THE

ANCHOR BIBLE
DICTIONARY
David Noel Freedman
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Gary A. Herion David F. Graf

John David Pleins

MANAGING EDITOR

Astrid B. Beck

DOUBLEDAY
NEW YORK LONDON TORONTO SYDNEY AUCKLAND

Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

THE ANCHOR BIBLE DICTIONARY

PUBLISHED BY DOUBLEDAY a division of Bantam Doubleday Dell
Publishing Group, Inc.
666 Fi h Avenue, New York, New York 10103
THE ANCHOR BIBLE DICTIONARY, DOUBLEDAY, and the portrayal of
an anchor with the le ers ABD are trademarks of Doubleday, a
division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.
DESIGN BY Stanley S. Drate/Folio Graphics Company, Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Anchor

Bible dictionary / David Noel Freedman, editor-in-chief; associate editors, Gary A. Herion, David F. Graf, John David Pleins;
managing editor, Astrid B. Beck
1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
1. BibleDictionaries. I. Freedman, David Noel, 1922.
BS440.A54 1992
220.3dc20
918385
CIP
Copyright 1992 Doubleday, a division of Bantam Doubleday
Dell Publishing Group, Inc.
All Rights Reserved

Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

HOSTS, HOST OF HEAVEN.

e term b, pl. bt

(masc. pl. 2x; Pss 103:21; 148:2 [Q]), commonly translated

host, hosts, denotes primarily a military retinue or army, a
meaning consistent with its common Semitic etymology (cf.
Akk. bu; Old South Arabic b; Eth. aba/aba; Ug. bu). e
term occurs some 486 times V 3, p 302 in the Hebrew Bible, 315
of which are in the plural. e plural form, bt, occurs as a
divine epithet associated with Yahweh in 284 of those occurrences. e term is used in Hebrew to designate both human
and divine armies, as well as to connote certain celestial bodies, a usage that is not uncommon within the mythopoeic conceptions of the ANE.
A. Hosts
B. Host of Heaven
1. Yahwehs Military Retinue
2. Yahwehs Council
3. Objects of Worship
C. Yahweh bt
1. Cultic Name
2. Associations with Prophetic Speech
A. Hosts
Apart from its use with the divine name Yahweh, the word
b most commonly designates a military retinue or army
(e.g., Exod 6:26; 12:51; Num 1:3, 52; 2:3, 4, 6, 8; 10:14, 15, 16, 18;
31:48; Deut 20:9; 24:5; Josh 4:13; Judg 4:2; 8:6; 1 Sam 12:9; 2 Sam
2:8; 8:16; 10:18; 1 Kgs 1:19; 2:35; 2 Kgs 4:13; Isa 13:4; Pss
44:10Eng 44:9; 60:12Eng 60:10; 108:12Eng 108:11; etc.). By
extension, the word also indicates warfare or military service
Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

(Num 1:3, 20, 22, 24; 26:2; 31:3, 4, 5, 6; Josh 22:12, 33; 1 Sam 28:1; 1
Chr 5:18; 12:26Eng 12:25; etc.). Additionally, b may be used
to designate cultic service (Num 4:3, 23, 30, 35, 39, 43; 8:24, 25)
as well as dicult or harsh service (Isa 40:2; Job 7:1; 14:14; Dan
10:1).
B. Host of Heaven
e phrase b hamayim, host of heaven, is used to
denote the heavenly bodies, either as personified forces or as
celestial bodies. In this usage, b always occurs in the singular.

