polytheism. But the canon as a whole bears witness to the persistent determination of the living God, in transcendent uniqueness and universality, to defeat and destroy all that seduces human beings away from the love they receive from God and the love they should give to God. God’s battle with the gods, then, is an essential part of God’s mission. And God’s mission is the blessing of the nations. So the blessing of the nations must ultimately include ridding them of gods that masquerade as protectors