More Is Less: An Analysis of Syncretism and "Other Gods" in Jeremiah

An Analysis of Syncretism and "Other Gods" in Jeremiah

In the book of Jeremiah, the prophet deals repeatedly and emphatically with the subject of the worship of "other gods." Jeremiah is not one to mince words or sugar-coat messages, and he is forthright and blunt in his message to Israel concerning the worship of idols and false gods. "He speaks of the gods of the nations in contemptuous terms such as 'worthlessness' (2:5), 'no gods' (2:11), 'broken cisterns' (2:13), powerless to help men in the hour of trouble (2:28)," writes J.A. Thompson.¹ According to Jeremiah, the worship of other gods is a very serious problem indeed in Israel, and one which will assuredly lead to the nation's destruction.

Direct mention of "other gods" occurs some 35 times, each time as evidence of disobedience, grounds for punishment, provocation to Yahweh, or the downfall of the people. The most obvious discussion of other gods occurs in chapter 10, the first 16 verses of which Thompson has entitled "A Satire on Idolatry," and which the NIV inadequately entitles "God and Idols." As we shall see, "God vs. Idols" would have been more in keeping with Jeremiah's message.

Jeremiah is eloquent in his mockery of idols here. Thompson calls it "a scathing and satirical attack on idols."² "They cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel," says Jeremiah (v.3). "They adorn it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not totter." The sarcasm here is evident. "Like a scarecrow in a melon patch," he continues unabashedly, "their idols cannot speak; they must be carried because they cannot walk." This portrait of little helpless idols would be funny were it not so serious. "Do not fear them; they can do no harm," Jeremiah concludes, philosophically adding, "nor can they do any good."³

Then Jeremiah turns from this pathetic scene of helpless manmade objects to Yahweh, and praises him, saying "No one is like you, O Yahweh; you are great, and your name is mighty in power" (v. 6). This comes in stark relief to the previous portrait of supposed deity. Jeremiah sets up a contrast between the gods of the "nations" and Yahweh, the Lord of hosts. The remaining verses through v. 16 continue in this fashion. "All the wise men of the nations," he says, "are senseless and foolish; they are taught by worthless wooden idols." Then, in contrast: "But the LORD is the true God; when he is angry, the earth trembles; the nations cannot endure his wrath" (v. 10). Jeremiah can portray this contrast so well because of what Thompson calls his "strong awareness of the reality of Yahweh," due to which "every idol seemed to be an empty sham and an insult to Yahweh."⁴

Yahweh is thus shown to be vastly superior to the gods of the nations, which are a "purely human production."⁵ Yahweh was not manmade, could move and speak of his own will, and could bestow both blessing and judgment. Moreover, as Thompson writes, "Yahweh's power to control the nations who neither know him nor recognize him shows his superiority over their lifeless and powerless 'no gods.'"⁶

Thompson has observed the important theological ramifications of this strong satire:

"Theologically these verses are of great significance, for they set Yahweh apart from every other object of worship. There is none like him (v. 6). He is the true, living God (v. 10), the creator of the heavens and the earth (v. 12), the controller of the clouds and the rain (v. 13), the one who alone is worthy of the reverence of all men (v. 7). Moreover, he claims Israel as his own (v. 16). Any attempt to share allegiance to him with another merited judgment, for it amounted to a rejection of the covenant."⁷

Thus we see that the theological position of Yahweh over all the earth, and specifically as the God of Israel, necessitates that he is a God who will not allow his followers to divide their loyalty between him and any other vastly lesser deity.

The very first mention of "other gods" occurs about as early as possible in the book given the format -- in the sixteenth verse (1:16) -- wherein Yahweh promises, "I will pronounce my judgments on my people because of their wickedness in forsaking me, in burning incense to other gods and in worshiping what their hands have made." Throughout Jeremiah, Yahweh's words indicate this important aspect of idolatry and false worship: Yahweh considers these wicked acts (idolatry and worship of other gods) forsaking him. Indeed, Thompson observes that "in the book of Jeremiah idolatry is considered one of the [two] reasons why Yahweh brought judgment on the nation."⁸ This view allows no room for the people to follow other gods without forsaking Yahweh.

