Ugarit​—Taon Bilong Bifor wea Stap Anda Long Baal

LONG year 1928, hou bilong farmer long Syria hem bangam ston wea kavarem wanfala tomb wea insaed hem olketa old pis clay wea garem raeting. Hem nating luksavve hao important nao samting wea hem faendem. Taem olketa herem story abaotem diswan, wanfala team from France for studyim olketa oldfala samting wea Claude Schaeffer nao leadim, olketa travel go long datfala ples.

No longtaem bihaen, datfala team faendem wanfala raeting wea helpem olketa for luksavve wanem kaen ples nao olketa digim. Hem nao Ugarit, “wanfala long olketa important taon wea stap bifor long Near East.” Man for raet Barry Hoberman sei tu: “No eni oldfala samting wea olketa bin faendem, nomata olketa Dead Sea Scroll, affectim wei wea iumi minim Bible olsem disfala raeting.”—The Atlantic Monthly.

Pipol From Planti Ples Kam Long Taon Hia

Ugarit stap antap long hill wea olketa kolem Ras Shamra, long Mediterranean Coast wea distaem hem northern Syria. Planti pipol from olketa difren ples stap insaed datfala taon wea stap winim 3,000 year go finis. Area bilong hem kavarem samting olsem 60 kilometer start from Mt. Casius long north go kasem Tell Sukas long south and 30 go kasem 50 kilometer start from Mediterranean long west go kasem Orontes Valley long east.

From weather long Ugarit hem gud olketa animal laef gud. Olketa wakem tu olketa cereal, olive oil, wine, and timba—samting olketa long Mesopotamia and Egypt no garem. And tu, from taon hia hem ples wea pipol travel kam for baem and sellim samting, hem kamap first bigfala international harbor. Long Ugarit, olketa bisnisman from Aegean, Anatolia, Babylon, Egypt, and nara ples long Middle East savve kam sellim olketa metal, kaikai, and planti nara samting wea olketa wakem.

Nomata hem rich saed long material samting, Ugarit stap anda long wanfala nara kingdom. Datfala taon hem north part long Rul Bilong Egypt go kasem taem hem kam anda long Rul Bilong Hittite long mek-14 century B.C.E. Ugarit mas peim tax and mas provaedem olketa soldia for olketa wea rul ovarem hem. Taem “Olketa Sea Pipol”a start for attakim Anatolia (central Turkey) and northern Syria, olketa Hittite tekem olketa soldia and olketa ship bilong Ugarit for go faet. From datwan, Ugarit no garem eniwan for protectim hem and so olketa distroem hem evribit long samting olsem 1200 B.C.E.

Mekem Bak Olketa Samting wea Bilong Bifor

Samting wea stap bihaen Ugarit hem distroe hem wanfala hill wea 20 meter hae and wea big olsem 25 hectare. Olketa only digim wan part long datfala area. Insaed diswan, olketa man wea studyim oldfala samting faendem wanfala bigfala haos bilong king wea garem klosap wan handred rum and samting olsem sixfala courtyard and big bilong hem samting olsem 10,000 square meter. Datfala building hem garem wata, ples for go toilet, and wanfala sewage system. Olketa chair and tebol garem gold long hem, and ivory, and ston wea olketa kolem lapis lazuli. Olketa faendem tu olketa naesfala karving wea olketa wakem from ivory. Nara samting wea mekem datfala ples luk naes hem wanfala garden wea garem wall raonem and wanfala smol pool wata wea man savve wakabaot go daon for lukim.

Datfala taon and area wea stap raonem garem planti temple bilong Baal and Dagan.b Olketa temple hia garem olketa taoa wea samting olsem 20 meter hae, and insaed long hem garem smol area wea lead go long wanfala rum wea image bilong datfala god hem stap insaed. Olketa step lead go ap long wanfala area wea king savve sidaon long hem taem olketa ceremony go ahed. Long naetaem or long taem bilong big wind and rain olketa maet laetem olketa laet antap long olketa temple hia for help leadim olketa ship kam long harbor. Luk olsem olketa sailor nao kam putim offering bilong 17-fala ston anka long temple from olketa tingse god bilong big wind, Baal-Hadad, protectim olketa dastawe olketa kam bak sef.

