Ashtars

In Bible versions:

Ashtars: NET
Ashtoreth: NET AVS NIV NASB TEV
Ashtoreths: NET NIV
Ashtaroth: NET AVS NIV NRSV NASB TEV
Ashteroth Karnaim: NET NIV
Astarte: NET NRSV
Beeshtarah: NET
Ashteroth-Karnaim: AVS TEV
Beeshterah: AVS NRSV TEV
Be Eshtarah: NIV
Astartes: NRSV
Ashteroth-karnaim: NRSV NASB
Be-eshterah: NASB

pagan god images of the Canaanite goddess Ashtoreth
a town of Manasseh about 35 km east of the sea of Chinnereth
a goddess
a town of Manasseh given to the Gershonites

---

flocks; sheep; riches ( --> same as Ashtoreth)
flocks; sheep; riches ( --> same as Ashtaroth)

---

NET Glossary: another name for the goddess Ashtoreth (the supreme goddess of Canaan), also connected with the goddess Ishtar (worshiped in Bablyonia and Assyria)

NETBible Maps: OT4 D4 ; OT5 D4

Google Maps: Ashtaroth (32° 49´, 36° 0´); Ashteroth-karnaim (32° 45´, 36° 0´); Beeshterah (32° 49´, 36° 0´)

Hebrew

Strongs #06252: twrtve `Ashtarowth or trtve `Ashtaroth

Ashtaroth or Astaroth = "star"

n pr f deity
1) false goddesses in the Canaanite religion, usually related to
fertility cult

n pr loc
2) a city in Bashan east of the Jordan given to Manasseh
2a) same as 06255

6252 `Ashtarowth ash-taw-roth'

or bAshtaroth {ash-taw-roth'}; plural of 6251; Ashtaroth, the
name of a Sidonian deity, and of a place East of the
Jordan:-Asharoth, Astaroth. See also 1045, 6253, 6255.
see HEBREW for 06251
see HEBREW for 01045
see HEBREW for 06253
see HEBREW for 06255

Strongs #06255: Mynrq trtve `Asht@roth Qarnayim

Ashtoreth-karnaim = "Ashtoreth of the two horns or peaks"

1) a city in Bashan east of the Jordan given to Manasseh
1a) same as 06252

6255 `Ashtroth Qarnayim ash-ter-oth' kar-nah'-yim

from 6252 and the dual of 7161; Ashtaroth of (the) double
horns (a symbol of the deity); Ashteroth-Karnaim, a place East
of the Jordan:-Ashtoreth Karnaim.
see HEBREW for 06252
see HEBREW for 07161

Strongs #06253: trtve `Ashtoreth

Ashtoreth = "star"

1) the principal female deity of the Phoenicians worshipped in war
and fertility
1a) also 'Ishtar' of Assyria and 'Astarte' by the Greeks and Romans

6253 `Ashtoreth ash-to'reth

probably for 6251; Ashtoreth, the Phoenician goddess of love
(and increase):-Ashtoreth.
see HEBREW for 06251

Strongs #01203: hrtveb B@`esht@rah

Beeshterah = "with increase"

1) a Levitical city in Manasseh, east of the Jordan; probably identical
with 'Ashtaroth'

1203 B`eshtrah beh-esh-ter-aw'

from 6251 (as singular of 6252) with a prepositional prefix;
with Ashtoreth; Beeshterah, a place East of the
Jordan:-Beeshterah.
see HEBREW for 06251
see HEBREW for 06252

Ashtaroth [EBD]

a city of Bashan, in the kingdom of Og (Deut. 1:4; Josh. 12:4; 13:12; 9:10). It was in the half-tribe of Manasseh (Josh. 13:12), and as a Levitical city was given to the Gershonites (1 Chr. 6:71). Uzzia, one of David's valiant men (1 Chr. 11:44), is named as of this city. It is identified with Tell Ashterah, in the Hauran, and is noticed on monuments B.C. 1700-1500. The name Beesh-terah (Josh. 21:27) is a contraction for Beth-eshterah, i.e., "the house of Ashtaroth."

Ashteroth Karnaim [EBD]

Ashteroth of the two horns, the abode of the Rephaim (Gen. 14:5). It may be identified with Ashtaroth preceding; called "Karnaim", i.e., the "two-horned" (the crescent moon). The Samaritan version renders the word by "Sunamein," the present es-Sunamein, 28 miles south of Damascus.

