Isa 14:13-15 | NETfull | STEP | You said to yourself, “I will climb up to the sky. Above the stars of El I will set up my throne. I will rule on the mountain of assembly on the remote slopes of Zaphon.

Isaiah 14:13-15

13 You said to yourself, ^{▼▼ Heb “you, you said in your heart.”}
“I will climb up to the sky.
Above the stars of El ^{▼▼ In Canaanite mythology the stars of El were astral deities under the authority of the high god El.}
I will set up my throne.
I will rule on the mountain of assembly
on the remote slopes of Zaphon. ^{▼▼ Zaphon, the Canaanite version of Olympus, was the “mountain of assembly” where the gods met.}
14 I will climb up to the tops ^{▼▼ Heb “the high places.” This word often refers to the high places where pagan worship was conducted, but here it probably refers to the “backs” or tops of the clouds. See HALOT 136 s.v. בָּמָה.} of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High!” ^{▼▼ Normally in the OT the title “Most High” belongs to the God of Israel, but in this context, where the mythological overtones are so strong, it probably refers to the Canaanite high god El.}
15 But you were brought down ^{▼▼ The prefixed verb form is taken as a preterite. Note the use of perfects in v. 12 to describe the king’s downfall.} to Sheol,
to the remote slopes of the pit. ^{▼▼ The Hebrew term בּוּר (bor, “cistern”) is sometimes used metaphorically to refer to the place of the dead or the entrance to the underworld.}