (cf 2Ki 23:7; Hos 4: 12, 13). The goddess was the female counterpart of Baal, and her worship would have been very appealing to the Hebrews. Representations of her were raised and worshiped in Jerusalem (1Ki 15:13) and in Samaria (1Ki 16:33; 2Ki 13:6; 21:3), probably in the temple of Baal (2Ki 10:25). During the reign of Manasseh, an image of her was in the same temple in Jerusalem (21: 3, 7), although her father had uprooted them (2Ki 18: 4). Four hundred prophets were appointed to serve the goddess (1Ki 18:19) and the necessary utensils for her worship are mentioned (2Ki 23: 4-6); the women were engaged in weaving curtains for the deity (v 7). Some passages mention the existence of more than one image of Asherah next to those of Baal (Jdg 3:7; 2Ki 7:10; 2Ch 19:3; 24:18; 33:3).107 2. Cult object that symbolized to Asherah (Jdg 6:25). When the goddess or her image is not mentioned, the word Asherah refers to the wooden pole or tree trunk that stood in the Canaanite sanctuaries (Exo 34:13), dedicated to the idol as a symbol of vegetation (Jer. , 17:2). Cult objects were made (1Ki 14:15), planted (Deu 16:21), or raised (2Ki 17:10); they could be burned (Deu 12:3; 2Ki. 23:6, 15), cut (Exo 34:13; Deu 7:5; etc.), uprooted (Mic 5:14) or broken into pieces (2Ch 34:4 ). See the tree trunk in the Elamite model of an open-air sanctuary (fig 327). Bib.: William L. Reed, The Asherah in the Old Testament (Fort Worth, Texas, 1949); I. Ben-Dor, “A Middle Bronze-Age Temple at Nahariya”, QDAP 14 (1950):1-41.
Source: Evangelical Bible Dictionary
fertility goddess among the Canaanites. Although Yahweh had commanded Israel not to make a pact with the peoples of the land that he would give them, and that he should destroy their idolatrous objects Ex 34, 13; Lev 26, 1; Nm 33, 52; Dt 16, 21; the chosen people were contaminated with various idols, as with the cult of A., from which wooden images were made, ® cipos, as read in Jc 2, 13 and 3, 7; 1 R 15, 13; 18-19. 2 Kings 23, 4-6.
Digital Bible Dictionary, Grupo C Service & Design Ltda., Colombia, 2003
Source: Digital Bible Dictionary
1. Goddess of the Phoenicians and Syrians, adopted by the Israelites when they fell into idolatry.
2. The equipment for wicked worship, probably of Phoenician origin, was the “high place” (Heb. bamoth). It culminated in the altar, the pillars and the images of Asherah. The worship, interwoven with the concept of the fertility of the land, became a fertility cult. The chosen symbol of the cult was the trunk of a tree. This explains the prohibition of planting trees next to the altar of the Lord (Deu 16:21; Jdg 6:25, Jdg 6:28, Jdg 6:31). The goddess of the cult was Asherah, who also appears as mistress of the sea. Israel’s prophets roundly condemned Asherah worship and commended those kings who destroyed their holy places (1Ki 15:13-14; 2Ki 17:10; 2Ki 21:3; 2Ki 23:4).
Source: Hispanic World Bible Dictionary
In Canaanite mythology, Asherah, the Ugaritic Athirat, was the principal consort of El, the father god. Asherah served as the mother goddess and was associated in Biblical times with *Baal, the god of fertility. Her symbol was the sacred pole or tree corresponding to the massebah or stone altar used in Baal worship (compare Judges 6:28). Among the idolatrous prophets whom Ahab’s idolatrous wife Jezebel supported were “four hundred prophets of Asherah” (1 Kings 18:19). Asherah was the chief goddess of Tyre, the city from which Jezebel had come.
The names Ashtoreth, Anat, Astarte, and Asherah, all related to sex and motherhood, are often interchanged to the point that the goddesses are indistinguishable. Hundreds of plates of the naked goddess of fertility have been found during the excavation of the Canaanite cities.
