What is a God in the Hebrew Bible? Part I: The Divine Cast of Characters
July 2025 | Vol. 13.7
By Michael B. Hundley
This article is the second in a 4-part series of articles on the nature of God in the Near East and Hebrew Bible. If you missed the first installment, check it out here.
Who is considered a god in the Hebrew Bible, better known from the Christian perspective as the Old Testament? Most agree on the quantity of deities — one, the Israelite god YHWH. Debate arises about the nature and characteristics of this singular god, with many arguing for an omniscient and omnipotent, invisible and immaterial being in keeping with modern Christian ideas. However, a closer look at the text reveals many other gods who differ from the stereotype. Even the biblical YHWH diverges from his modern profile. Instead, gods in the Hebrew Bible resemble ancient Near Eastern deities far more than most modern interpreters expect and may be comfortable with.
The absence of determinatives (linguistic markers telling the reader what category something belongs to) and the prevalence of monolatry (exclusive worship) in the Hebrew Bible make it difficult to classify superhuman beings. The monolatrous text is quick to denigrate any potential competitors like Baal. Without a category marker, it is often tempting to assume they are not gods at all. Interpreters also cannot help but read this ancient text through modern eyes, often succumbing to confirmation bias and cognitive dissonance reduction. We tend to find in it what we are looking for and find creative ways to dismiss data that may challenge our preexisting beliefs.
Baal, one of YHWH’s competitors (stele from Ugarit / Ras Shamra, Middle or Late Bronze Age). Louvre AO 15775. Photo © 2006 GrandPalaisRmn (musée du Louvre) / Franck Raux
Instead of being guided by our assumptions, we stand the best chance of understanding the ancient biblical perspective when we follow the logic of the text as much as possible. From the perspective of the Hebrew Bible, gods may be identified in at least three ways: 1) they may be explicitly called a god (el or elohim), even if the Bible forbids their worship; 2) they behave in ways characteristic of gods, such as deliberating in the divine council, conferring blessing, receiving worship, prayers, or offerings, or being invoked in an oath; and 3) they resemble other ANE gods. Within the world of the text, beings that fall into the first category are gods. Those in the second often may be considered divine, but there are exceptions. For example, people can confer blessings and may be invoked in oaths but are not gods. Beings who resemble ANE gods could be divine, but we must remember that one culture’s classification need not extend to another. Since the Bible is an anthology with various genres, we also should not expect a uniform biblical perspective any more than we should expect a uniform ANE one. One text may put a being in the god category, while another may not. Even the same text may present the same characters in differing ways depending on the context (e.g., with angels in Genesis and Exodus).
“Gods” in the Bible
Rather than present a singular god, the Bible refers to the plural “gods” hundreds of times in various contexts. Even so, gods are easy to overlook because of modern assumptions and because they often appear in contexts that minimize their value. Prohibitions and condemnations featuring “gods” make up the largest textual category, though few, if any, texts explicitly deny the existence of other gods. Instead of monotheism (the existence of only one god), the Bible’s primary agenda is monolatry (exclusive worship without denying the existence of other gods). For example, demanding in the Ten Commandments that Israel “shall have no other gods before” YHWH (Exod 20:3) is not an expression of monotheism, but rather of commitment (see also the famous Shema of Deut 6:4, 13). Yahweh must come first, which even could be read as a statement of priority, not exclusivity. However, when read alongside other prohibitions, the monolatrous implications are clear (e.g., Exod 20:4-5, 23; 23:13, 23-33). By mentioning gods, these texts demonstrate the polytheism prevalent among their primary audience. In fact, the exclusive, contractual language is necessary precisely because people believe in the existence of other gods. Rather than denying their existence, the texts specify that non-Yahwistic worship represents a breach of the Yahweh-Israelite covenant.
Praise texts, common throughout the ancient Near East, serve the monolatrous agenda by elevating YHWH above other gods, yet by doing so, they acknowledge the gods’ existence (e.g., Exod 15:11; 18:11; Deut 10:17; Josh 22:22; Psa 84:7; 86:8; 95:3; 2Chr 2:5). Some texts further distance YHWH from other gods by calling them to worship him (Deut 32:43; Dan 3:24; Psa 29:1-2; 95:3-5).