Important Raeting wea Olketa Faendem

Olketa faendem planti thousand pis clay wea garem raeting evriwea long datfala taon bilong Ugarit wea olketa digim. Olketa faendem raeting wea stap long eitfala difren languis and wea olketa raetem long faevfala difren kaen raeting wea storyim saed long selen, law, gavman, and bisnis. Team bilong Schaeffer faendem raeting bilong wanfala languis wea kam kasem distaem pipol no savve abaotem. Olketa kolem diswan Ugaritic. Hem iusim 30 cuneiform saen and hem alphabet wea old winim eni narawan wea olketa faendem.

Witim wei wea hem storyim olketa samting bilong evriday living, olketa Ugaritic raeting hia garem tu samfala raeting wea provaedem niu savve abaotem olketa biliv and samting wea religion duim long datfala taem. Planti samting insaed religion bilong Ugarit luk olsem hem semsem witim religion bilong pipol bilong Canaan wea stap klosap long hem. Long tingting bilong Roland de Vaux, olketa raeting hia “showimaot hao nao living long land bilong Canaan no longtaem bifor olketa Israelite tekova.”

Religion Long Taon Bilong Baal

Raeting wea olketa faendem long Ras Shamra story abaotem winim 200 god and woman god. Main god nao hem El, wea olketa kolem hem dadi bilong olketa god and dadi bilong olketa man. And datfala god bilong big wind, Baal-Hadad, hem nao “man for raed antap olketa cloud” and “lord bilong earth.” Olketa ting long El olsem wise olo man wea garem white beard and wea stap farawe from olketa man. Long narasaed, Baal hem strongfala god wea aftarem hae position and wea rul ovarem olketa nara god and olketa man.

Olketa raeting wea olketa faendem maet hem toktok wea olketa talem long taem bilong olketa festival bilong religion, olsem long niu year or long taem bilong harvest. Bat, barava mining bilong datwan no klia. Long wanfala poem abaotem raoa abaotem hu nao bae rul, Baal winim favorite son bilong El, datfala sea-god Yamm. Disfala wei wea hem win maet mekem olketa sailor bilong Ugarit trustim hao Baal bae protectim olketa taem olketa go long sea. Insaed wanfala faet witim Mot, Baal hem dae and go long world wea stap anda long graon. From diswan taem bilong no eni rain kamap, and olketa man no savve duim eni samting. Anat, wea hem waef and sista bilong Baal—woman god bilong love and war—killim dae Mot and mekem Baal laef bak. Baal killim dae evri son bilong Athirat (Asherah), waef bilong El, and kasem bak throne bilong hem. Bat Mot hem kam bak moa seven year bihaen.

Samfala pipol tingse disfala poem hem piksarem olketa season wea kamap evri year wea insaed hem wei wea olketa rain wea givim laef hem finis taem hot season hem kamap and then gogo rain kamap moa long start bilong cold season. Samfala narawan olketa tingse datfala seven-year cycle join witim wei wea olketa fraetem taem wea no inaf kaikai and no eni rain. Nomata wanem, olketa tingim hao main samting wea mekem evri gogo bilong man hem win hem depend long wei wea Baal hem barava hae. Savveman Peter Craigie hem sei: “Goal bilong religion bilong Baal hem for mek sure hem nao barava hae; olketa worshiper bilong hem biliv hao only taem hem nao barava hae, then bae olketa garden and animal bilong olketa wea hem important for keepim olketa man laef bae go ahed gud.”

Protection From Heathen Worship

Samting wea showaot klia tumas from olketa raeting wea olketa digim hem nao wei wea religion bilong Ugarit hem barava nogud. The Illustrated Bible Dictionary hem sei: “Olketa raeting hia showimaot barava nogud samting wea kamaot from wei for worshipim olketa god hia; olketa mekhae long war, jury fasin wea olketa duim for olketa god, feeling for sex and diswan mekem living bilong olketa hem barava dirty.” De Vaux hem sei: “Taem man readim olketa poem hia, bae hem savve minim why olketa tru worshiper bilong Yahweh and olketa nambawan profet barava heitim diskaen worship.” Law wea God givim long nation bilong Israel bifor hem protectim olketa from false religion olsem.

