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High god

A reference page linking a name, group, or concept to the materials that discuss it.

A deity with a senior position among other gods; this does not itself mean monotheism.

Tablet of a hymn to Marduk, The Met 86.11.313; first millennium BCE, in Sumerian with Akkadian translation. A textual example of a deity’s exaltation, not proof of monotheism or a universal model of the high god
Tablet of a hymn to Marduk, The Met 86.11.313; first millennium BCE, in Sumerian with Akkadian translation. A textual example of a deity’s exaltation, not proof of monotheism or a universal model of the high godThe Metropolitan Museum of Art · Purchase, 1886 · CC0 1.0 · CC0License · Object record

Text

“High god” describes a superior position within a divine hierarchy. A deity may be presented as father, ruler or principal authority while other gods remain recognised. Such a position is not in itself monotheismMonotheismBelief in a single God as the only deity, rather than merely the highest among several gods.Glossary · Click to read the explanation. The description must be tied to a particular tradition and source, not treated as a universal stage in religious development. [1] [2]

References and notes

  1. Heath D. Dewrell & Andrew M. Garbarino, Names of God in the Hebrew Bible, Oxford Bibliographies (2023) Available introduction: El as common noun or proper name, and Elohim and Yahweh. The cited literature was not read in full. Return to the text ↑
  2. Mark S. Smith, The Origins of Biblical Monotheism, Oxford University Press (2001) Publisher’s abstract and contents on divine structures and monotheism. Modern scholarship, not a quotation of a particular Ugaritic text or a full-book reading. Return to the text ↑

Research history

Substantive changes are retained here. Minor copy edits remain in the internal operational log.

  1. Edition 2 · 10 October 2026 · editor:aladmin

    Substantive record update

    Read this revision in its original language (Arabic)

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IL Archive, «High god», Edition 2, https://ilarchive.com/en/entities/high-god