Other Gods
Moving from the generic to the particular, various other superhuman beings also may have been considered divine, including sons of God, angels, cherubim, seraphim, the Destroyer, and the Adversary. While there is some room for debate, the sons of God seem to be deities (Gen 6:2, 4; Deut 32:8 in the Greek, Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7; Psa 29:1; 82:6; 89:7). “Son” mostly likely refers to a member of the god category, just as son of man refers to a human and son of the prophets refers to a prophet. In Psalm 82:6, the analogous “sons of the Most-High” (Elyon) stands parallel to gods and sons of God seem to be members of the divine council (Job 1-2; Psa 82). At nearby Ugarit, the sons of god are in fact the major gods, the sons of the high god pair of El and Athirat.
Most assume that angels (literally messengers) are not gods, using the circular argument that they cannot be gods since there is only one god. However, monotheistic assumptions aside, there is no compelling reason to exclude angels from the god category and many reasons to include them. Divine messengers are consistently labeled gods in the surrounding cultures and may serve important advisory roles. In the Bible, they also serve more expansive functions, including destroying both God’s people (2 Sam 24:15-16) and their adversaries (2 Kgs 19:35). Angels even may be so closely associated with YHWH that they appear indistinguishable from him (e.g., Gen 16; 31:11-13; Exod 3). It is possible though not certain that the Bible calls angels gods (Gen 32:1-2; 35:7) and Daniel 3:25-29 equates an angel with a son of god. Rather than being nurturing winged women wearing white, angels have no wings in the text, are always either nongendered or male, and consistently inspire fear.
Plaque from a cross, ca. 1160-1170 CE. Left: 6-winged cherubim. Right: Byzantine Emperor Heraclius receiving the submission of the Sassanid king Khosrau II. Champlevé enamel over gilt copper. From the Meuse valley. Louvre MRR 245. ©2021 GrandPalaisRmn (Musée du Louvre) / Stéphane Maréchalle.
Cherubim and seraphim seem to be intimidating hybrid guardian figures. Instead of being cuddly winged children, the cherubim may either resemble winged bipeds or quadrupeds. They guard the entrance to the garden of Eden (Gen 3:24). They also seem more generally to be divine attendants, as YHWH is often called the cherubim dweller (1 Sam 4:4; 2 Sam 6:2; 2 Kgs 19:15; Isa 37:16; Psa 80:1; 99:1; 1 Chr 13:6) and cherubim artwork adorns the terrestrial divine dwelling places (tabernacle and temple). When YHWH is on the move, a cherub may serve as his mount (Psa 18:10) or as the moving supports for the divine throne (e.g., Ezek 1, 10, 11:22). Seraphim seem to be six-winged bipedal serpents (Isa 6). Ostensibly guards, they actually hide their faces from YHWH, highlighting his supremacy. Instead, they attend YHWH and like cheerleaders sing his praises, serving as intermediary priestlike figures who cleanse Isaiah’s lips and prepare him for an encounter with YHWH. While the Bible does not explicitly label them gods and they do not receive prayers or confer blessings (biblical cherubim do not speak at all), they resemble the hybrid divine guardians who feature throughout the ancient Near East, especially in Mesopotamia. As in the Bible, they often guard the entryways to the temples and the gods’ immediate presence and may serve as attendants who perform priestlike purificatory roles. In Mesopotamia, the protective lamassu and šedu figures are consistently written with the divine determinative, marking them as gods. On the whole, it is likely that the Bible considered cherubim and seraphim gods.
Relief depicting a six-winged goddess, from Tell Halaf, Syria, c. 10th century BCE. Walters Art Museum 21.16. Photo courtesy of the Walters Art Museum, CC0 1.0 Universal.
The Destroyer features as the executioner in the last plague of Egypt, the death of the Egyptian firstborn males. The blood of the lamb marks the houses for him to pass over as he carries out his grim task (Exod 12:23). He resembles various other ANE deities with impressive destructive capabilities (e.g., West Semitic Resheph and even the biblical angels of destruction). While not explicitly labeled divine, the Destroyer too is likely a god. He is clearly not human, and there is no other appropriate category for him.
