Do the following verses suggest Early Judaism was Polytheistic?

[Pieman333272]

I heard these on another forum. I don’t think they are from a Catholic Bible but I’ll post the translations the poster used. He argued that these suggest God, as revealed in the OT, was equivalent to the Levantian god YHWH, who was a minor god in their pantheon. I think that would have difficult implications for Christianity. Here are the verses, and his notes:

Exodus 6:2-3

God also said to Moses, “I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty (El Shaddai) but by my name the Lord (YHWH) I did not make myself known to them.”

^This one, the poster suggests, suggests that the god of the Levant who the Israelites worshiped changed

Deuteronomy 32:7-9

Remember the days of old; consider the generations long past. Ask your father and he will tell you, your elders, and they will explain to you; When the Most High (El Eloyn) gave the nations their inheritance, when he set up the boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of God (EL). For the Lord’s (YWHY) portion is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance.

^This seems especially problematic to me

Psalm 82:1

“God presides in the great assembly (council of El) he gives judgment among the gods.”

 

[bogeydogg]

El Shaddai is the Almighty. The God who is over all. YHWH is the warrior God. The LORD is telling Moses that the People have never known Him as the God who is coming down to war on behalf of his people and thus they did not know Him as YHWH. He is the same God but is making Himself known to men in a new way. In other revelation is in process even though God is not.

Israel is frequently referred to as a corpus as God’s son. And so when God allots them their lands He does so for His sons. He ultimately reminds them that their great inheritance however is not a land but Himself.

In the Hebrew the word elohim does not necessarily refer to YHWH, it may also refer to governors, kings, rulers of the Earth etc. Taken in context I think it is pretty clear that is what the psalmist is saying here that the rulers of the earth have judged the people without justice and oppressed them and the Psalmist is crying out for justice.

YHWH answers by saying these elohim “ye are gods” although they be great in power and over the nations and people will die just like any other men because the end of all things is that YHWH will judge the Earth and inherit all nations.

So I think pretty clearly the answer is no, the Israelites were not and never were polytheists.

God Bless

 

[jmcrae]

The term “gods” can also denote powerful offices (kings, etc.) Thus, “God is God over all the gods” simply means that God is the source of all authority, both human and divine.

 

[twf]

In some cases elohim (the gods) refers to the angels - the term was used, as other posters have noted, quite loosely.