1. Yahwehs Military Retinue. b is also used to desig-

nate the retinue of Yahweh, reflecting the Hebrew belief that

Yahweh led the armies of Israel (Num 10:3536; Deut 33:25,
2629; Josh 5:1315; Judg 5:23; Isa 13:15; Joel 4:11bEng 3:11b; Ps
68:813, 18Eng 68:712, 17; etc.). is usage could be applied
to the arena of human warfare (Exod 6:26; 7:4; 12:17, 41, 51).
One of the clearest examples of this is found in Davids
exchange with Goliath, where the young Israelite notes that
he has come out to fight in the name of Yahweh bt, the
god of the ba le lines of Israel (maarkt yirl) (1 Sam 17:45).
Additionally, the association of Yahweh war with the ark (cf.
especially 1 Sam 4:17:2) further exemplifies the conception of
Yahwehs involvement in military aairs.
In the cosmic arena, Yahweh is depicted as the one who
musters the heavenly army (b milm; Isa 13:4). As the
host of the heights (b hammrm; Isa 24:21), the celestial
bodies are depicted as the heavenly corps under the command
of Yahweh. is host of heaven is conceived as the creation
Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

of Yahweh, the members of which constitute his heavenly

army (Isa 40:26; 45:12; Pss 33:6; 103:21; 148:2; Gen 2:1; Sir 17:32;
24:2; 43:8). Indeed, the sun, moon, and stars may be depicted as
composing this heavenly retinue (Josh 10:1213; Judg 5:20; Hab
3:11; Dan 8:10). While preparing for the conquest of Jericho,
Joshua encountered his heavenly counterpart, the commander of the army of Yahweh (ar-b-yhwh), who appeared in
the guise of a warrior to deliver a message prior to the conquest of the land (Josh 5:1415; see also Dan 8:11). In this function, the members of this heavenly army might be conceived
as angels, i.e., messengers of Yahweh. In Ps 103:2021 Yahwehs messengers (malkyw), the mighty warriors (gibbr
ka), are included among his host (byw), his ministers
who do his will. When Jacob encounters the messengers of
God (mlk lhm), he responds by calling them the army
of God (manh lhm), providing an etiology for the place
name Mahanaim (Gen 32:23Eng 32:12). At Qumran the
angelic figures are o en designated as warriors (1QM 15: 14;
12:8; IQH 3:3536; 5:21; 8:1112; etc.), and in the NT, the heavenly host is depicted alongside the angels (Luke 2:13).
2. Yahwehs Council. In conjunction with this messenger
function a ributed to the members of Yahwehs heavenly
armies, the host of heaven are also depicted as members of
Yahwehs heavenly council. In 1 Kgs 22:19, the prophet Micaiah
ben Imlah proclaims: I saw Yahweh seated upon his throne
and all the host of heaven were stationed about him (wkolb hamayim md lyw [cf. 2 Chr 18:18]). It was these
figures who served to execute the will of the deity (1 Kgs
22:1923 = 2 Chr 18:1822; Isaiah 6). Within the context of the
Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

depictions of the divine council, these beings are called bn

lm, sons of god (Pss 29:1; 89:7Eng 89:6; compare bn
[h]lhm, Deut 32:8 [LXX; 4QDt]; Gen 6:2, 4; Job 1:6; 2:1; bn
elyn, Ps 82:6). More commonly, they are referred to as holy
ones (qdm, Deut 33:23; Job 5:1; 15:15 [Q]; Pss 16:3; 89:6,
8Eng 89:5, 7; Zech 14:5; qde, Exod 15:11; Pss 77:14Eng 77:13;
93:5).
ese beings, while clearly assigned an inferior status
(cf. Deut 3:24; 10:17; Jer 10:6; Pss 86:8; 95:3; 135:5; etc.), constituted the host of heaven. e parallelism of the morning stars
with all the sons of god (kkb bqer//kol-bn lhm; Job
38:7), when coupled with those references to the heavenly bodies as participants in the wars of Yahweh (Josh 5:1315;
10:12b13a; Judg 5:20; Ps 148:23), clearly suggests the identity
of the groups. As members of the assembly, they also serve to
praise Yahweh in his court (Pss 29:1; 148:23).
3. Objects of Worship. Given the distinctive function of
these heavenly beings, it should occasion no surprise that they
were accorded special status by some and became the object of
worship.
e worship of the host of heaven (b
hamayim) is consistently condemned in the biblical materials. Such worship practices were equated with the worship of
other gods (lhm rm; Deut 17:3), and they are o en
listed alongside the sun, the moon, and the stars (Deut 4:19;
17:3; Jer 8:2; 2 Kgs 23:45). In these instances, the b
hamayim seem to include the totality of the celestial bodies
and the signs of the zodiac (2 Kgs 23:5), as did the militaristic
application of the term.
e practice of worshipping these
beings constitutes the reason for part of the Deuteronomistic
Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

