MERODACH, tnivrA-dAk. or BEL-MEitonAcit. The name of a Babylonian-Assyrian deity. who is generally referred to in the Old Testament as Bel (i.e. or Bel-Merodaeli. The Baby lonian form of the, name is "(anoint: or Mantel... Originally merely the patron deity of the city of Babylon. he became the head if the Babylonian Pantheon, as Babylon grew (II be the capital of a great kingdom. In virtue of this preiminent posi tion. he usurped the rites of older gods. xvho in earlier periods of Mesopotamian history had been supreme, notably the chief god of Nippur. known as Bel of Nippur ,or simply Bel. !knee the references to him in the 1 lid Testament as Bel or llerodach, and. in the Babylonian literature, the snli-litu)ion of Marduk by the Babylonian theologians in hymns and myths whieh originally spoke of Bel. By virtue of this process. Marduk beemnes the creator of mankind as well a. the god who order into the uni verse by Ili- conquest of the monster Tiamat. This story of Marduk and Tiamat became known to the Hebrew., among it ,Leave birth to such coneeptions as Leviathan (q.v.). and Plays a
prominent part in the Apocalyptic literature. In the legend of Saint George and the dragon we have another transformation of the Marduk and Tiamat myth. .3.1arduk appears originally to have been a solar pal. but. as in the case of other gods, Ids nature is not and hence he appears also in the literature as a storm god. In the artificial astronomical system of the Baby lonian scholars. which identified the chief deities with the great stars, Alarduk is identical with the planet Jupiter of the Romans. As the head of the Pantheon lie receives such title. as 'King of the Gods,' 'King of (leaven and Earth. "the supreme god,' and the like. 'The chief temple of 31arduk stood in the city I) f Babylon and was known as E-sag-ila (i.e. the lofty house'). It is now being explored by a German expedition. Consult: Jastrow, Religion of Itebylonia and ..ts. syrie, especially chaps. viii. xxi. (Boston, 18981 ; Zimmern, Kcilinschrif ten unit des Testament. pp. 370-In; I Berlin. 190'2).