Ashtoreth [EBD]

the moon goddess of the Phoenicians, representing the passive principle in nature, their principal female deity; frequently associated with the name of Baal, the sun-god, their chief male deity (Judg. 10:6; 1 Sam. 7:4; 12:10). These names often occur in the plural (Ashtaroth, Baalim), probably as indicating either different statues or different modifications of the deities. This deity is spoken of as Ashtoreth of the Zidonians. She was the Ishtar of the Accadians and the Astarte of the Greeks (Jer. 44:17; 1 Kings 11:5, 33; 2 Kings 23:13). There was a temple of this goddess among the Philistines in the time of Saul (1 Sam. 31:10). Under the name of Ishtar, she was one of the great deities of the Assyrians. The Phoenicians called her Astarte. Solomon introduced the worship of this idol (1 Kings 11:33). Jezebel's 400 priests were probably employed in its service (1 Kings 18:19). It was called the "queen of heaven" (Jer. 44:25).

Ashtaroth [NAVE]

ASHTAROTH
1. Plural form of Ashtoreth, which see. 2. The capital city of Bashan, Deut. 1:4; Josh. 9:10.
Giants dwell at, Josh. 12:4.
Allotted to Manasseh, Josh. 13:31; 1 Chr. 6:71.
Possibly identical with Ashteroth Karnaim, mentioned in Gen. 14:5.

Ashteroth Karnaim [NAVE]

ASHTEROTH KARNAIM, an ancient city of Palestine taken by Chedorlaomer, Gen. 14:5.

Ashtoreth [NAVE]

ASHTORETH
An idol of the Philistines, Zidonians, and Phoenicians. Probably identical with queen of heaven, Jer. 7:18.
Worshiped by Israelites, Judg. 2:13; 10:6; 1 Sam. 7:3, 4; 12:10; 1 Kin. 11:5, 33; 2 Kin. 23:13.
Temple of, 1 Sam. 31:10.
High places of, at Jerusalem, destroyed, 2 Kin. 23:13 See: Groves.

Astarte [NAVE]

ASTARTE
See: Ashtoreth.

Be Eshtarah [NAVE]

BE ESHTARAH
See: Beesh-terah.

ASHTAROTH [SMITH]

and once As?taroth (a star), a city on the east of Jordan in Bashan, in the kingdom of Og, doubtless so called from being a seat of the worship of the goddess of the same name. (1:4; Joshua 9:10; 12:4; 13:12)

ASHTEROTH KARNAIM [SMITH]

(Ashteroth of the two horns or peaks) a place of very great antiquity, the abode of the Rephaim. (Genesis 14:5) The name reappears but once, as Carnaim or Carnion, 1 Macc. 5:26,43,44; 2 Macc. 12:21,26, in "the land of Galaad." It is probably the modern Es-Sanamein , on the Haj route, about 25 miles south of Damascus.

ASHTORETH [SMITH]

(a star) the principal female divinity of the Phoenicians, called Ishtar by the Assyrians and Astarte by the Greeks and Romans. She was by some ancient writers identified with the moon. But on the other hand the Assyrian Ishtar was not the moon-goddess, but the planet Venus; and Astarte was by many identified with the goddess Venus (or Aphrodite), as well as with the plant of that name. It is certain that the worship of Astarte became identified with that of Venus, and that this worship was connected with the most impure rites is apparent from the close connection of this goddess with ASHERAH. (1 Kings 11:5,33; 2 Kings 23:13)

ASTARTE [SMITH]

[ASHTORETH]

BEESHTERAH [SMITH]

(house of Ashterah), one of the two cities allotted to the sons of Gershon out of the tribe of Manasseh beyond Jordan. (Joshua 21:27) Probably identical with Ashtaroth. (1 Chronicles 6:71)

ASHTAROTH [ISBE]

ASHTAROTH - Plural of Ashtoreth.

See ASHTORETH.

ASHTAROTH; ASHTEROTH-KARNAIM; BEESHTERAH [ISBE]

ASHTAROTH; ASHTEROTH-KARNAIM; BEESHTERAH - ash'-ta-roth, as'-ta-roth (`ashtaroth; the King James Version Astaroth; Astaroth, the city of Og, king of Bashan (Dt 14, etc.); `ashteroth qarnayim, the scene of the defeat of the Rephaim by Chedorlaomer (Gen 14:5): (be`eshterah) a Levitical city in Manasseh East of the Jordan (Josh 21:27)): The name probably means "house" or "temple of Ashtoreth." It is identical with Ashtaroth of 1 Ch 6:71. Ashtaroth is the plural of ASHTORETH (which see). The name denotes a place associated with the worship of this goddess. Ashteroth-karnaim is mentioned only once in canonical Scripture unless we accept Gratz's restoration, when Karnaim appears as a city taken by Israel: "Have we not taken to us horns (qarnayim) by our own strength?" (Am 6:13). It is identical with Carnion or Carnaim of 1 and 2 Macc, a city of Gilead with a temple of Atar-gatis. The name Ashtaroth has been identified with Astertu in the lists of Tahutmes III of the XVIIIth Egyptian Dynasty; and with Ashtarti of the Tell el-Amarna Letters. Its claim to antiquity is therefore well established.

