The Biggest Franchise on Earth Repackaged a Pagan God

The Second Commandment and a Simple Question

We’re zooming out from the narrative for a moment to consider what is actually going on with this Baal and Asherah worship. As I was meditating on the Ten Commandments — specifically the second commandment in Exodus 20 — I realised: this is a clear case of idolatry. And the second commandment is not just ancient history. The key principle of biblical interpretation is that you can copy and paste into our own day and find the parallels. Human nature has not changed. The Bible is a guide to life for every generation.

The second commandment: You shall not make for yourself a carved image, any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. My question was simple: what likeness was Baal made into?

Baal the Warrior

The answer is well documented. Baal in human form is a young, muscular royal warrior, holding something aloft — a bolt of lightning or a war club. He is the god of thunder, of the storm, of rain. He wears a helmet with horns. He is depicted as a powerful, conquering prince.

Does that description remind you of anything? It should. It is Thor. Muscular — check. Holds something aloft that commands lightning and storm — check. Royal, the son of a king — check. Helmeted — check. A god — check. Baal is Thor. Thor is Baal. And before the Norse myths, the same archetype appears across the ancient Near East from Ugarit to Babylon — the storm god, the warrior god, the mighty one who holds the lightning.

The Biggest Movie Franchise on Earth

Now copy and paste that into our own day. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the biggest movie franchise that has ever existed. You would have to go to the most isolated corner of the earth to find someone who has not watched at least a handful of those films. And at the centre of that franchise is Thor — the muscular, royal, lightning-wielding warrior god.

I am not saying: you shall not watch Marvel films. But I am asking: why is your life so empty that you feel drawn to this? Why are our imaginations being colonised by a repackaged Canaanite deity? And is it fit for children? I do not think it is.

The second commandment says: You shall not bow down to them nor serve them. The worshippers of Baal prostrated themselves before him — total, absolute submission, offering everything in exchange for what only he could provide: protection and fertility. We do not literally prostrate ourselves before Marvel’s Thor. But the devotion of imagination, of time, of money that people pour into this franchise — is it not a form of that same dynamic?

Submission and Provision

Consider the parallel with the tithe. Most people would not dream of not paying their taxes. The state demands it and they comply — punctiliously, to the last pound or dollar. But the tithe? Entirely optional. Something to be fitted in if convenient. Yet total submission — prostration — is exactly what God deserves. First and foremost and exclusively.

The implication of the second commandment is not just about carved statues. It is about where our real submission lies. Where does our money go first? Where does our obedience go first? What do we trust for provision and protection? These are the questions that reveal our actual god.

The Imagination Belongs to God

Baal, at root, is a figment of the imagination — a lie whispered into someone’s ear by a deceiving spirit, dressed up as a cosmic reality. And what demonic spirits delight in most is colonising the imagination. The imagination is not a neutral faculty. It is part of the inner life, and it must be sanctified to God.

The Bible is an extraordinarily rich book for the imagination — if we treat it as making sense, if we ask questions, if we try to see it. What did the wine press look like? What did Gideon look like, flailing grain? What kind of a man does God call a mighty warrior? These are worthy questions for a sanctified imagination.

The fantasy of Baal — the mighty warrior who conquers all — is answered in scripture by God’s own declaration over Gideon: The Lord is with you, mighty man of valour. The real adventure, the real elevation, is not putting yourself in Thor’s shoes for two hours. It is becoming, by God’s call and God’s Spirit, the king of your own thing — whatever field of work and dominion God has placed you in. That is where the true adventure lies.

We are not above noticing that the children of Israel, the people of the covenant, were Baal’s most devoted defenders — willing to kill for him. That is what syncretism does. Mix Jehovah with Baal and Jehovah always ends up in second place. He is either Lord of all or he is not Lord at all.

God bless you. Please follow and share with someone who might benefit. We’ll see you next time.