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The Ugaritic Baal Cycle speaks of “the seventy sons of Athirat,” while Genesis 10 lists seventy nations from Noah and his descendants. Both reflect the ancient Near Eastern use of seventy to symbolize a complete set, suggesting a pattern where divine order and human order mirror each other.
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The Baal Cycle
Ancient Near East
Baal organizes for his dwelling Hadd arranges for his palace. He slaughters large livestock and small: He slaughters bulls and fatling rams Year-old calves Sheep in droves, and kids. He invites his siblings into his house His kin within his palace; He invites the seventy sons of Athirat. He offers the gods rams Offers the goddesses ewes. He offers the gods bulls Offers the goddesses cows. He offers the gods thrones Offers the goddesses seats.
Date: 1500 - 1300 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Genesis 10:5
Hebrew Bible
1 This is the account of Noah’s sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Sons were born to them after the flood. 2 The sons of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 3 The sons of Gomer were Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. 4 The sons of Javan were Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittim, and the Dodanim. 5 From these the coastlands of the nations were separated into their lands, every one according to its language, according to their families, by their nations.
Date: 5th Century B.C.E. (Final composition) (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... It is in connection with the Canaanite god El and his pantheon of gods, known as 'the sons of El', that a direct relationship with the Old Testament is to be found. That this is certain can be established from the fact that both were seventy in number. At Ugarit we read in the Baal myth of 'the seventy sons of Asherah (Athirat)' (KTU 1.4). Since Asherah was El's consort, this therefore implies that El's sons were seventy in number ... Interestingly, it is known that the Jews believed there to be seventy nations on earth, so that the sons of God were accordingly also seventy in number. This emerges from the table of the nations in Genesis 10, where there are seventy nations ..."
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