{"database": "deitydb", "table": "entities", "rows": [["ENT_ARA_BAALSHAMIN", "Baalshamin", null, "Aramean", "Lord of Heaven / sky and storm deity", "High Deity", "sky; storm; rain; cosmic sovereignty; divine protection; weather", null, null, null, "A", null, null, null, null, null, "Baalshamin (\"Lord of Heaven,\" Aramaic Ba\u02bfal-\u0161amayim; Greek Zeus Baalshamin) is one of the most widely attested deities of the ancient Semitic world and the dominant sky deity of the Aramean and Palmyrene traditions. As \"Lord of Heaven\" he presides over the cosmic sky, rain, and storm functions, and his name became nearly a theological title for the supreme divine sovereign of the heavens across Aramaic-speaking communities from Phoenicia to Arabia. His earliest significant attestation is the Aramaic inscription of Zakkur, King of Hamath (c. 800 BCE), in which Baalshamin promises victory to Zakkur over the coalition of kings besieging him \u2014 structurally parallel to Khaldi's role in Urartian royal ideology. He had a major sanctuary at Si' (in the Hauran region of southern Syria, extensive Nabataean inscriptions) and one of the two principal temples at Palmyra (the Baalshamin temple, dedicated 131 CE, well-preserved until its destruction by ISIL in August 2015). Greek-Palmyrene bilingual inscriptions consistently render \"Baalshamin\" as \"Zeus,\" confirming the ancient interpretatio graeca. In the Book of Daniel (2nd c. BCE), \"Baal Shamayim\" (\"Lord of the Heavens\") is used as an ironic term for the Seleucid deity Olympian Zeus installed in the Jerusalem Temple \u2014 the \"abomination of desolation\" (Daniel 9:27, 11:31), preserving the Aramaic theonym in a polemical Jewish source. Lipi\u0144ski (2000) pp. 577-588; Kaizer (2002) pp. 60-85.", "deity"]], "columns": ["entity_id", "canonical_name", "greek_name", "tradition", "entity_type", "category", "primary_domains", "tags", "cult_scope", "primary_period", "evidence_confidence", "review_status", "inclusion_basis", "earth_association_score", "chthonic_flag", "serpent_flag", "short_note", "entity_class"], "primary_keys": ["entity_id"], "primary_key_values": ["ENT_ARA_BAALSHAMIN"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.053210999998555, "source": "jebboone/deitydb", "source_url": "https://github.com/jebboone/deitydb", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT"}