As far as the Biblical record is concerned, the names at the head of this article might stand for one and the same city, Ashtaroth being a contraction from Ashteroth-karnaim. But in the days of Eusebius and Jerome, we learn from the Onomasticon, there were two forts of this name 9 miles apart, lying between Adara (Der`ah) and Abila (Abil), while Ashtaroth, the ancient city of Og, king of Bashan, lay 6 miles from Adara. Carnaim Ashtaroth, which is evidently identical with Ashteroth-karnaim, they describe as a large village in the angle of Bashan where tradition places the home of Job. This seems to point to Tell `Ashtara, a hill which rises about 80 ft. above the plain, 2 miles South of el-Merkez, the seat of the governor of the Chauran. Three-quarters of a mile North of el-Merkez, at the south end of a ridge on which the village of Sheikh Ca'ad is built, stands the weley of the stone of Job, Weley Sakhret 'Ayyub. By the large stone under the dome Job was said to have sat to receive his friends during his affliction. An Egyptian inscription, found by Schumacher, proves the stone to be a monument of the time of Rameses II. At the foot of the hill is pointed out the bath of Job. In el-Merkez the building known as Deir 'Ayyub, "Monastery of Job," is now part of the barracks. There is also shown the tomb of Job. The stream which flows southward past Tell `Ashtara, is called Moyet en-Neby 'Ayyub, "stream of the prophet Job," and is said to have risen where the patriarch stamped his foot on his recovery. It is to be noted also that the district lying in the angle formed by Nahr er-Raqqad and the Yarmuk River is called to this day ez-Zawiyet esh-sharqiyeh, "the eastern angle" (i.e. of the Jaulan). The term may in Jerome's time have covered the land east of the `Allan, although this is now part of the Chauran. At Tell `Ashtara there are remains pointing to a high antiquity. The site was also occupied during the Middle Ages. Perhaps here we should locate Carnaim Ashtaroth of the Onomasticon. It does not, however, agree with the description of Carnaim in 1 and 2 Macc. The Ashtaroth of the Onomasticon may have been at el-Muzerib, on the great pilgrimage road, about 6 Roman miles from Der'ah--the distance indicated by Eusebius. The old fortress here was situated on an island in the middle of the lake, Baheiret el-Bajjeh. A full description of the place is given in Schumacher's Across the Jordan, 137 ff. It must have been a position of great strength in antiquity; but the ancient name has not been recovered.

Some would place Ashteroth-karnaim, the Carnaim of the Maccabees, at Tell 'Ash`ari, a site 10 Roman miles North of Der`ah, and 4 1/2 Roman miles S 2 of Tell `Ashtara. This clearly was "a place hard to besiege, and difficult of access by reason of the narrowness of the approaches on all sides" (2 Macc 12:21). It crowns a promontory which stands out between the deep gorge of the Yarmuk River and a great chasm, at the head of which is a waterfall. It could be approached only by the neck connecting it with the mainland; and here it was guarded by a triple wall, the ruins of which are seen today. The remains of a temple close by the bridge over the Yarmuk may mark the scene of the slaughter by Judas.

The whole question however is obscure. Eusebius is clearly guilty of confusion, with his two Ashtaroth-karnaims and his Carnaim Ashtaroth. All the places we have named lie considerably North of a line drawn from Tell Abel to Der`ah. For light upon the problem of identification we must wait the results of excavation.

W. Ewing

ASHTEROTH-KARNAIM [ISBE]

ASHTEROTH-KARNAIM - ash'-te-roth kar-na'-im: I.e. "Ashteroth of the two horns," mentioned in Gen 14:5 as the place of Chedorlaomer's defeat of the Rephaim. See ASHTAROTH. A Carnaim or Carnion in Gilead, with a temple of Atar-gatis attached, was captured by Judas Maccabeus (1 Macc 5:43,44; 2 Macc 12:26).