The second chapter continues where the first left off, with strong words against Israel's pursuit of other gods. Yahweh begins by remembering how Israel formerly loved him "as a bride" (v. 2), but then he brings "charges against" Israel (v. 9), using strong imagery to portray Israel no longer as a bride, but as a prostitute (v. 20), or further, a "she-camel" or "wild donkey, sniffing the wind in her craving" (v. 24). A female donkey in heat is hardly a flattering comparison for the people of Israel, but that is the divine metaphor for Israel's pursuit of foreign gods; a distasteful and shameful act. And again we see Yahweh's singular view: "my people have exchanged their Glory for worthless idols" (v. 11, emphasis added). Yahweh sees idolatry as excluding him; the idols are to be viewed as in place of Yahweh.

In these and many other instances in Jeremiah, Yahweh demonstrates this view, presenting to Israel (whether implicit or explicit) a choice: either follow other gods, or follow me. There can be no following of both. The people, unfortunately, do not seem to grasp this concept. They repeatedly seem to think that somehow, Yahweh is one of the gods they follow, that it is possible, even permissible, for them to make sacrifices to Yahweh, even while making offerings to other gods, and receive the blessing of both. "Either Yahweh or idols," preaches Jeremiah doggedly, yet "Both Yahweh and idols," insist the people foolishly. This hybridization of Yahwism with paganism is an example of syncretism, something that believers in Yahweh (the God who will not be imaged) struggle with even today.

An all-purpose dictionary definition of syncretism calls it “Reconciliation or fusion of differing systems of belief, as in philosophy or religion, especially when success is partial or the result is heterogeneous.”⁹ Michael Bunker hones this rather broad definition to be more specific to our problem:

Using this definition of syncretism [the dictionary's] in relation to it being an antonym for God’s ordained system of holiness and separatism, we will expand the usage of the term for the purposes of clarity:
Syncretism: the unlawful, unreasonable and unbiblical marriage or fusion of the people of God with a world around them that hates them; or any combining of the holy and the profane; or any rebellious and sinful reliance by the people of God on God’s enemies for protection and help.¹⁰

This definition has a lot more meat to it, and perhaps explains further why Yahweh was upset with the people for adopting syncretism. A fully syncretist view of Yahweh and other gods would find nothing wrong with one temple for all gods, including Yahweh. Yahweh, on the other hand, will not be "included" among other gods; he alone is God, and admitting otherwise (vis a vis including other gods) is forsaking him. Of course, defined in these stark words, syncretism seems irrational and absurd, but we must be aware that it exists in many forms, and believers are not always certain what constitutes "following other gods." Some today consider the celebration of Christmas to be an example of syncretism, as the holiday (mostly its date) has pagan roots. Yet many celebrate the holiday and believe that it honors God. To the Israelites, practices which we read as absurd may not have seemed as irrational at face value. For example, in 7:30 (and again in 32:34) when the Israelites set up idols in the temple, Yahweh is angry, calling the act "detestable" and stating that it "defiled" the temple. Thompson expounds: "The placing of abominations in the temple was a supreme act of defiance and a gross gesture of sacrilege."¹¹ But from a syncretist point of view, Yahweh's house was merely being augmented by additional deities.

One of the most interesting (and most revealing) examples of the worship of other gods in Jeremiah is the reference to the "Queen of Heaven" in 7:16-20, and again in 44:15-19. These two passages form what Brueggemann calls "the Queen of Heaven inclusio," meaning that the two passages function as bookends surrounding the enclosed text. Immediately following Jeremiah's Temple Sermon (or possibly a part of it), Yahweh tells Jeremiah, "do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen to you." Merciful Yahweh appears here to be refusing mercy to Israel, despite even the possible intercession of a man of God.¹² What could have so incensed Yahweh? Or perhaps more accurately, what could have so ensured the irrevocable judgment of Israel? Yahweh continues in v. 17: "Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes of bread for the Queen of Heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods to provoke me to anger." The practice of worshiping this "Queen of Heaven" indicates that Israel requires judgment.

