DAYSPRING (שַׁ֫חַר, H8840, dawn, dayspring; Job 38:12, KJV. Ανατολή Luke 1:78, RSVmg.) For initial discussion, see [http://biblegateway/wiki/Dawn, Dawning. Dawn, The DAWN]. Some feel that the primary use of שַׁ֫חַר, H8840, is as the name of the Amorite god Shahar, the Venus star at dawn. Ugaritic mythology describes the birth of Shahar and Shalem, his twin, to the Canaanite god El. Reflection of this myth may appear in Job 3:9 and 41:18, where “the eyelids of שַׁ֫חַר, H8840” are mentioned, and in the phrase “the wings of שַׁ֫חַר, H8840” (Ps 139:9). Job 41:18 compares the eyes of Leviathan with the eyelids of שַׁ֫חַר, H8840. Frequently, the passage has been tr. “eyelids of the morning,” a reference to the rays of the sun at dawn. עַפְעַפַּ֫יִם, H6757, can mean “eyelashes” as well as “eyelids,” which would perhaps fit the imagery better. The simile regarding Leviathan does indeed suggest the sun rather than a star, since flashing brightness is demanded by the context. On the other hand, reference to Canaanite deities is not unknown in the OT. It is difficult, however, to regard שַׁ֫חַר, H8840, as primarily denoting a god, since the word means “dawn” also in Ugaritic.

Bibliography C. H. Gordon, Ugaritic Literature (1949), 60-62; J. Gray, “The Desert God Attr in the Literature and Religion of Canaan,” JNES VIII (1949), 72-83.