deities suffers from a onesided use of Mesopotamian material." That Micah, who worshipped Yahweh, used the Teraphim as an idol, and that Laban regarded the Teraphim as representing "his gods", is thought to indicate that they were evidently images of deities. It is considered possible that they originated as a fetish, possibly initially representative of ancestors, but gradually becoming oracular. Benno Landsberger and later Harry Hoffner derive the word from Hittite tarpiš, "the evil daemon". See also Di Penates Household deity Lares Mount Gerizim Plastered human skulls Ushabti Notes References Karel Van Der Toorn, "The Nature of the Biblical Teraphim in the Light of Cuneiform Evidence," CBQ 52 (1990), 203–222. Cult images Figurines Yahweh Hebrew words and phrases in the Hebrew Bible Deities in the Hebrew Bible Tutelary deities Hebrew Bible objects Book of Genesis Books of Samuel David