The "Queen of Heaven" was a well-known deity in Mesopotamia and Canaan, going alternately by Ishtar (Mesopotamia), Anat (Canaan), Astarte, Asherah, and various other names. She was evidently a fertility or rain goddess whom Israelite women had been worshiping for many years. Citing Amos 5:26, Thompson says that "the worship of the Queen of Heaven was old in Israel"¹³ and "the offering of grain, bread, and cakes to deities was widely known in the ancient Near East."¹⁴

But these were not any people worshiping the Queen of Heaven; these were God's people, people of the Torah, and when they went about worshiping other gods the result was an odd (and admittedly irrational) hybrid faith. Although they still made sacrifices to Yahweh, they made offerings also to the Queen of Heaven. Thompson points out that although "The women were the practitioners of the ritual," and "it was they who burnt the sacrifices and poured out the libations," a closer examination revealed that "the whole family was involved: children gathered wood, fathers kindled the fire, and women kneaded the dough to make cakes for the Queen of Heaven."¹⁵ Perhaps most oddly, "one of the features of the worship involved the making of vows (v. 25), and according to the law (Num. 30:7-16) women had to have their husbands' consent." Thompson is right in calling these practices "a strange syncretist mixture."¹⁶

Yahweh's response to Israel's syncretism is shocking: "Go ahead," he says. "Add your burnt offerings to your other sacrifices and eat the meat yourselves!" This command would be shocking to any follower of the Torah; sacrifices were not to be eaten. Why would God command such a thing? "For when I brought your forefathers out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just give them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices," Yahweh continues, "but I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people" (vs. 21-22). Yahweh is pointing out that there is more to the Torah than just sacrifices. If the people of Israel think that by making their required sacrifices, they have fulfilled their duty to Yahweh and are worthy of his blessing, despite their also making offerings to other gods, Yahweh wants them to know they are mistaken. They may as well not make any sacrifices whatsoever. Violating the covenant is total, and if they violate the covenant by following other gods, there is no purpose in attempting to uphold the rest of the covenant. "The cult of the Queen of Heaven was a rejection of Yahweh's sole sovereignty as the supreme Lord of the covenant," writes Thompson. "Such a rejection was a provocation. The end result would be judgment."¹⁷

Yahweh then promises exactly that -- heavy punishment for idolatry. This is in keeping with Jeremiah's earlier reminders to the people of the Mosaic covenant, and the consequences for breaking it. In Deuteronomy, Yahweh gives a strong warning against the worship of other gods:

If anyone secretly entices you--even if it is your brother, your father's son or your mother's son, or your own son or daughter, or the wife you embrace, or your most intimate friend--saying, "Let us go worship other gods," whom neither you nor your ancestors have known, any of the gods of the peoples that are around you, whether near you or far away from you, from one end of the earth to the other, you must not yield to or heed any such persons.¹⁸

He also prescribes harsh punishment for idolatry:

If there is found among you, in one of your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, a man or woman who does what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God, and transgresses his covenant by going to serve other gods and worshiping them--whether the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven, which I have forbidden-- . . . then you shall bring out to your gates that man or that woman who has committed this crime and you shall stone the man or woman to death.¹⁹

The people of Israel should have known all this. Yet, they stubbornly worshiped the Queen of Heaven. Thompson claims that Israel's syncretist faith "demonstrated a fundamental insincerity in the nation."²⁰ Sadly, the people of Israel seemed intent on "covering the bases" by worshiping Yahweh and other gods, not heeding Yahweh's message that they must worship him or other gods. In fact, "so deep-dyed were they in this evil," observes Thompson, "that they had already passed beyond the possibility of repentance, a point made clear by the failure even of the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar to turn them back to Yahweh in repentance. It was for precisely this reason that Yahweh forbade Jeremiah to pray for the people."²¹

If in fact this left-bookend text is part of the Temple Sermon, which as far as we know is Jeremiah's first public address, the recalcitrance of the people is tragically emphasized by the right-bookend text in chapter 44, which Thompson believes is most likely Jeremiah's final words to Israel. Despite the repeated warnings and reminders from Yahweh to his people, they proved obdurate in their deliberate syncretism, because in 44:15-19, they are still at it, only this time they have heard Jeremiah's earlier rebukes and are vocal in defending themselves: "We will not listen to the message you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD!" they inform him (v. 16). "We will certainly do everything we said we would: We will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and will pour out drink offerings to her just as we and our fathers, our kings and our officials did in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. At that time we had plenty of food and were well off and suffered no harm. But ever since we stopped burning incense to the Queen of Heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have had nothing and have been perishing by sword and famine."