Historians condemnation of both Israel and Judah; the historian condemns the worship of the host of heavens along with
that of Baal and Asherah. Altars were built to the b
hamayim, to whom incense and libations were oered (2
Kgs 17:16; 21:3, 5 = 2 Chr 33:3, 5; Jer 19:13; Zeph 1:5). ough V 3,
p 303 Babylonian and Assyrian influences are o en cited as
motivating factors in such practices, a common Canaanite
background seems more likely.
C. Yahweh bt
According to certain traditions contained in the Hebrew
Bible, the god of Israel was called Yahweh [the god] of Hosts,
yhwh [lh] bt, for that was his name (Isa 47:4; 48:2;
51:15; Jer 10:16; 31:35; 46:18; Amos 4:13; 5:27). e plural form
bt occurs as part of the divine name 285 times in the
Hebrew Bible. In 267 of these occurrences, bt follows the
name Yahweh immediately, while the longer phrase yhwh
lh (ha)bt occurs 18 times. e precise meaning and
grammatical explanations for the name and its various forms
continue to be debated. e interpretation of the divine name
Yahweh as well as the broad range of possible meanings for
the epithet bt heighten the diculties involved in a resolution to the issue.
ree general approaches are characteristic of the
a empts to resolve the problem. If the original form yahweh
was a verb, possibly a causative form of to be, then the
phrase yhwh bt might be interpreted as a part of a longer
sentence name, perhaps an original epithet of the Canaanite
Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

god El. According to this explanation, the name would mean

he creates the heavenly armies. e longer form of the epithet, yhwh lh bt, Yahweh, the god of hosts, might
then be viewed as a secondary interpretation that developed
when the name Yahweh was seen as only a proper name.
ough it is possible that the phrase yhwh bt preserves
the verbal force of the divine name, it is also clear that the
divine name functions in most instances as a proper noun. If
Yahweh is so interpreted, then the term bt may be taken
as an abstract or intensive plural noun, might or mighty,
used in apposition to Yahweh. Such an interpretation might
be suggested by the common LXX translation of yhwh bt
as kyrios pantokratr, the Lord Almighty.
is explanation
avoids the problem of interpreting yhwh as a proper name in
the construct state.
e inscriptions discovered at Kuntillet
Ajrud, which refer to yhwh mrn and to yhwh tmn, may be relevant to this problem. If these are to be read as Yahweh of
Samaria and Yahweh of Teman (cf. Hab 3:3), then these
might furnish a Hebrew parallel for understanding yhwh
bt as a construct chain, hence Yahweh of hosts. e LXX
translation kyrios tn dynamen reflects such an understanding
of the term.
1. Cultic Name. Despite the controversies surrounding the
exact nature of the epithet bt, there is general agreement
that the origin of the name is to be found within the Israelite
cultus, most probably in association with the militaristic qualities associated with the independent use of the term b.
e epithet yhwh bt is not a ested in the Pentateuch,
Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

Joshua, or Judges. e first occurrence of the phrase, according to the canonical arrangement of the Hebrew Bible, is in
association with the ark of the covenant and the cult center at
Shiloh. In 1 Sam 4:4 the ark is called the ark of the covenant of
yhwh bt, who is enthroned on the cherubim (cf. 2 Sam
6:2).