The asherim (plural of Asherah), wooden cultic objects, have disappeared and there is no description of their form in Holy Scripture. A bronze relief found in Susa depicts an ancient Semitic high place and, among other ritual implements, three branchless tree trunks can be identified. This relief, dating from the 12th century B.C. de JC is the closest representation we have of an asherah.
Source: Archaeological Biblical Dictionary
Canaanite goddess of fertility. She was considered the wife of the main deity, called † œEl †, for which she was called † œMother of the Gods †. It seems that she A. she had some relationship with the sea, for which she is also studied as a Semitic parallel to Aphrodite. She is represented as a naked young woman astride a lion, with a lily in one hand and a snake in the other, the lily representing feminine grace and sexual attractiveness, and the snake fertility. Her cult included ritual prostitution, both male and female. She was especially worshiped among the Phoenicians, but her worship was quite popular in Israel. Foreign queens, such as †¢Maacah and †¢Jezebel, encouraged him, having numerous priests (1Ki 15:13; 1Ki 18:19). King †¢Manasseh even put †œan image of A. in the †¢Temple† (2Ki 21:7). Later †¢Josiah removed it and destroyed it (2Ki 23:6). The expression †œimages of A.†, very frequent in the OT, does not point directly to the goddess but to one or more objects, probably made of wood, that were planted or placed in places of idolatrous worship. It is not known exactly what or how they were. Some think they were posts or small idols. Certain translators, instead of putting †œimages of A.† , read †œgroves† . That is why RV60 translates: “You shall not plant any tree for A. near the altar of Jehovah your God† in Deu 16:21. But other scholars think that these objects were made by men.
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
tip, GOD Canaanite female goddess of fertility, wife of Baal (in Ugarit from El, “the father of the gods”). Her image was venerated: in Jerusalem (1 Kings 15:13), in Israel (1 Kings 16:33), in the temple of Baal in Samaria (2 Kings 21:3, 7). Her symbol, also called Asherah, was the holy tree or sacred trunk next to the altar. Deuteronomy repeatedly demands that the asherahs be cut down (Deut. 7:5), burned (Deut. 12:3), or not planted at all (Deut. 16:21). The sacred books and the prophets condemned this desecration of the sacred place as adultery and infidelity of Israel towards the Holy God (Ex. 34:12; Jud. 6:25; Mi. 5:13; Jer. 17:1-4, and in many other passages).
Source: New Illustrated Bible Dictionary
See SACRED POST.
Source: Dictionary of the Bible
Source: Vine Old Testament Dictionary
see Gods.
Source: Dictionary of Theology
Canaanite mother goddess mentioned in the Ras Shamra texts (˒aṯrt) as goddess of the sea and consort of El but related in the OT to Baal (eg Judg. 3.7). Although the OT sometimes refers to Asherah as a goddess (eg, 1 Kings 18:19; 2 Kings 23:4; 2 Chron. 15:16), her name is also used for an image of the same goddess (eg, 1 R. 15.13), who later came to represent her. The Israelites were ordered to cut down (eg Ex. 34.13) or burn (Dt. 12.3) the aserim of the Canaanites, and they were also forbidden to plant “any tree for Asherah near the altar of Jehovah” (Dt. 16.21) . Based on these references it would seem that it was a wooden object, and presumably some kind of image. A charred piece of wood about 1.20 m long discovered in the early Bronze Age sanctuary of Hai has been considered a possible asherah, but many scholars now reject the view that the reference object was a post. , and adopt the trad. “Asherah image” in all circumstances. In °vrv1 it is translated invariably “forest”.
Bibliography. W. L. Reed, The Asherah in the Old Testament, 1949; A. Caquot, M. Sznycer and A. Herdner, Textes Ougaritiques, 1, 1974, p. 68–73; J. C, de Moor in TDOT I, pp. 438–444; R. Patai, JNES 24, 1965, p. 37–52; WF Albright, Archeology and the Religion of Israel³, 1953, pp. 77–79; J. Marquet-Krause, Les Fouilles de ‘Ay (et-Tell) 1933–1934…, 1949, pp. 18.
TCM
Douglas, J. (2000). New Biblical Dictionary: First Edition. Miami: United Bible Societies.
Source: New Bible Dictionary