Ashtoreth: The Goddess Solomon Set on the Hill

 


Ashtoreth, also called Ashtaroth in the plural of her shrines, was the goddess of the Zidonians. She belongs to the same family as Ishtar of Mesopotamia and Astarte of the Phoenician coast: a goddess of desire, fertility, and war, the queen men set beside the storm god when they wanted both the rain and the bed. Sidon carried her name. Israel learned it. The Bible never gives her a hymn. It gives her a charge sheet.

The pattern starts as soon as the generation that buried Joshua is gone. They forsook the Lord and served Baal and Ashtaroth (Judges 2:13). In the days of the judges the same pair returns: Baalim and Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, Zidon, Moab, Ammon, and the Philistines (Judges 10:6). Samuel later stands before the nation and makes the condition of deliverance plain. If you do return unto the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the Lord, and serve him only (1 Samuel 7:3). They did. They put away Baalim and Ashtaroth and served the Lord only, and he delivered them from the Philistines. The revival was not a new feeling. It was the removal of the goddess.

She did not stay removed. Solomon loved many strange women, and when he was old his wives turned his heart. He went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites, and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God (1 Kings 11:4–5). The high place he built for her stood on the hill east of Jerusalem, the ridge that also received Chemosh and Molech, facing the city of the great King (1 Kings 11:7; 2 Kings 23:13). Josiah, in the reform, defiled that mount of corruption and broke down the high places. Between Samuel’s cleansing and Josiah’s, the goddess had been given a view of the temple.

The Philistines knew her house as well. After Saul fell on Gilboa they put his armor in the house of Ashtaroth and fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan (1 Samuel 31:10). A king of Israel became a trophy in the goddess’s temple. The same people had already fastened a head in the house of Dagon. The neighboring cults shared the spoils of a fallen anointed.

What she asked for was what her sisters asked for. The female image beside Baal. The high place, the grove, the cake and the offering. Jeremiah’s Queen of Heaven, for whom the children gathered wood and the women kneaded dough, sits in this same family of worship, whether the local name that day was Ashtoreth or another (Jeremiah 7:18). Sex and fertility were the levers. War and national pride were the other face. A man could keep the Lord’s name on the temple and the goddess on the opposite hill, and call the arrangement wisdom. Solomon did. God called it a heart not perfect.

The modern altar is that hill.

Ashtoreth is the goddess added beside a confession that is still spoken. She is the second loyalty in a house that has not yet denied the first. Churches that keep the vocabulary of the Lord and the practices of the age are building Solomon’s ridge: Scripture in the pulpit, the goddess in the marriage, the entertainment, and the unspoken agreement that desire outranks the vow. She is also the trophy room. When the people of God fall, the culture that serves her hangs the armor in her house and calls the display proof that her way won. Samuel’s condition has not been revised. Deliverance waited on putting Ashtaroth away, not on managing her. A heart prepared unto the Lord and a goddess kept in the back room is the heart Solomon died with.

Put her away. Not to the side of the hill, where she can still see the temple. Out of the house. The Lord who answered Samuel when the strange gods were gone does not share his glory with the goddess of Zidon, and he does not accept a high place facing his city.


DMMC 

10-8-26

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Lessons from Korah's Rebellion: A Warning for Today's Church

Image
Playing with a new format today.  Let me know what you think. Welcome to my blog, where we explore biblical truths and their application to modern Christian life. Today, we’re delving into Numbers 16:31-33 to uncover timeless lessons for the church. Have you ever wondered what happens when we challenge God’s authority? The Bible provides a stark example in Numbers 16:31-33, where Korah and his followers faced divine judgment for their rebellion. This passage isn’t just a historical account—it’s a powerful lesson for us today. The Story of Korah's Rebellion In Numbers 16, Korah, a Levite, gathered 250 leaders to challenge the leadership of Moses and Aaron. He argued that all Israelites were holy and questioned why Moses and Aaron exalted themselves above the rest. In response, Moses proposed a test: Korah and his followers would offer incense before God, and God would decide who was truly holy. The next day, as Korah and his followers stood with their censers, God instructed Moses a...
Read more

The Upper Room: Historical Context for John 13 & 14

Image
In our study of John 13 and 14 —the sacred record of **that last night**—we stand with the Lord Jesus and His eleven faithful disciples in the Upper Room . This was no random location. It was a divinely appointed place where the King of kings washed feet, gave the new commandment of love, and poured out the promises of John 14 that have comforted every blood-bought fundamentalist believer for two thousand years. But what was the real-world setting of this holy ground? Let us examine the historical context with the same reverence we bring to the King James Bible itself. The Biblical Setting: A 1st-Century Jewish Upper Chamber in Jerusalem The Gospels describe the Upper Room (Greek *anagaion* or *hyperōion*—literally “upper room”) as a large, furnished guest chamber prepared for the Passover (Mark 14:14-15; Luke 22:11-12). In first-century Jerusalem, especially in the Upper City on the southwestern hill known as Mount Zion , many homes of wealthier Jewish families featured such second-...
Read more

The Wake-Up Call: Lessons from Eutychus in Acts 20:9-10

Image
Imagine sitting in a crowded room, the air thick with the warmth of flickering lamps, as a sermon stretches late into the night. Your eyelids grow heavy, and despite your best efforts, sleep begins to overtake you. This was the scene for a young man named Eutychus in Acts 20:9-10—a story that starts with a doze and ends with a miracle. But beyond the drama of his fall and revival, this passage offers profound lessons for our faith today. Let’s explore the power of God’s word, the importance of community, and the call to spiritual vigilance. The Scene in Troas Paul was on his way to Jerusalem, stopping in Troas to meet with believers. It was the first day of the week, and the group had gathered in an upper room for worship, likely including the Lord’s Supper. Paul, knowing he would leave the next day, preached late into the night. The room was packed, and the many lamps made it warm—perhaps too warm for Eutychus, who sat precariously in a third-story window. Overcome by sleep, he fell t...
Read more