Published: 2024-11-10

The religion of ancient Israelites during the divided monarchy period in the light of the inscriptions from Kuntillet ‘Ajrud and Jewish tradition

Tomasz Mączyński
Saeculum Christianum. Historical Writings
Section: Rozprawy i Artykuły
https://doi.org/10.21697/sc.2024.31.1.1

Abstract

In the 1970s, a team of archaeologists from the University of Tel Aviv conducted research at the site of Kuntillet ‘Ajrud. Among the findings dating back to the 8th century BCE were inscriptions, some of which contained blessings “in the name of Yahweh and his asherah.” These latter words may serve as evidence not only of the persistence of polytheism among the Israelites during the divided monarchy period but also of the belief that goddess Asherah was the spouse of Yahweh. However, the analysis of the biblical text and other Jewish sources shows that the term asherah could refer to a cult object rather than a goddess, significantly altering the meaning of the inscriptions.

Keywords:

Kuntillet ‘Ajrud, inscriptions, monolatry, Yahwism, Asherah

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Citation rules

Mączyński, T. (2024). The religion of ancient Israelites during the divided monarchy period in the light of the inscriptions from Kuntillet ‘Ajrud and Jewish tradition. Saeculum Christianum. Historical Writings, 31(1), 5–18. https://doi.org/10.21697/sc.2024.31.1.1

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