yahweh is a disgusting and dishonorable god that deceives and tortures, including his own followers. the jews are are a mirror of the disgusting nature of yahweh. chemosh is a more powerful and honorable god. he doesn't demand that you worship him. he only says that if you want to fight off ethnic invaders, then you can sacrifice members of your enemy in his name and he will fight by your side. in 2 kings 3, moab was a vassal to israel, and it decided to rebel against israel. (v. 4-5) israel, judah, and edom decide to strike back. they stop by the prophet elisha to get yahweh's word on whether they will be victorious. elisha prophecies that "(yahweh) will also deliver moab into your hands. you will overthrow every fortified city and every major town." (v. 18-19) this appears to be the case, and every major city is destroyed except kir hareseth, or "fortified city of dirt." but, suddenly, in verse 27, the moabite king sacrifices his own child, and "divine wrath" fell on israel, causing them to retreat. the hebrew word there, , is exclusively used in classical hebrew to describe the wrath of a deity. the moabites worshipped chemosh. we also have a moabite stele with this exact scenario inscribed, paralleling 2 kings 3: "omri was king of israel, and oppressed moab during many days, and chemosh was angry with his aggressions... and i took from it the vessels of yahweh, and offered them before chemosh... and chemosh drove him out before me." this parallel is clear. in 2 kings 3, yahweh's prophecy of victory is a failure, and chemosh's wrath drives israel into retreat. in the moabite inscription, chemosh's wrath ends in yahweh's defeat and the fleeing of israel. yahweh is not an omnipotent god in much of the bible. he is one of many gods, and he is a god that can be beaten. hitler sought out the mesha stele to call upon chemosh. but the bedouins attempted to destroy the stele so that yahweh would not be beaten again.
Canada