The Taanach cult stand the 1000+ Jerusalem pillar figurines the his and her cult stands, incense altars, and standing stones at Megiddo room 2081 and the Arad temple and the numerous biblical references to the ubiquity of Asherah worship among the Israelite monarchs and laity point in the same direction.

The criticism is well taken, and I am happy to provide a more precise description of the Israelite pantheon, although I would point to much more than just Kuntillet Ajrud and Khirbet el-Qom as indicating an early Israelite view of Asherah as the consort of El. There is simply no way to make such a sweeping generalization, but many scholars do just that. All the data show for sure is that someone from the period to which the material dates expressed this belief. The facts on this statement are as follows: (1) There are indeed textual and archaeological data for an Israelite El with a consort (2) There is no way short of omniscience to know from those data that ALL Israelites believed El had a consort - including the biblical writers. To correspond to reality, the statement should say this: “That some Israelites believed Israelite El had a consort is supported by textual and archaeological evidence.” Now it’s accurate. This is overstated, but reflects what the consensus would say.

“That the Israelite El had a consort is supported by textual and archaeological evidence.” I see where he is coming from, but I also have some reflections to share that will hopefully illuminate my thinking on the issues: Michael first has some concerns with the preciseness of my language in a couple places. I’m glad to have an informed response, and Michael’s comments will provide great food for thought as I develop this research for presentation at a regional SBL, at CSBS, at SBL in November (although in the latter it’s mainly Psalm 82 I’m discussing), and in my Trinity Western masters thesis. Michael disagrees with some of the main conclusions I reached, but that was expected.

That’s something I struggle with sometimes, and it’s great to see that the attention I pay to it is producing results. I was especially happy to have him comment that he felt the writing was clear and concise. For those interested, it can be found here. I appreciate Michael taking the time to respond to my paper and to provide a number of helpful insights.

Angels by michael heiser