- Jan 4, 2019
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I learned about something last night for the first time. We are familiar with Yahweh, god of the Israelites, Chemosh, god of the Moabites, Milcom, god of the Ammonites, Asherah, goddess of the Sidonians, but little do we know about the god of the Edomites: Qōs. One reason we are not familiar with Qōs is that he is never mentioned at all in the biblical accounts except in the personal name of a man named Barqōs ("son of Qōs) in Ezra 2:53 and Nehemiah 7:55, an alternative to Benaiah which means "son of Yah". But based on the material record we currently do have and some written information outside the scriptures, Qōs was the Idumean structural parallel to Yahweh. They were almost identical. He had his own class of priests as well. It is believed that the name 'Qōs' means bow, and this probably refers to his role as a war deity. It may be of no coincidence if the ancestor of the Edomites was declared in Genesis 25:27 "a skillful hunter, a man of the field".
Herod the Great was of Edomite lineage, but interestingly, an associate and brother-in-law of his, Costobarus I's personal name means "Qōs is mighty", suggesting that Qōs was still recognized during the first century. It may be that the Edomites and Israelites had two different names for the same god post-exile (thus Herod's temple in Jerusalem).
Ironically, they say that Qōs has been identified with Quzah, a pre-Islamic god of weather, and may have been introduced into northern Arabian pantheon, which may have been one of the deities Muhammad despised as pagan. If true, the irony of its historical background up to its rejection by a monotheist group is funny.
I'm really curious about this god, and wonder if any of you know about this? I would be happy to learn more tbh.
Herod the Great was of Edomite lineage, but interestingly, an associate and brother-in-law of his, Costobarus I's personal name means "Qōs is mighty", suggesting that Qōs was still recognized during the first century. It may be that the Edomites and Israelites had two different names for the same god post-exile (thus Herod's temple in Jerusalem).
Ironically, they say that Qōs has been identified with Quzah, a pre-Islamic god of weather, and may have been introduced into northern Arabian pantheon, which may have been one of the deities Muhammad despised as pagan. If true, the irony of its historical background up to its rejection by a monotheist group is funny.
I'm really curious about this god, and wonder if any of you know about this? I would be happy to learn more tbh.