Worldview.

Old Testament writers had a three-tiered worldview.

God was above (the Sky God).

Humans were on the Earth.

And Sheol (the abode of the dead) was below. 

Therefore activities in the sky - like thunder and lightning - were interpreted as God's anger.

 

And drought - when there was no rain from the sky - was interpreted as God's punishment for sin. (Deuteronomy 11;17)(2 Chronicles 6:26,27)

This is because God dwelt in the sky.

And Sheol (the abode of the dead) was below the earth because when people died they were buried in the earth.

But these ancient understandings are manifestly untrue.

God does not dwell in the sky.

And the dead do not live below the earth.

But an understanding of the worldview of both Pagans and Old Testament writers informs our understanding of both mythology and the words and concepts of the Old Testament.

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