Does Exodus 12:12 Promote Polytheism?

Does Exodus 12:12 Promote Polytheism?

In the Bible, there are many verses that people use to claim the Bible is polytheistic, one example is Exodus 12:12: "For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments—I am the Lord," (Exodus 12:12 NASB1995).

There are two common perspectives on what is going on in the passage. One perspective is the term "gods" may not be the correct translation. The word used in the text is: "אֱלֹהֵ֥י", which is the word "אֱלֹהִ֔ים" in the construct form, i.e. similar to the genitive or possessive form found in some languages. The word "אֱלֹהִ֔ים" or "Elohim" has a large semantic range (i.e. many meanings). Some definitions include: God, gods/spiritual beings, or people of high authority like a prince. As Dr. John Gill writes: "and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment; meaning either figuratively, the nobles, princes, judges and civil magistrates, who are sometimes called Elohim, gods," (Gill). The Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary also notes: "gods of Egypt—perhaps used here for princes and grandees," (Jamieson). It is possible the term "אֱלֹהֵ֥י" in this passage only means a prince, but it is to be noted that neither of the scholars interpret the passage as this, but it is a possible interpretation.

Dr. Gill continues stating: "this is, rather to be understood literally of the idols of the Egyptians, their images of gold and silver, or of whatever they were made of: the Targum of Jonathan is, "on all the idols of the Egyptians I will exercise four judgments; the molten idols shall be melted, the idols of stone shall be cut asunder, the idols of earth shall be broke to pieces, and the idols of wood shall become ashes," (Gill). Rather than the Bible speaking on Egyptian gods, many scholars believe it is much more likely about idols. 

The Pulpit Commentary also explains: "Against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. These words are exegetical of the word "beast," which immediately precedes. Animal worship was an important part of the religion of the Egyptians. At four great cities, Memphis, Heliopolis, Hermonthis, a sort of suburb of Thebes, and Momemphis in the Western Delta, animals were maintained, which were viewed as actual incarnations of deity ... If any of these were at the time animals that had "opened the womb," death must have fallen upon them. Thus would judgment have been executed, literally, upon Egyptian "gods." But, besides these, the whole country was filled with sacred animals, regarded as emblematic of certain particular deities, and as belonging to them. Sheep were sacred to Kneph, goats to Khem, cows to Athor, cats to Pasht, dogs and jackals to Anubis, lions to Horus, crocodiles to Set and Sabak, hippopotami to Taouris, cynocephalous apes to Thoth, frogs to Heka. A sudden mortality among the sacred animals would be felt by the Egyptians as a blow struck against the gods to whom they belonged, and as a judgment upon them," (Jones).

Works Cited:

Jamieson, Robert, et al. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary. United States, Hendrickson Publishers, 1996.

New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.

The Pulpit Commentary, Volume 6. United States, Delmarva Publications, Inc., 2015.

Wolever, Terry. John Gill's Exposition of the Old and New Testaments: Some Background on the First Three Editions. United States, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2018.