The Destroyer passes through Egypt. From The Story of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation (1880). Public Domain, via Wikimedia
The satan is a shadowy figure in the Hebrew Bible, little resembling the personification of evil he comes to represent in later Christian tradition. Rather than being a name, the satan (literally “the adversary”) most likely served as a title or function. In most instances, satans are simply human adversaries (e.g., David in 1 Sam 29:24). In four cases, though, the adversary seems to be superhuman: the angel of YHWH opposing Balaam (Num 22:22); the adversary testing Job (Job 1–2) and opposing the high priest Joshua (Zech 3); and an adversary or perhaps even a being called Satan inciting David to take a census (1 Chr 21:1). While it is not clear what type of being this superhuman adversary is, he was most likely considered a god. The satan appears before YHWH with or as one of the sons of God (Job 1-2) and before YHWH opposite the angel of YHWH (Zech 3), seemingly as a member of the divine council.
Potential Gods
It is unclear if YHWH’s monsters, such as Leviathan, Behemoth, and Tannin, should be considered gods. As in the ANE, monsters like Leviathan are potent enough to scare the gods (Job 41:17), yet ANE monsters are only occasionally divine. Without much to go on, the biblical monsters may best be classified as god-adjacent. Nothing in the text suggests the serpent in the garden of Eden is the devil, but he is no ordinary snake as he speaks and seems to possess the knowledge of good and evil reserved for the gods (Gen 3). Serpents also may be divine elsewhere (e.g., Mehen in Egypt). However, the serpent too is likely god-adjacent, the quintessential trickster.
Unlike the New Testament, there is no clear reference to demons in the Hebrew Bible, though there are some shadowy figures who have traditionally been associated with the category: Azazel, seirim, and šedim. In each case, the text provides few details, leading interpreters to fill in the gaps. All that we know of Azazel is that he receives the scapegoat on the Day of Atonement (Lev 16:8, 10, 26). With monotheistic assumptions, commentators often identify Azazel as a superhuman being, one whom they presume opposes YHWH. By default then, Azazel becomes a demon. Seirim normally refer to male goats (in the singular sair even may refer to a hairy Esau [Gen 27:11]). In fact, the two goats on the Day of Atonement are called seirim (Lev 16:5-7). In two passages, Israel worships seirim (Lev 17:7; 2 Chr 11:15) and in two others seirim appear in desolate places in the company of other sinister creatures (Isa 13:21; 34:14). Since they are the objects of illicit worship and are not explicitly called gods, early Jewish commentators beginning with the Greek Septuagint identified them as demons, leading to the common translation “goat-demons.” Because of the presence of both Azazel and seirim in the Day of Atonement, commentators have linked the figures and later associated them with the devil and his minions. The seirim even may be one of the primary reasons more modern depictions of the devil give him horns, hooves, and a tail.
The šedim only appear twice (Deut 32:16-17; Psa 106:34-38), where they receive illicit worship. The people sacrificed to šedim (Deut 32:17), likely related to the Mesopotamian šedu, a lower-level protective god. The expression “no god” appears right after šedim, leading interpreters to assume that šedim are not gods, but demons. In fact, šedim became the common term for demons in early Jewish mythology. However, in context, šedim is most likely a derogatory term for lesser foreign gods, calling them in the next breath gods that Israel did not know, strange and new ones. When it says “no god,” it likely means that they sacrificed to šedim, not YHWH. In Psalm 106 as well, Israel sacrifices its sons and daughters to šedim, which stands in parallel to idols, again likely foreign gods accessed through their images. Rather than being in the divine employ like most monsters, these beings seem to be opponents of YHWH. Nonetheless, the text and its readers may still have viewed them as foreign gods rather than demons.
Šedu (also known as lamassu) form the throne room of the Palace of Sargon II, Khorsabad Assyria. In the Louvre. Photo by Gary Todd, CC.0 Public Domain.
Two other figures more closely resemble the later demon category — evil and lying spirits — but commentators hesitate to associate them with demons because they continue to work for God. While they do represent immaterial spirits, there is some evidence that they also should be considered gods, who like the Adversary, the Destroyer, and occasionally angels perform destructive duties at God’s command. For example, evil spirit seems to be the negative counterpart of the spirit of YHWH (1 Sam 16:14), while the lying spirit seems to be a member of the divine council (1 Kgs 22:19-23).
