Canaanite Religion The Canaanites explained nature by reference to their gods. Each god represented some force of nature. The moon, sun, important stars, and visible planets each were considered a god or goddess. Canaanite deities had two striking features: an extraordinary fluidity of personality, and names whose meanings were related to their function. A few of these gods were particularly influential in the interaction of the Israelites with the Canaanite peoples: El: “the powerful one,” the head of the Canaanite pantheon. El was distant, living far away from Canaan “at the source of the two rivers” (a lingering memory of Eden, perhaps). He presided over a divine council of gods who were his children. In the Old Testament, El (pl. Elohim) is used to speak of God, though the Lord is not identical with the Canaanite deity. Baal: “lord,” the great storm god and king of the gods. Baal acted as El’s prime minister and was functionally far more important than El. He was the giver of all fertility. When he died, all vegetation and procreation temporarily ceased. He was the god of justice, the terror of evildoers. Dagon: “fish” or “grain,” sometimes referred to as the father...

The Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant was a wooden chest overlaid with gold, and it was placed within the Most Holy Place in the sanctuary. The Ark reminded Israel of God’s covenant with them; its contents included the tablets of the covenant (the Ten Commandments). On the Day of Atonement, the high priest would sprinkle blood on the Ark’s cover in order to purify the people (Lev 16:2-17). During Israel’s wilderness wanderings, the glory of God would appear over the Ark, and God would meet with his people there (see Exod 25:22). Throughout Israel’s history, the Ark served as a sign of God’s presence. It was carried before the people as they traveled (Num 10:33-36), and when it was brought to the Jordan River, the water stopped up so the Israelites could pass through on dry ground (Josh 3:4-6). The Ark was carried around Jericho before that city was invaded and was present during the siege of the Ammonite city of Rabbah during David’s time (2 Sam 11:1-11). The Philistines equated the Ark with Israel’s God (1 Sam 4:6-8). This is understandable because the Philistines brought images of their own gods into battle (2 Sam 5:21). The Israelites were not to use images of...