ZAW 123. Bd., S. 553–564 DOI 10.1515/ZAW.2011.036 © Walter de Gruyter 2011 The Cultic Identity of Asherah in Deuteronomistic Ideology of Israel Sung Jin Park (Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Cincinnati, OH, USA; sja7park@gmail.com) 1. Introduction Over a quarter of a century after the finds from Khirbet el-Qom and Kuntillet ^Ajrud, in spite of much discussion by numerous scholars, the identity of the goddess Asherah both in the biblical and extra-biblical sources is still under debate. On the one hand, based on biblical refer- ences, scholars have identified Asherah as a goddess, the goddess, or the cult object. 1 This goddess took the form of a tree or was made of wood because it could be cut down (Ex 34,13; Deut 7,5; Jud 6,25–30; II Reg 18,4; 23,14; II Chr 14,2; 31,1) or even burnt (Deut 12,3; Jud 6,26; II Reg 23,15). Two references in the Bible (Deut 16,21; Jud 6,26) clearly indicate that Asherah was made of wood, but it still remains unclear whether she was wholly or only partly made of wood. 2 Moreover, her cultic function in connection with the cult of Yahweh is ambiguous. On the other hand, based on extra-biblical references, lots of scholars have proposed extremely diverse forms for Asherah, including a tree (either a living tree or a tree of life), a lion (related to Qudshu), a snake, the mistress of the beasts, and even a menorah. 3 No one, how- 1 I make a distinction between »a goddess« and »the goddess« since some scholars like B. Halpern have treated »a goddess« as a common noun or title but »the goddess« as a proper noun. This distinction helps further clarification for Asherah’s cultic function, so I will make use of it in this paper. See B. Halpern, The Baal (and the Asherah) in Seventh- Century Judah: Yhwh’s Retainers Retired, in: R. Bartelmus / T. Krüger / H. Utzschnei- der (eds.), Konsequente Traditionsgeschichte (Festschrift Baltzer), OBO 126, 1993, 120–121. 2 According to S. Wiggins, the extra-biblical texts, including Ugaritic literature, do not indicate any special connection between Asherah and trees. He thinks that many scholars connect Asherah in the extra-biblical texts or icons with trees primarily because of evidence from the Bible, which is minimal. S. Wiggins, Of Asherahs and Trees: Some Methodological Questions, JANER 1 (2001), 186. 3 On Asherah as a tree, refer to M. S. Smith, The Early History of God: Yahweh and The Other Deities in Ancient Israel, 2002, 112; J. M. Hadley, The Cult of Asherah in Ancient Israel and Judah: Evidence for a Hebrew Goddess, UCOP 57, 2000, 206–209; O. Keel,