Divination, wei for studyim olketa star, and magic hem samting wea planti pipol long Ugarit duim. Olketa savve luk aotem saen long olketa star and tu long olketa part insaed body bilong olketa animal wea olketa busarem and baby animal wea dae insaed bele. Woman for raetem history Jacqueline Gachet hem sei: “Olketa biliv hao sapos olketa sakrifaesim animal long wanfala god bae animal hia kamap part long datfala god and spirit bilong datfala god bae join witim spirit bilong datfala animal. From diswan, taem olketa readim olketa saen long olketa part insaed body hia, olketa bae minim klia tingting bilong datfala god wea savve ansa yes or no long olketa kwestin abaotem future or abaotem wanem nao for duim taem olketa laek disaedem samting.” (Le pays d’Ougarit autour de 1200 av.J.C.) Bat long wei wea barava difren, olketa Israelite mas stap klia long olketa samting olsem.—Deuteronomy 18:9-14.

Law Bilong Moses barava tambuim wei for duim sex witim animal. (Leviticus 18:23) Wanem nao tingting bilong olketa long Ugarit abaotem diswan? Insaed olketa raeting wea olketa faendem, Baal duim sex witim wanfala young mere buluka. Wanfala man for studyim olketa oldfala samting, Cyrus Gordon, sei: “Nomata samfala maet sei Baal hem change for kamap wanfala buluka for duim datwan, olketa priest bilong hem hard for change bat olketa tu go ahed for followim samting wea hem duim.”

Olketa Israelite kasem komand: “Iufala mas no katem body bilong iufala from wanfala soul hem dae.” (Leviticus 19:28) Bat, taem El herem Baal hem dae, “hem katem skin bilong hem witim naef, hem katem hemseleva witim razor; hem katem feis bilong hem.” Wei for katem seleva taem olketa worship hem kastom bilong olketa wea worshipim Baal.—1 Kings 18:28.

Wanfala poem bilong Ugarit showimaot hao planti long religion bilong olketa Canaanite luk olsem savve kukim pikinini goat insaed milk bilong mami bilong hem olsem part long worship for olketa god bilong wei for garem pikinini. Bat, long Law Bilong Moses, olketa Israelite kasem komand: “Iu mas no kukim pikinini goat insaed milk bilong mami bilong hem.”—Exodus 23:19.

Markem Witim Bible Raeting

Main samting olketa iusim for helpem olketa transleitim Ugarit raeting hem nao Hebrew languis wea Bible iusim. Peter Craigie hem sei: “Planti word wea insaed Hebrew languis wea Bible iusim hem no klia and, samtaem pipol no savve long hem tu; olketa transleita bifor mek-20 century olketa samtaem guessim nomoa, thru long samfala wei, wanem nao mining bilong olketa word hia. Bat taem olketa sem word hia kamap insaed long raeting bilong Ugarit, mifala savve muv ahed for kasem mining bilong hem.”

Olsem example, planti transleitim wanfala Hebrew word wea stap long Isaiah 3:18, olsem “headband.” Wanfala word wea semsem long raeting bilong Ugarit hem minim sun and woman god bilong sun. Dastawe, olketa woman bilong Jerusalem wea profesi bilong Isaiah storyim maet werem olketa smol sun necklace and samfala nara “samting wea garem sheip bilong moon” for mekhae long olketa god bilong Canaan.

Insaed Masoretic text, long Proverbs 26:23, hem sei “lips wea olsem fire and wanfala wicked heart” hem olsem wanfala clay pot wea olketa kavarem witim “dirty bilong silver.” Wanfala word long raeting bilong Ugarit showimaot hem stret for transleitim diswan “olsem paint wea shaen wea olketa putim long pis clay.” Datfala New World Translation hem barava transleitim stret disfala proverb: “Olketa lips wea talemaot strongfala feeling and wea join witim badfala heart hem olsem sliver paint wea shaen wea olketa putim long wanfala pis clay.”