As in the wider ANE, there is even some evidence that natural elements, diseases, and abstract qualities could be divine. Psalm 104:3-4 treats clouds, wind, fire, and flame as animate divine servants, while Psalm 148 presents various seemingly inanimate elements as animate, calling on the stars, the heavens, the waters above the heavens, fire, hail, snow, frost, wind, mountains, hills, and trees to praise YHWH. Most dismiss these and similar references as poetic language, but it is hard to know for sure, especially when read alongside other texts. In some places, the host of heaven seems to represent the divine council (1 Kgs 22:19) and in others YHWH’s army (Deut 32:3); YHWH himself is often referred to as YHWH of Hosts. In many other cases though, they are simply the stars (Deut 4:19; 17:3; 2 Kgs 23:5; Jer 8:2) that nonetheless serve as the objects of illicit worship (Deut 4:19; 17:3; 2 Kgs 17:16; 21:3-5; 2 Chr 33:3-5; Jer 8:2; 19:13; Zeph 1:5). For example, Jeremiah 8:2 proclaims punishment for worshiping the sun, moon, and host of heaven. While the Bible prohibits astral worship, it does not deny the divinity of celestial bodies. Deuteronomy 17:13 explicitly puts them in the “other gods” category (see also Jer 19:13) and other texts place them alongside the well-established foreign gods Baal, Asherah, and Milkom (2 Kgs 17:16; 21:3-5; Zeph 1:5). The text either may imagine them worshiping the stars themselves, or it could be polemically reducing the celestial gods like the sun and moon gods — e.g., Mesopotamian Shamash and Sin — to natural elements as they reduce foreign gods to idols.
Pestilence, plague, destruction, death, hail, and the underworld also may be personified (Deut 32:24; Isa 25:8; 28:2, 15-18; Jer 9:21; Hos 13:14; Hab 2:5; 3:5; Psa 18:4-5; 91:3, 6; 148:8; Prov 27:20; Job 26:5-6; 28:22; see also Rev 6:8; 9:1-11). For example, Habakkuk 3:5 describes pestilence and plague as seemingly active members of the divine army. Again, this could be merely poetic language, a description of the disastrous effects of YHWH’s judgment. They also could be two among many of YHWH’s destructive animate forces, named here after their effects. In favor of their divinization, at Ugarit “plague” (resheph) is a major god, a protective warrior deity who specializes in bringing death by disease. In some texts, these forces serve YHWH (Deut 32:24; Isa 28:2, 15-18 [hail but not death]; Hab 3:5; Psa 148:8). In others, they seem to be his adversaries, leading some interpreters to demonize them. For example, various early interpreters including Jesus (Luke 10:17-19) seem to associate the forces in Psalm 91 with demons.
Proverbs 1-9 personifies Wisdom. Lady Wisdom was begotten by YHWH before creation as his daily delight (8:22-30). She acts like a protective personal deity (4:6; 7:4) who guides both her students and kings (8:14-16). Most assume that Lady Wisdom is a literary figure, personified for effect, perhaps like the animated natural elements in the Psalms encountered already. However, it is also possible that for some she was a goddess under YHWH’s authority. Lady Wisdom is an especially interesting case because she is potentially the first acceptable female deity. While other goddesses appear in the text, the Bible prohibits their worship: Asherah (e.g., Jdg 3:7; 1 kgs 15:13; 18:19; 2 Kgs 21:7; 23:4-7; 2 Chr 15:16), Astarte (Jdg 2:13; 10:6; 1 Sam 7:3-4; 1 Sam 12:10; 31:10; 1 Kgs 11:5, 33; 2 Kgs 23:13), and the Queen of Heaven (Jer 7:18; 44:17-25).
Pillar figurine of a female deity from Tell el-Duweir (Lachish), ca. 8th-7th century BCE. The Old Testament mentions such goddesses but forbids their worship. Perhaps Lady Wisdom was an exception? Metropolitan Museum of Art 34.126.53. Public Domain.
People have long been curious about the role of the goddess in biblical religion, especially whether YHWH had a wife like many other major gods. While Lady Wisdom would be more of a daughter, many have suggested Asherah as potential wife. While there is minimal biblical support for such a claim, extrabiblical sources suggest that some made such an association. In the biblical text, Asherah features alongside Baal, both of whom are roundly condemned. Nonetheless, at Kuntillet Ajrud in the Sinai peninsula inscriptions mention YHWH and his Asherah (either the goddess or a sacred pole).
