Bible Dictionaries
Baal

　　Baal (Romans 11:4 in a quotation from 1 Kings 19:18) was a generic name for a god among Semitic peoples, the literal meaning being ‘owner’ or ‘lord.’ Attempts have been made to show that this was the original name of the Sun-god, or that it represents the Supreme Being worshipped by the Canaanites. Neither of these contentions can be proved; indeed it is evident that the Baal of one place differed from that of another. Thus the reference in the text is to Melkart, the Baal of Tyre. The feminine article ( (= the reading is

　　Literature.-A. S. Peake, article ; W. R. Smith, RS 2, London, 1894, p. 93ff.

　　F. W. Worsley.