Waswe, Hem Faondeson for Olketa Raeting Bilong Bible?

Samfala savveman wea studyim raeting wea olketa faendem long Ras Shamra tingse samfala part long Bible kam from olketa poem bilong Ugarit. André Caquot, member bilong French Institute, hem sei “kastom bilong olketa Canaanite hem faondeson for religion bilong olketa Israelite.”

Saed long Psalm 29, Mitchell Dahood bilong Pontifical Biblical Institute long Rome hem sei: “Disfala psalm hem wanfala copy bilong wanfala Canaanite hymn for datfala god bilong big wind Baal . . . Klosap evri word insaed long datfala psalm hem semsem witim datfala oldfala raeting bilong Canaan.” Waswe, kaen tingting olsem hem stret? Nomoa nao!

Olketa nara savveman wea no ting olsem sei kaen tingting hia ova tumas. “No eni raeting long Ugarit barava semsem evribit witim Psalm 29,” hem nao wanem savveman Garry Brantley. “For sei Psalm 29 (or eni nara other Bible scripture) hem wanfala copy bilong olketa heathen kastom story hem toktok wea no garem eni faondeson.”

Waswe, wei wea samfala toktok, poem, and stael bilong raeting hem lelebet semsem hem minim diswan hem wanfala copy? Nomoa, iumi luksavve hao samfala samting savve semsem. The Encyclopedia of Religion hem sei: “Reason why samfala samting hem semsem hem from stael and story hem depend long living long datfala taem: and tu nomata Ugarit and Israel barava difren saed long land and living, olketa part long wanfala big sekson wea garem sem wei for iusim olketa word saed long poetry and religion.” Dastawe Garry Brantley hem sei: “Hem no stret for sei olketa Bible raeting mas kam from heathen biliv just from languis hem lelebet semsem.”

Last samting for tingim hem, eniting wea semsem midolwan raeting wea olketa faendem long Ras Shamra and Bible, hem saed long languis nomoa, no long spiritual saed. Man for studyim olketa oldfala samting Cyrus Gordon hem sei: “Olketa hae standard and mark saed long fasin wea stap insaed Bible hem no stap long Ugarit.” For tok stret, olketa wei wea tufala difren hem winim eni wei wea tufala semsem.

Olketa study wea olketa duim long Ugarit luk olsem bae go ahed for helpem olketa Bible student for minim olketa kastom, history, and religion wea stap long taem bilong olketa man wea raetem Bible and bilong datfala Hebrew nation. Taem olketa lukluk moa long olketa raeting wea olketa faendem long Ras Shamra maet olketa lukim samfala samting wea bae helpem man for minim gud datfala oldfala Hebrew languis. Bat winim diswan, olketa samting wea olketa faendem long Ugarit hem barava showimaot wei wea nogud dirty worship bilong Baal hem barava difren from klin worship bilong Jehovah.

[Olketa Footnote]

[Blurb long page 25]

Olketa samting olketa faendem long Ugarit helpem iumi minim gud go moa olketa Scripture

[Map/Olketa Piksa long page 24, 25]

(For formatted text, lukim pablikeson)

Rul Bilong Hittite long mek-14 century B.C.E.

MEDITERRANEAN SEA

Euphrates

MT. CASIUS (JEBEL EL-AGRA)

Ugarit (Ras Shamra)

Tell Sukas

Orontes

SYRIA

EGYPT

[Olketa Credit Line]

Smol statue bilong Baal and rhyton wea olketa mekem olketa sheip bilong wanfala animal: Musée du Louvre, Paris; painting bilong royal palace: © D. Héron-Hugé pour “Le Monde de la Bible”

[Piksa long page 25]

Ples door bilong palace stap bifor

[Piksa long page 26]

Wanfala kastom story poem bilong Ugarit maet provaedem information abaotem Exodus 23:19

[Credit Line]

Musée du Louvre, Paris

[Olketa Piksa long page 27]

Ston bilong Baal

Gold dish wea showim pipol wea go hunting

Box olketa kavarem witim Ivory garem piksa bilong woman god bilong wei for garem pikinini

[Credit Line]

Evri piksa: Musée du Louvre, Paris