It is remarkable that although the people have been taken captive, and are no longer in the Temple in Jerusalem, where Jeremiah's original message was delivered (promising the destruction of Jerusalem if the people did not turn), but rather in Egypt, they still persist in their false worship. "Idolatry persisted," observes Thompson, "only now it was openly defended by those who practiced it."²² Despite being in captivity, they do not turn to Yahweh. Despite Jeremiah's earlier warning coming true, they spurn God's prophet and continue in their worship of the Queen of Heaven. In so doing, they give Yahweh the proverbial cold shoulder, and end up under judgment, with nothing but their little helpless idols to save them.

Jeremiah, no doubt moved by the eventual fate of his people, tended towards bitter irony in his descriptions of the coming judgment, as in 8:1-2:

"At that time, declares the LORD, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be removed from their graves. They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped. They will not be gathered up or buried, but will be like refuse lying on the ground."

Not only is this a shocking, indecent picture of the fate of Israel's people, but it again ridicules the ineffectual gods of the heavens and their lack of concern (or inability to be concerned) for their supposed followers. "These astral deities whom the people loved and served, whom they followed after, whom they consulted and worshipped, would look down on their scattered bones with cold indifference and unconcern."²³

Underlying syncretism is a very dangerous notion that Yahweh is only one. Not "the only one," but rather "only one of several." The idea exists today as religious inclusivism. Syncretism can even lurk under the guise of ecumenism. One must be wary of any doctrine which calls for the merging of religions, because while it may claim that one's faith in God would remain unchanged and therefore unthreatened, it may also ask that other faiths be brought in alongside one's faith in God, and if this God is the God of the Bible, this is akin to forsaking God altogether. God will not condescend to be cheapened by our syncretism.

The book of Jeremiah presents a strong case against syncretism. At least, if Yahweh is among the gods one is attempting to include. The New Testament argues strongly against syncretism as well. "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers," writes Paul in 2 Corinthians. "For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols?"²⁴ Faith in Yahweh can only be faith in only Yahweh, and when we attempt to add anything or anyone else to that faith, we are really ending up not with an augmented Yahwism, but a powerless add-on and no Yahwism at all. Syncretism and Yahweh do not mix. Just as Israel persisted in following the Queen of Heaven, only to (perhaps unintentionally) turn their backs on Yahweh and miss his covenant blessing, if we persist in setting up any idol in addition to Yahweh, then in the end we end up with nothing but a helpless scarecrow and our own guilt. In the end, an idea that sounds like addition is really subtraction. In the end, more is less.

Footnotes

1 Thompson, John A. The Book of Jeremiah. New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1980. p. 109.
2 Ibid., 325.
3 All Scripture citations are from the New International Version (© 1978, 1984 International Bible Society) unless otherwise noted.
4 Thompson, 326.
5 Ibid., 328.
6 Ibid., 109.
7 Ibid., 326.
8 Ibid., 674. The other reason Thompson gives is moral or ethical considerations.
9 The American Heritage Dictionary, 4th Edition
10 Bunker, Michael. "Isaiah Part XXXII," Michael Bunker Commentary. http://lazarusunbound.com/bunker_isaiahpart32.shtml
11 Thompson, 293.
12 cf. Gen. 18:20-33. The intercession of Abraham for the city of Sodom alters God’s criteria for the judgment of the city.
13 Thompson, 285.
14 Ibid., 680.
15 Ibid.
16 Ibid.
17 Ibid., 285.
18 Deut. 13:6-8.
19 Deut. 17:2-5.
20 Thompson, 287.
21 Ibid., 285.
22 Ibid., 673.
23 Ibid., 295.
24 2 Cor. 6:14-18.