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A fragmentary inscription from the 9th century BCE pictures the deity causing an earthquake, mountains melting and ruling the gods. Habakkuk pictures the same theophany with God from Teman, the gods Plague and Pestilence in attendance.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Kuntillet Ajrud Inscriptions
Horvat Teiman
Ancient Near East
in earthquake. And when God shines forth in the [heights ... YHWH ... the mountains will melt, the hills will crush [... the earth. The Holy one over gods [... prepare (yourself) to bless Baal on the day of war ... To bless the name of El on the day of war ...
Habakkuk 3:5
Hebrew Bible
3 God comes from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah. His splendor has covered the skies, the earth is full of his glory. 4 His brightness will be as lightning; a two-pronged lightning bolt flashing from his hand. This is the outward display of his power. 5 Plague will go before him; pestilence will march right behind him. 6 He took his battle position and shook the earth; with a mere look he frightened the nations. The ancient mountains disintegrated; the primeval hills were flattened. His are ancient roads.
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Notes and References
... Most important to this study is the inscription of epiphany found on portion of a plaster wall. It is fragmented, lacking any concrete sign of a beginning and ending, but reads: “] in earthquake. And when God shines forth in the [heights...Y]HW[H... ] the mountains will melt, the hills will crush[... ] the earth. The Holy one over gods [... ] prepare (yourself) to bless Baal on the day of wa[r... To bless/praise] the name of El on the day of wa[r...” Elements of the archaic epiphanic motif can be found in this inscription: the same noun as employed verbally in Judges 5:4, the same verb for shining used in Deuteronomy 33:2, the traditional invocation of the name Yahweh, and reference to lesser deities as is done in Habakkuk 3:5 and possibly Deuteronomy 33:2. ...
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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