Beyah the God of the Jews?

by peacefulpete 5 Replies latest watchtower bible

• 

  peacefulpete

  Having stumbled upon this little tidbit, I thought I'd share. I've a few times mentioned the Midianite or Kennite hypothesis which assumes the numerous OT texts that describe Yahweh as having migrated north to Judah represent credible mnemonic history. While reading an article by Prof. Israel Knohl I learned something rather surprising.

  Ps 68:4-6 uses typical Baal imagery in a very ancient song describing Yahweh. But note that the name in Hebrew is "Beyah" not the conventional Yah or Yahweh.

  Sing to God, chant hymns to His name; extol Him who rides the clouds; Beyah is His name. Exult in His presence.

  Most translations just ignore the variant. Scholars have attempted to dismiss it as a partial editorial glass. However, 7 centuries later Isaiah 26:4 similarly uses the Beyah variant.

  Trust in YHWH for ever and ever, for Beyah YHWH is an everlasting Rock.

  This second usage seems a redundant duplication that translators have mechanically repeated. The odds however that we have an identical partial editor glass strains credulity. It seems much more likely the Beyah variant was yet another theophoric title.

  The connection of this to the Midianite hypothesis is made clear when we learn Beyah literally means " in Yah(wa)" a possible geographical identity of the god with a place. This coincides well with the Egyptian (in Amunhotep III’s Soleb Nubian temple) geographical mention of a "land of Yahwa" in the region of Seir, home of Yahweh according to the OT.

  In short, this geographical link may explain the variant name Beyah in the Psalm and Isaiah. It's a vestige of referring to the god as the 'god manifested in the land of Yahwa.' The name of the land itself being theophoric, that is the name of the land was the name of a patron god as was commonly done. Assyria being the land of Assur for example.

  We learn more about this deity all the time through archaeology and textual crumbs.
• 

  peacefulpete

  Well, I guess this stuff is interesting to only me. As a further support to this hypothesis the Mishna (mYoma6) retains the name as Ba(shem) shem here a stand in for Yah. So here BaYah seems another example of the variant.

  Prof Israel Knolh is the Yehezkel Kaufmann Professor of Bible at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and a senior research fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute. He holds a Ph.D. in Bible from Hebrew University. Knohl’s numerous publications include: The Sanctuary of Silence, which won the Z. Shkopp Prize for Biblical Studies and The Messiah before Jesus: The Suffering Servant of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
• 

  Phizzy

  Thank you so much for this PP, I LOVE stuff like this, I keep going back to old threads from the incredible Leolaia, (what a mind that lady has !) to read about these connections, they fascinate me !

  I wonder, do you have info. on if Yahweh/Beyah was actually in the Canaanite pantheon, and if "he" was, did he enter via the Israelites ?

  Everything from Ugarit is too early to see something like this, so I guess evidence for Yahweh's exact "travel itinerary" is sparse ?

  Keep on posting this stuff please !

  The contention that it is an Editorial Gloss in both instances is difficult to maintain. But even if one is, surely the original merely had "Beyah", which would have led early readers to associate with the Canaanite Baal, The "Rider on the Clouds" Storm god, which later editors would try to hide. They wanted all the qualities of Israel's former gods to be adopted/subsumed by Yahweh.
• 

  peacefulpete

  Hey Phizzy, I also miss some of the outstanding posters like leolaia. I hope she is well. Lost touch quite a few years ago. Anyway, unfortunately, as regards ancient attestation beyond possibly the Egyptian, no. Not that I'm aware of. It may always have been rare. The Rabbis simply regard it as a variant spelling, without any explanation as to how or why. Prof, Knohl's hypothesis seems to be the first attempt to connect the Egyptian references and the rare 2 OT usages. It may have lingered in some liturgical context for centuries with Isaiah assuming like the Rabbis today that it was simply a variant.
• 

  iloowy.goowy

  Initial B is a preposition as you mentioned not part of the name. Are you saying it parallels with the name Baal? Because "in Baal" would be b'Baal" and in Yah would be "baYah". https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/%D7%91%D6%BE

  Cloud rider is definitely a Divine reference. That is why the Hight Priest threw a hissy fit when Jesus said he would see the Son of man coming in the clouds, and called it blasphemy.
• 

  peacefulpete

  Goowy..yes the b is being understood as a preposition meaning In yah. As in from the land of yah or even just god of yah. The god and the region were linked. And again this is not my hypothesis but prof Knohl's.