Baal and Yahweh as storm gods: A comparative study of Ugaritic and biblical traditions

Abstract

This article examines the role of the storm god in two major Northwest Semitic religious traditions: Baal in the Ugaritic texts and Yahweh in the Hebrew Bible. Using a comparative historical-literary approach, the study analyses mythological narratives, storm imagery, divine warfare, kingship ideology, cultic practices, and theological development preserved in both textual and archaeological sources. The Ugaritic Baal Cycle portrays Baal as a storm deity associated with rain, fertility, kingship, and cosmic order within a polytheistic pantheon. Similarly, several biblical texts depict Yahweh through storm-theophany imagery involving thunder, lightning, mountains, clouds, and victories over chaotic waters. The study demonstrates that early Yahwistic traditions emerged within the broader religious environment of the ancient Levant and preserved important continuities with Northwest Semitic storm god traditions. At the same time, a significant theological transformation occurred as Yahweh gradually came to be understood as the exclusive and universal God of Israel. Archaeological discoveries, including inscriptions from Kuntillet ‘Ajrud and Khirbet el-Qom, further indicate the diversity of early Yahwistic practices prior to the development of centralised monotheism. The article argues that biblical authors adapted and reinterpreted older West Semitic religious imagery within new covenantal, historical, and monotheistic frameworks. Comparative analysis of Baal and Yahweh, therefore, provides important insight into the religious, literary, and theological development of ancient Israelite religion and the emergence of biblical monotheism.
Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This article contributes to biblical studies and ancient Near Eastern studies by showing that Yahwistic storm god imagery preserves important continuities with Ugaritic Baal traditions while being reinterpreted within emerging monotheistic theology. By combining comparative textual analysis with archaeological and historical approaches, the study also contributes to interdisciplinary discussions concerning religious development, cultural continuity, and identity formation in the ancient Near East.