For centuries, we have been taught that Yahweh, the God of Israel, was always worshipped alone. But what if history tells a different story? What if early Israelites venerated Asherah, a powerful goddess, as Yahweh’s divine wife? Ancient inscriptions, biblical texts, and leading scholars suggest that Yahweh was not always alone on the throne. Buckle up, because what you’re about to read might shake your understanding of biblical history.
Ancient Inscriptions: Yahweh and His Asherah
One of the most stunning pieces of evidence comes from Kuntillet Ajrud, a remote 8th-century BCE site in the Sinai Peninsula. Here, archaeologists discovered inscriptions reading:
“I bless you by Yahweh of Samaria and his Asherah.”
This phrase appears multiple times, implying that Asherah was venerated alongside Yahweh. If that wasn’t shocking enough, another inscription from Khirbet el-Qom (circa 750 BCE) in Judah echoes the same theme. It states:
“Blessed be Uriyahu by Yahweh, for from his enemies he has been saved by his Asherah.”
These inscriptions strongly suggest that some early Israelites saw Asherah as Yahweh’s consort, despite later biblical texts denouncing her worship.
The Bible’s Struggle to Erase Asherah
The Hebrew Bible mentions Asherah over 40 times, but always in a negative light. The authors of the Bible, particularly after the religious reforms of King Josiah (7th century BCE), worked tirelessly to stamp out her worship. Consider these verses:
- 2 Kings 23:6 – Josiah removes Asherah’s statue from the Temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem and burns it. This implies she was once worshipped there!
- Judges 3:7 – “The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord; they forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs.”
- 1 Kings 18:19 – Elijah challenges 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah, proving her importance in Israelite religion.
Clearly, Asherah wasn’t just a minor foreign deity—she was deeply ingrained in Israelite worship, enough that later monotheistic reformers had to launch an aggressive campaign to eliminate her.
Leading Scholars Weigh In
This isn’t just wild speculation. Some of the most respected biblical scholars and archaeologists support the Yahweh-Asherah connection:
- William Dever, in his book Did God Have a Wife?, argues that Asherah was widely worshipped in ancient Israel and that her suppression was part of a later ideological shift toward monotheism.
- Mark S. Smith, in The Early History of God, explains that Yahweh’s transformation from a regional deity to the sole God of Israel involved absorbing aspects of El and distancing from Asherah.
- Margaret Barker, a biblical scholar, suggests that early Israelite temple worship may have included a divine feminine presence, later erased by reformers.
The Lost Goddess of Israel
Early Israelites worshipped Yahweh alongside Asherah, and only through later religious reforms was she erased from history. The inscriptions at Kuntillet Ajrud and Khirbet el-Qom, the biblical condemnation of Asherah, and the work of modern scholars all point to a fascinating lost chapter of Israelite religion.
So, was Yahweh truly alone? Or did history bury the truth of a once-venerated divine wife?
Sources
- Dever, William G. Did God Have a Wife? Eerdmans, 2005.
- Smith, Mark S. The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities in Ancient Israel. Eerdmans, 2002.
- Barker, Margaret. The Great Angel: A Study of Israel’s Second God. Westminster John Knox Press, 1992.
- The Devils And Evil Spirits Of Babylonia, 1903.
- Archaeological findings from Kuntillet Ajrud and Khirbet el-Qom.