ASHTORETH [ISBE]

ASHTORETH - ash'-to-reth, ash-to reth (`ashtoreth; plural `ashtaroth; Astarte):

1. Name and Origin

2. Attributes of the Goddess

3. Ashtoreth as a Moon-Goddess

4. The Local Ashtaroth

1. Name and Origin:

The name of the supreme goddess of Canaan and the female counterpart of Baal.

The name and cult of the goddess were derived from Babylonia, where Ishtar represented the evening and morning stars and was accordingly androgynous in origin. Under Semitic influence, however, she became solely female, but retained a memory of her primitive character by standing, alone among the Assyro-Bab goddesses, on a footing of equality with the male divinities. From Babylonia the worship of the goddess was carried to the Semites of the West, and in most instances the feminine suffix was attached to her name; where this was not the case the deity was regarded as a male. On the Moabite Stone, for example, `Ashtar is identified with Chemosh, and in the inscriptions of southern Arabia `Athtar is a god. On the other hand, in Atar-gatis or Derketo (2 Macc 12:26), Atar, without the feminine suffix, is identified with the goddess `Athah or `Athi (Greek Gatis). The cult of the Greek Aphrodite in Cyprus was borrowed from that of Ashtoreth; whether the Greek name also is a modification of Ashtoreth, as has often been maintained, is doubtful.

2. Attributes of the Goddess:

In Babylonia and Assyria Ishtar was the goddess of love and war. An old Babylonian legend related how the descent of Ishtar into Hades in search of her dead husband, Tammuz, was followed by the cessation of marriage and birth in both earth and heaven, while the temples of the goddess at Nineveh and Arbela, around which the two cities afterward grew up, were dedicated to her as the goddess of war. As such she appeared to one of Assur-bani-pal's seers and encouraged the Assyrian king to march against Elam. The other goddesses of Babylonia, who were little more than reflections of the god, tended to merge into Ishtar who thus became a type of the female divinity, a personification of the productive principle in nature, and more especially the mother and creatress of mankind.

The chief seat of the worship of Ishtar in Babylonia was Erech, where prostitution was practiced in her name, and she was served with immoral rites by bands of men and women. In Assyria, where the warlike side of the goddess was predominant, no such rites seem to have been practiced, and, instead, prophetesses were attached to her temples to whom she delivered oracles.

3. Ashtoreth as a Moon-Goddess:

In Canaan, Ashtoreth, as distinguished from the male `Ashtar, dropped her warlike attributes, but in contradistinction to Asherah, whose name and cult had also been imported from Assyria, became, on the one hand, the colorless consort of Baal, and on the other hand, a moon-goddess. In Babylonia the moon was a god, but after the rise of the solar theology, when the larger number of the Babylonian gods were resolved into forms of the sun-god, their wives also became solar, Ishtar, "the daughter of Sin" the moon-god, remaining identified with the evening-star. In Canaan, however, when the solar theology had absorbed the older beliefs, Baal, passing into a sun-god and the goddess who stood at his side becoming a representative of the moon--the pale reflection, as it were, of the sun--Ashtoreth came to be regarded as the consort of Baal and took the place of the solar goddesses of Babylonia.

4. The Local Ashtaroth:

Hence there were as "many Ashtoreths" or Ashtaroth as Baals. They represented the various forms under which the goddess was worshipped in different localities (Jdg 10:6; 1 Sam 7:4; 12:10, etc.). Sometimes she was addressed as Naamah, "the delightful one," Greek Astro-noe, the mother of Eshmun and the Cabeiri. The Philistines seem to have adopted her under her warlike form (1 Sam 31:10 the King James Version reading "Ashtoreth," as Septuagint), but she was more usually the moon-goddess (Lucian, De Dca Syriac., 4; Herodian, v.6, 10), and was accordingly symbolized by the horns of a cow. See ASHTEROTH-KARNAIM. At Ashkelon, where Herodotus (i.105) places her most ancient temple, she was worshipped under the name of Atar-gatis, as a woman with the tail of a fish, and fish were accordingly sacred to her. Elsewhere the dove was her sacred symbol. The immoral rites with which the worship of Ishtar in Babylonia was accompanied were transferred to Canaan (Dt 23:18) and formed part of the idolatrous practices which the Israelites were called upon to extirpate.

A. H. Sayce

ASTARTE; ASTORETH [ISBE]

ASTARTE; ASTORETH - as-tar'-te.

See ASHTAROTH.

BEESHTERAH [ISBE]

BEESHTERAH - be-esh'-te-ra (Josh 21:27).

See ASHTAROTH.