e association of yhwh bt with the ark and with the

cultic shrine of Shiloh (1 Sam 1:3, 11) suggests that the origins
of the epithet are to be found in the pre-Jerusalem cultus. e
significance of the ark and the traditions associated with it is
illustrated by Davids establishment of the ark in his new cult
center, with which it came to be associated (2 Sam 6:2, 18; 2
Sam 7:8, 26; Isa 6:3; etc.).
e premonarchical Israelite traditions which interpret
the ark as a war palladium upon which the god of Israel was
enthroned and from which he led the armies of Israel make
explicit the association of the epithet Lord of Hosts with the
ark and with its military functions (1 Sam 17:45). e warrior
imagery of the Lord of the heavenly armies, marching victoriously from war over his enemies, is clearly portrayed in Ps
24:8, 10 where Yahweh of Hosts, Yahweh strong and
mighty, the mighty warrior, the king of glory, is praised.
2. Associations with Prophetic Speech. Of the 285 occurrences of bt as part of a divine epithet, 251 (88%) are to be
found in the prophetic books. Additionally, 244 instances
(97.2%) of the phrase yhwh bt (or the variant yhwh lh
[ha]bt) occur in the following six works: Isaiah 155 (62x);
Jeremiah (82x); Amos (9x); Haggai (14x); Zechariah (53x);
Malachi (24x). A major conceptual background for Hebrew
prophecy was formed by the idea of the prophet as the mesFreedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.
Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

senger of Yahweh (Hag 1:13; Mal 3:1) who had been privy to
Yahwehs council (Jer 23:18, 22; Amos 3:7). e frequent introduction of prophetic oracles with the phrase thus says Yahweh (kh mar yhwh) suggests a further connection between
the prophetic messenger role and the name yhwh bt.
Regre ably, the connection of the epithet bt with the
formula kh mar yhwh is not at all clear. Despite the a ractiveness of the suggestion that the formula kh mar yhwh
bt might have originated as part of a priestly oracle ritual
associated with the ark, the use of the epithet with the messenger formula does not seem to support such a position. e
inability to demonstrate that such a connection can be traced
back to early traditions does not diminish the significance of
the name yhwh bt in Hebrew prophecy. For Isaiah, Yahweh bt, Yahweh of Hosts, was the god of Israel (5:16, 24;
21:10; 44:6), the one who mustered and commanded the heavenly armies (13:4; 34:4; 45:12). e abstract nature conveyed by
the epithet might be indicated by the LXXs transliteration of
bt by sabath throughout the book of Isaiah (see also Rom
9:29; Jas 5:4). A connection between bt and kh mar yhwh
may be demonstrated for Jeremiah, Haggai, Zechariah, and
Malachi, however. While such might indicate that this is a late,
postexilic prophetic development, the importance of the epithet as an expression of the power and majesty of Israels god
is not diminished. Additionally, with the possible exception of
Amos, these prophetic works display a close association of one
kind or another with Jerusalem and the temple establishment.
Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.

Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

10

For these prophetic voices, Yahweh bt, envisioned as the

leader of both the earthly and heavenly armies, directed the
aairs of history, both earthly and cosmic, through the
proclamation of his divine decree, delivered by either heavenly or prophetic messengers.
Bibliography

Albright, W. F. 1948. Review of Lpithte divine Jahv Sebat: tude

philologique, historique et exgtique, by B. N. Wamdacq. JBL 67:
37781.
V 3, p 304 Cross, F. M. 1973. Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic. Cambridge.
Eissfeldt, O. 1950. Jahwe Zebaoth. Miscellanea Academica Berolinensia
2: 12850. Repr. KlSchr 3: 10323.
Emerton, J. A. 1982. New Light on Israelite Religion: e Implications of the Inscriptions from Kuntillet Ajrud. ZAW 94: 120.

Freedman, D. N. 1960. e Name of the God of Moses. JBL 79: 15156.

Janzen, J. G. 1973. Studies in the Text of Jeremiah. HMS 6. Cambridge.
Miller, P. E. 1973.
e Divine Warrior in Early Israel. HMS 5.
Cambridge.
Ross, J. P. 1967. Jahweh e in Samuel and Psalms. VT 17: 7692.
Tsevat, M. 1965. Studies in the Book of Samuel, IV: Yahweh eao.
HUCA 36: 4958.

E. THEODORE MULLEN, JR.

Freedman, David Noel et al., eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary 1992 : n. pag. Print.

Exported from Logos Bible Software, 20:54 11 February, 2016.

11