Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Yigal Levin <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il>]

Dear Kelton,

More up-to-date archaeological data make it clear that there was never a 
"city" on the peak of Mt. Hermon. There are a few villages and some open-air 
cult sites, although none that I know of go back to the early Iron Age, which 
would be the relevant period. However, the Bible never actually says that 
Baal-Hermon was a "city". It makes a lot of sense to assume that there was a 
site dedicated to the worship of Baal on the peak of Hermon - we know that 
Baal was often associated with such peaks, such as Carmel and Baal-Zaphon. 
The name Hermon even seems to be derived from the root XRM - "consecrated". 
However there is no evidence, from either inscriptions or archaeology that 
such a place actually existed. PLUS, as I wrote before, Judges 3:3 seems to 
be a textual conflation of Josh. 13:5, which actually mentions "Baal-Gad 
under Mount Hermon". 

Yigal Levin
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: kgraham0938 AT comcast.net 
  To: Yigal Levin ; b-hebrew 
  Sent: Monday, September 08, 2008 2:22 AM
  Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Baal-Hermon


  BDB, seems to think BA'AL HERMON is an actual city.

  BA'AL HERMON a city so named as seat of the worship of Baal. ‘The crest of 
Hermon is strewn with ruins and the foundations of a circular temple of large 
hewn stones,’ Tristr:Tpg, cf. on sacredness, Euseb. Lag:Onom 217: possibly = 
BA'AL GAD

  I'm wondering if it is possible that the various names in 1 Chron may refer 
to two different peaks?

  BDB says that Sener and Hermon are probably referring to these two peaks in 
1 Chronicles

  It has three peaks; and the names Hermon and Sener aredistinguished in 1 Ch 
5:23 Ct 4:8, may refer to two of these peaks; 

  So maybe Ba'al Hermon is referring to an actual city & Hermon in 1 Ch is 
referring to one of the peaks of the mountain.

  --
  Kelton Graham 
  KGRAHAM0938 AT comcast.net

    -------------- Original message -------------- 
    From: Yigal Levin <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il> 

    > I'll re-state the problem. While (Mount) Hermon is well-known and 
appears quite 
    > a few times in the Bible, the specific form "Baal-Hermon" appears in 
ONLY two 
    > sources, and both are problematic: 
    > The first is in the boundary description of Judges 3:3: instead of 
Joshua's 
    > "Baal-Gad under Mount Hermon", Judges has "Baal-Hermon". Were this the 
ONLY 
    > source, there would be little doubt that this is a "ghost name" created 
by 
    > Judges' abbreviation of Josh. 13:5 
    > 
    > However, there's 1 Chr. 5. The geographical context is close enough to 
make it 
    > unlikely that this is a different place with the same name (unless 
there's 
    > another Hermon as well...). Where did Chr.'s description come from? If 
it is 
    > tak en from a source that is ultimately independent of Judges 3:3, that 
would be 
    > evidence of "Baal-Hermon" being a real place, which would force a 
re-asessment 
    > of the realationship between Judges 3:3 and Josh. 13:5 (that the former 
is NOT 
    > just an abbreviation of the latter). If not, then we have to understand 
why Chr. 
    > took only that term from Judges 3:3, in a description that seems 
related to 
    > Deut. 3. 
    > 
    > Yigal Levin 
    > 
    > ----- Original Message ----- 
    > From: kgraham0938 AT comcast.net 
    > To: Yigal Levin ; b-hebrew ; biblical-studies AT yahoogroups.com ; 
    > biblicalist AT yahoogroups.com 
    > Sent: Sunday, September 07, 2008 4:24 AM 
    > Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Baal-Hermon 
    > 
    > 
    > I'm wondering if BAAL-HERMON is referring to the high places that exist 
on top 
    > of Mt Hermon. Or maybe the NIV rendering is correct and take those vavs 
as 
    > appositional. 
    > 
    > ; 1 Chr onicles 5:23 The people of the half-tribe of Manasseh were 
numerous; 
    > they settled in the land from Bashan to Baal Hermon, that is, to Senir 
(Mount 
    > Hermon). 
    > 
    > 
    > -- 
    > Kelton Graham 
    > KGRAHAM0938 AT comcast.net 
    > 
    > -------------- Original message -------------- 
    > From: Yigal Levin 
    > 
    > > Baal-Hermon appears in the boundary of the land not conquered by 
Joshua, 
    > > according to the abbreviated description in Judges 3:3: "From Mount 
    > Baal-Hermon 
    > > unto Lebo-Hamath". In the more complete text in Josh. 13:5, the same 
    > boundary is 
    > > described as stretching "from Baal-Gad under Mount Hermon unto 
    > Lebo-Hamath." 
    > > While some scholars have attempted to explain the name "Baal-Hermon" 
as 
    > > designating the peak of Mount Hermon, overlooking Baal-Gad itself 
    > (probably in 
    > > the sout hern Ba qa', near Hasbayeh), most assume either that the 
names are 
    > > synonymous, or even that the version in Judges is erroneous, a "ghost 
    > > place-name" caused by the abbreviated boundary-list. However 
Baal-Hermon 
    > is also 
    > > given as part of the bounda ry of the Transjordanian half-tribe of 
    > Menasseh in 1 
    > > Chr. 5:23: "from Bashan unto Baal-Hermon and Senir and Mount Hermon". 
This 
    > could 
    > > be seen either as evidence of there actually being such a place, 
which was 
    > known 
    > > to either the Chronicler or his immediate source, even though 
    > > it is not mentioned anywhere else, or of the fact that the Chronicler 
or 
    > his 
    > > immediate source, when composing his description of the Menassite 
    > territory, 
    > > chose to combine this particular element from Judges 3:3 with the 
other 
    > names 
    > > that seem more based on Deut. 3:8-13 (w hich is the only other place 
in 
    > which 
    > > Hermon, Senir and Bashan are listed together, in a description of the 
    > > Transjordanian tribes). 
    > > 
    > > So which is it: is there such a place (and where is it), or did the 
    > Chronicler 
    > > pick up a "ghost-name" from an unexpected source? 
    > > 
    > > Yigal Levin 
    > > _________________________________ _______ _______ 
    > > b-hebrew mailing list 
    > > b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org 
    > > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/b-hebrew 
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