In sum, the biblical god category seems full of diverse beings. YHWH the Israelite god represents the quintessential deity, yet while presented as supreme, he is one god among many. In addition to the gods, the sons of God are very likely divine, while angels, cherubim, seraphim, the Destroyer, and the Satan are likely gods as well. Monsters, demons, natural elements, disease, and abstract qualities potentially also may be divine. Having identified the cast of potentially divine characters, in the next article in this series, we will consider their common characteristics and the relationship between them.
Michael B. Hundley is Assistant Professor of Teaching in Religious Studies at the University of Memphis. He has published multiple books on the intersection of human and divine in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Near East.
Read the first article in this series: What is a God in the Ancient Near East?
Further Reading:
Esther Hamori, God’s Monsters: Vengeful Spirits, Deadly Angels, Hybrid Creatures, and Divine Hitmen in the Bible (Minneapolis: Broadleaf, 2023).
Matthias Henze, “Psalm 91 in Premodern Interpretation and at Qumran,” in Biblical Interpretation at Qumran (ed. Henze; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005),168-93.
Michael Hundley, Yahweh among the Gods: The Divine in Genesis, Exodus, and the Ancient Near East (Cambridge University Press, 2022).
Michael Hundley, Ancient Gods and Monsters: The Bible, the Ancient Near East and Beyond (forthcoming).
Alexander Kulik, “How the Devil Got His Hooves and Horns: The Origin of the Motif and the Implied Demonology of 3 Baruch,” Numen 60 (2013): 195-229.
Brett Maiden, Cognitive Science and Ancient Israelite Religion (Cambridge University Press, 2020).
Maciej Münnich, The God Resheph in the Ancient Near East (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2013).
Ryan Stokes, The Satan: How God’s Executioner Became the Enemy (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2019).
Archie Wright, Satan and the Problem of Evil: From the Bible to the Early Church Fathers (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2022).
How to cite this article:
Hundley, M. 2025. “What is a God in the Hebrew Bible? Part I: The Divine Cast of Characters” The Ancient Near East Today 13.7. Accessed at: https://anetoday.org/god-hebrew-bible-part1/.
Want to learn more?
Moses’ Other Names: A Clue to the Biblical Exodus During Egypt’s Civil War?
From Monolatry to Monotheism: The Changing Face of the Biblical Pantheon
What is a God in the Hebrew Bible? Part 2: Characteristics and Hierarchy
4 Comments
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ANE Today Editor
Hi Jeremiah, Mike Hundley has written the following books: “Yahweh among the Gods: the Divine in Genesis, Exodus, and the Ancient Near East”; “Keeping Heaven on Earth: Safeguardin ghe Divine Presence in the Priestly Tabernacle”; and “Gods in Dwellings: Temples and Divine Presence in the Ancient Near East”. The bio line was written by ANE Today staff, not by the author. Thanks for reading!
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Doug Martin
In my reading, the only book where divinities (other than those faux gods disclaimed by God and His prophets) appear, even being introduced as a “divine council” is Job (though they play no role there). Every other instance of characters that might have been identified as divinities historically seem to be easily explained (e.g. the Gen 6 sons of God, the Ps 82, Dt 32:8, etc.) Further, there is some wholesale mistranslation of the term סוֹד sôḏ (counsel) as עֵדָה `ēḏāh (council). See, e.g., Gen 49:6, Job 15:8, Jer 23:18, Ezk 13:9 which dramatically prejudices ones case for divinities where they do not, in fact, exist.
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Paul Hessell
What is the basis for the claim of the author that the serpent in the Garden of Eden is masculine? Here is the identifying pronoun used by the author: “Nothing in the text suggests the serpent in the garden of Eden is the devil, but he is no ordinary snake as he speaks and seems to possess the knowledge of good and evil reserved for the gods (Gen 3).”
Jeremiah Unterman
The brief bio says that “Michael B. Hundley… has published multiple books on the intersection of human and divine in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Near East.” However, only one published book is listed in “Further Reading.” Another book is “forthcoming.” Did he actually publish more than one book on the “intersection,” etc. or is this simply an exaggeration? I ask the question because the way he draws conclusions in the above article makes me wonder about how he uses language.