I. Name
Assur occurs in the OT as a person, the second son of Shem in the table of nations (Gen. 10.22), as a people or world power, and as the land of Assyria. While the concept of the power may have been sometimes subsumed in the concept of the deity, the only certain attestation of the name of the deity can be found within the name of the king Esarhaddon (Isa. 37.38 = 2 Kgs. 19.37, Ezra 4.2).
II. Identity
Assur is the god of Assyria par excellence. His name is identical with that of the city of Assur, which with its temple, the bı…