The classical criticism of the other gods implies that
the other gods are real. There is no indication that their existence or power
was challenged or questioned in this phase, and instead, other reasons are
given why the other gods should not be worshipped by the Israelites. Not only
would the other gods be a challenge to YHWH (Deut 5:7, 9), but they were also
assumed to be gods of other nations (Deut 7:1–6; 12:1–7, 28–32). Israel had its
gods, while the other nations had theirs (Deut 4:19; 29:25). Cults that were
rejected were portrayed as foreign and therefore illegitimate. For example, the
worship of Asherah, Baal, holy trees, astral bodies and the massebot,
belonged to this category (Deut 4:3; 7:4–5; 12:2–7, 28–32; 17:3, etc.).20 Behind
the prohibition of worshipping other gods is a motif to separate Israel from
the other nations. Accordingly, the editors wanted to make a connection between
the assimilation of Israel with other nations and the worship of their gods. (Juha Pakkala, “Deuteronomy and 1-2 Kings in the Redaction of the Pentateuch
and Former Prophets,” in Deuteronomy in the Pentateuch, Hexateuch, and the
Deuteronomistic History, ed. Konrad Schmid and Raymond F. Person, Jr. [Forschungen
zum alten testament 2. Reihe 56; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2012], 138)
