The names of the gods of Palestine and surrounding regions are known to most of us only through the condemnations of the OT writers. Baal Peor, Hadad, Chemosh, Molech/Milkom Dagon, etc. It is therefore surprising that the main deity of the sister nation to the south, Edom is never mentioned. His name was Qos or Qaus. Many accept the name means "bow" as in the weapon. (or rainbow) As usual this is a large topic and this is a brief summary.
WIKI: Qos (Edomite: 𐤒𐤅𐤎 Qāws, later Qôs;[1] Hebrew: קוֹס Qōs)[2] also Qaus (Akkadian: 𒋡𒍑 Qa-uš), or Koze (Greek: Kωζαι Kōzai) was the national god of the Edomites.[3] He was the Idumean structural parallel to Yahweh. The name occurs only twice in the Old Testament in the Book of Ezra and Nehemiah as an element in a personal name, Barqos ("son of Qos" (or Qos beams forth) referring to the 'father' of a family or clan of perhaps Edomite/Idumaean nəṯīnīm or temple helpers returning from the Babylonian exile.[6][7]
I had a thread earlier regarding the Nethinim as foreign Temple servants that left us with lots of questions. Here I'm taking special focus on the Edomite name of a Nethinim with a Qos theophoric element. So clearly the writers of the OT knew the name Qos. This then makes the lack of condemnation of the God difficult to explain.
Notice in the Wiki quote, it says he was the Idumean (later term for region called Edom) "structural parallel to Yahweh." It further comments:
Unlike the chief god of the Ammonites (Milcom) and the Moabites (Chemosh), the Tanakh refrains from explicitly naming the Edomite Qōs.[6][16] The omission may be explained, according to some scholars, by assuming there were close similarities between Yahweh with Qōs, that would have made rejection of the latter difficult.[8]
You know all this is related back to the Kennite hypothesis that assumes OT passages that describe YHWH (Yah) as having come from Edom/Seir reflect an accurate mnemonic history and is confirmed by a number of extrabiblical inscriptions. In addition, we have the origin story of Jacob/Israel stealing the blessing from Esau/Edom which in light of the hypothesis, seems to be a suggestion that Edom should have been the chosen blessed nation.
To cut to the chase, there are a few theories regarding YaH's (Yah is likely the earlier form) relationship with Qos. One well argued position is that when Yah's worship relocated to Judah, Qos was adopted to replace him to affirm national identity apart from Judah. However it seems to me another scholarly proposal is less complicated and fits the evidence better. Namely that they are the same deity, Qos being an epithet for Yah.
A promising proposed solution to the difficult passage at Prov 30:29 might lend some credence to this:
There are three that are stately of stride, four that carry themselves well:30:30 The lion is mightiest among the beasts, and recoils before none; 30:31 The greyhound, the he-goat, the king whom (none dares resist).
The last phrase is very difficult, and some other translations are “and the king when he harangues his people” (NJB) and “and a king whose troops are with him” (NKJV).king secure against revolt (NIV) and the king, against whom there is no rising up.(ERV)and the king at the head of his people (NAB) etc.
Given the graphic similarity between the final mem and samekh, Theodor Vriezen suggested long ago reading ומלך אל קוס עמו “and the king with whom the god Qos is.”[17] The original meaning—perhaps the proverb itself originated in an Edomite context—was lost either because of Judean objections to referencing this deity positively or out of a later scribes’ ignorance of the meaning of Qos.
Additionally there are a number of other names in the OT that have theophoric elements related to this discussion, such as:
Kushaiah (קושיהו)— father of Ethan, a Merarite Levite who accompanies the ark of God on its return to Jerusalem (1 Chr 15:17).[11] The name may include both the theophoric element Qos[12] as well as YHWH, perhaps reflecting a syncretistic “Qaus is YHWH.”[13]
The mention of a number of Edomites serving both at the Temple and in the military might suggest a religious conversion but it might also suggest simply that as Edomites they simply worshipped the same god by a different name.
Anyway, I'm hoping this might inspire some interest. Take a few hours and read some of the links and citations. Sorry about the messy formatting. I'm watching TV at the same time. LOL
Amzallag, N. (2009). Yahweh, the Canaanite God of Metallurgy? Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 33(4), 387–404. https://doi.org/10.1177/0309089209105686
‘Yahweh in Israel—Qaus in Edom?’, JSOT 4 (1977), pp. 28-34.
Edom’s God Qos is the Hebrew God Yhwh | Arabian Prophets
Why the Bible Is Mute about Qos, the Edomite God - TheTorah.com
God Under Another Name?| National Catholic Register (ncregister.com)