ADON Not Here, Ba'al Is

Archaeologists working in Israel have discovered an ancient cult complex where people, who lived thousands of years ago, might have worshiped a "god" know as Baal.

The complex was unearthed at the archaeological site of Tel Burna, located near the Israeli city of Kiryat Gat. It's believed to date back 3,300 years.

Though more excavation needs to be conducted, the archaeologists said the site is believed to be quite large, with the courtyard of the complex measuring more than 50 feet on one side.

Researchers said the site has already yielded artifacts that seem to confirm the complex’s cultic past. These include enormous jars that may have been used to store tithes, masks that might have been used in ceremonial processions, and burnt animal bones that hint at sacrificial rituals.

Itzhaq Shai, director of the Tel Burna Excavation Project, told Live Science that it wasn't entirely clear which god the complex was dedicated to. But he called Baal -- which ancient Middle Eastern cultures worshipped as a fertility god -- the "most likely candidate.” 

Another possibility, according to UPI, is that members of the cultworshipped a female god, like the ancient war goddess Anat.

Baal, also rendered Baʿal, a North-West Semitic title and honorific meaning "master" or "lord" that is used for various gods who were patrons of cities in the Levant and Asia Minor, cognate to Akkadian Bēlu. A Baalist or Baalite means a worshipper of Baal.

"Baal" may refer to any god and even to human officials. In some texts it is used for Hadad, a god of thunderstorms, fertility and agriculture, and the lord of Heaven. Since only priests were allowed to utter his divine name, Hadad, Ba‛al was commonly used.

Baʿal (bet-ayin-lamedh) is a Semitic word signifying "The Lord, master, owner (male), keeper, husband", which became the usual designation of the great weather-god of the Western Semites.

In Hebrew, the word ba'al means "husband" or "owner", and is related to a verb meaning to take possession of, for a man, to consummate a marriage. The word "ba'al" was used in many Hebrew  phrases, denoting both concrete ownership as well as possession of different qualities in one's personality.

The words themselves had no exclusively religious connotation; they are honorific titles for heads of households or master craftsmen, but not for royalty. The meaning of "lord" as a member of royalty or nobility is more accurately translated as Adon in Semitic.